A couple of friends and me decided to take a break and we landed up in Kodaikanal for three day two night weekend getaway. After trying to mull up more people for the event, I finally had a small group of 4 people including me.
I did the planning and the bookings and was constantly thinking “how many cancellations are there going to be?” Since it was peak season, I had to book travel and accommodation well in advance. My luck, there were no drop outs though I though there was a potential dropout. And, D-Day arrived and we finally went to Kodaikanal. It sure was a good recharge of batteries. All of us ate huge portions of food, without bothering about calories and fat, slept for long hours and just chilled out from the Chennai heat.
I have been to Kodaikanal a couple of times in my earlier years. It is no match to the tourism spots which Kerala has to offer, with its Munnar, Wyanad, Kumarakom etc. So, I went with this mindset, Kodai will be the same old congested and dirty place. Surprise! The lake (Which by far is the only USP in Kodai, besides the weather) was much cleaner without any visible plastic or garbage. I later walked into a department store for some shopping and realised that plastic and polythene bags are prohibited by the local government. Sad, I did’nt know this, and had to carry my stuff in a paper bag made of old newspaper. This was hard, but welcome. These small acts have helped Kodai to be cleaner, and adds to the scenic view that the place has to offer.
I wish such effective rules could be extended to the entire state, or if not to Chennai alone for a start. Will surely make this place much cleaner!
Coming to this picture, this is me in the Pine Forest of Kodaikanal. (Does my overeating show up?)
