Friday:-
We (our project team) planned to go for a trip to Masinagudi and its adjacent locations. We started by a Friday night to Coimbatore. Unfortunately, we got only the Mangalore mail (train), due to our late decision to go for a trip. The problem about Mangalore Mail is, it is the train which traverses the furthest path to reach Coimbatore from Chennai. Its departure time is 10:00 PM. Whenever, I have to catch a bus/train, I will reach there half-an-hour earlier. Fear!!!. But, this time even worse, I got there by 9'O clock. I called up other folks to know where they are. Most of them have just started. Announcement at Egmore railway station told, train is going to arrive at platform 5. I went to platform and found a comfortable place. I got my Mp3 player fully loaded for the tour. Now, I am hearing Mozart's collection. By 9:30, other folks started arriving "The Marriage of the Figaro" got interrupted.
I was directing every one of them to platform 5. Our 3rd class A/C coach is at the tail end of the train. We walked a long distance to catch my coach. Now, Time is 9:50. Till, some of our guys had to reach the station. One colleague called me, to know the direction of our coach. I clearly directed them the opposite way. I took me some time to realize that I have shown them a wrong direction. Then, I was running and mobiling (??-New term) the colleague. Found them and directed towards the right direction. (Asadu Vazinchathu thaan micham).
All set. Train started. We were busy asking others to exchange places, since we all like to sit in the same compartment. We succeeded a bit in that. We played cards for some time. Got bored. Then, we played Dumb C. After that, every gone to sleep (I didn't remember the time). Third class A/C is well maintained. So, I can able to sleep well.
Saturday:-
I got up by 7:30 AM and freshened up. Like most of the south Indian, I like to have a sip of coffee every morning. So, I bought a coffee at Erode Junction. As usual, it is the worst. By the time, one my colleague's husband bought "Appams" for breakfast. I never know it was Appam (Never seen an Appam before). I thought it was a big Dosa. While eating, somebody told me it is an "Appam". Anyway, had a good break fast!!
Most of the time, I was enjoying the nature by sitting next to a window. I like those places, bored of seeing buildings and flats in Chennai. Always, I like this part of the state. We reached Coimbatore by 12 Noon, I guess.
We had a Tempo traveler ready to pick us from the station, for the entire trip. We went to one of my colleague's house at Coimbatore. We freshened up there. We got some 15 minutes time in between, and we found a rubber ball. So, we were playing tennis with our hand in the space in front of the house. We started by 3:00 PM and collected our lunch parcel which we have ordered. It is a video coach vehicle. So, we were listening to Songs, some movies (Verrachami - T.Rajendher special - he heee.. Can't able to see that for more than 10 mins). We reached Masinagudi by 8 or 9 PM, I guess. We traveled up to Ooty and got down the other side to reach Masingudi.
The Log house in Masingudi was superb. But only two rooms were there. I along with some guys have to go to Masinagudi Guest house, which is little away from the log house. Dinner was good at log house. Chapatti and some dal as side dish. Non Vegetarian folks had chicken. We were planning for a drive through the road to see elephants crossing the road. So, we planned to keep our bags at Masingudi Guest house and then started with our ride. But, the person there unwilling to give us a key for the door, which was pathetic. There is another door inside for which he gave the key. But, we have to wake them up to get in. We cancelled our plan and two of us stayed in the guest house cursing the fellow. We were planning for a trekking into the forest, so we kept the alarm at 5:30 AM next morning.
Sunday:-
Alarm rang. I was thinking, why Alarm got rung this early and checked the time. It was 5:30 AM. I went to have a bath. It is the strangest of the bathroom, with 4 doors. I don't know why they have four doors for a bathroom. Fortunately, hot water facility was there. Otherwise, I would have frozen. I was trying to open the tab to get the cold water. The tab came along with my hand and water splashed directly from the pipe. (Got frightened a bit). We started for trekking at 6:15 AM. A Jeep picked us up and left at a place along with a local village guy. We walked into the forest (mostly plains). We saw couple of elephants. Our guide was warning that we should approach that area, so we 4 along with the guide moved towards another direction.
One of our brave colleagues was taking photographs of an elephant which passed that way, without knowing another one is hiding and looking at him straight. It slowly approached towards him. Realizing the danger, he turned towards us, thinking that we are near. We were standing at a farther distance, he came running towards us. I am also watching that elephant and suddenly saw a rapid movement of the elephant and also saw that my colleague was running towards us. I also ran looking at elephant's direction, but the elephant was running in the opposite direction.
This is the only adventure we had during the 5 KM trekking. We heard about the dangerous bears that may come. We never saw one. We saw only monkeys and elephants. The guide took us only through plains. I think he should have known the danger in going into dense areas. Just before reaching the road, we all frightened seeing a pig, thinking it as a bear. Any way trekking is over. We planned to go for another trekking in hilly areas the next day.
We went back to the log house. I didn't see the neighborhood of the log house in the previous night. But now I can able to see it very clearly. Simply Beautiful. A small pond, surrounded by greens.
Then we all ate breakfast and left the log house by 12:00 to Thepakkadu which is nearer to Masinagudi. During the transit, we saw a tied elephant in the road side. We all stopped and took a photo with the elephant in the back drop. Then I saw a beautiful some kind of cottage near a stream. I wished I should have been there, but never imagined we are heading towards that place. Wow!!! What a place... Just wandered around for some time to feel the beauty of that place.. I gone down to the stream and sat at a broken tree trunk, which held its place little into the stream.. It was soothing to hear the water flowing sound.. My colleagues got attracted for what I did.. They all came down there...We took some snaps there...
Now, the lunch is ready. We had a good lunch at Theppakadu log house; we all set for the Safari ride into Mudhumalai forest. It started raining and we started entering the forest in a van.
First, we saw a bunch of elephants very close. One medium sized elephant got little agitated by our arrival and it threatened us with a sound.. The reason I think was there is a baby elephant in the crowd, they all were surrounding that. We saw some more elephants and lots of spotted deer. We returned back. It was raining a bit and that evening time is the best time to hear Bach Brandenburg concerto. The environment really suited and I enjoyed the concertos a lot than before. Our plan for campfire got shattered due to rain, we stayed in the log house, playing some fun games.. We had dinner, again I had to leave to a separate dormitory (which is little away from a log house) due to lack of space at log house.
We three went there at around 10:30 PM and opened it. One guy wanted to return to log house, so he locked us outside and went. My freighted friend don't want to switch of the lights.
Monday:-
I slept well due to tiredness. Suddenly, woke up and recognized that lights are off. I thought another colleague went to log house returned back and switched off the lights. Then only I recognized he was not there and it was a power cut. Time now is 2:30 AM; we were planning for another trekking in the morning. I recognized sound of a chain hearing constantly, suddenly fear struck me. I was thinking on why the sound is coming suddenly. Then, after some time I heard a bell sound. Then only I recognized, it is a elephant tide to a nearby tree. (I confirmed that next day morning.)
It was raining, so our trekking plans were cancelled. No hot bath due to power cut. I was the first guy to try the very cold water bath. I came out with flying colors. We had our breakfast, started packing to leave the place. We started by 12:00 PM. We stopped at a road side tea shop when traveling toward Ooty. At the shop is well placed in a hair pin bend. Then, we had our break fast at Ooty. It was very very cold there at 3:00 PM. I had another beautiful vegetarian lunch. Non vegetarian people went to a separate restaurant and they returned very late. Meanwhile, I was watching Sura Samharam (A Kamal Hassan movie) in the van. Once the reached, we started to Connor tea estate. We all watched "Unnale Unnale" while traveling. The movie really jelled with the climate and it set the completeness for the whole tour. I enjoyed watching it. We bought some tea packets at Cunnor tea estate and hurried back to Coimbatore. We had to catch 10:00 PM train.
Tour was over. We reached Chennai at 7:30 PM on Tuesday morning and hurried back to office, to compensate our absence on Monday.
