Thank you everyone for reading this thread and also your kind words.
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Originally Posted by amods I too just returned from Trivandrum to Bengaluru after a 1600KM round trip. Highways in TN and Kerala are as different as day and night. The distance of 101 km from TVM to Kanyakumari highway takes anywhere between 2.5-3 hours. Traffic sense in roads of KL and from Parassala - Nagercoil is best not to talk about. I feel pity that you decided to drive through Kerala for most part.
Kanyakumari has a sea of people anytime I go there. People pour in buses and mini buses. Since I have been to rock memorial earlier, I choose to avoid it altogether now and enjoy the surroundings.
Driving aside, Kerala has some beautiful landscape. Hope you enjoyed Munnar. |
We loved Munnar, especially since we stayed at Sterling which is pretty far from town and the crowds. The resort itself is quite old and is in need of renovation.
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Originally Posted by asbshyam Excellent road trip, must have been very relaxing.
Just a quick query if you don't mind answering. How's 4G reception in Sterling Munnar for either Airtel, JIO or VI? I might visit them soon and I'm trying to find out if I can make it a workcation. |
Good question, we have had very poor experiences with 4G reception in several Sterling resorts. Especially in Mussorie and Thekkady. However in Munnar it wasn't too bad, maybe because of the location of our cottage. We all use Jio.
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Originally Posted by DicKy Thank you, thank you. We try our best to make the stretch a challenging one. So much, that we elected representatives who try to ensure it remains as such. Who knows. We may soon find remnants of the TVM-Kanyakumari cement road built in the 1940s if the potholes get deep enough. ![Stick Out Tongue](https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/images/smilies/tongue.png) |
![Big Grin](https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/images/smilies/biggrin.png)
Great to see self deprecating humour!
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Originally Posted by DicKy Erm... You had to stop at Irani for veg food? I don't even know if they serve any veg food!!! As a local, it would be the last place I would go to have veg food. Just saying, as a few kilometres north or south you had lots of veg restaurants options. |
We unfortunately didn't know better, they had the usual veg fried rice etc so we weren't completely dissatisfied. But we couldn't see anyone else eating veg food.
I will keep my eye out for better alternatives next time we go on that route.
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Originally Posted by DicKy Sorry. Beg to differ. Kerala woudn't have had floods recently if it cared much for the environment. It is the industry unfriendly nature of the state that makes industries turn away. And we can thank the Western ghats for the greenery, not the people's commitment to the environment. Ofcourse, we have pioneering and active environment protection groups, but it is basic geography that results in the contrast between the two states. And IMHO, bad narrow roads with heavy traffic load are more harmful in the big scheme than proper highways. |
It must be perception perhaps. Coming from Tamilnadu, we see a lot of our river sand being transported to Kerala because river mining is apparently banned there. Also I have heard from my friends in Kerala that even cutting trees in one's own house is extremely difficult and is frowned upon by the society..
Also the sheer amount of greenery in Kerala is perhaps rivalled only by the North East, again this is probably, as you say, due to the geographical location .
I do not doubt the issues you mentioned and I hope the environment groups prevail.
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Originally Posted by nthomas1 A good road trip is needed to refresh and rejuvenate oneself !
Driving in Kerala is an experience in itself. I make frequent instate travel between Tuticorin and my Native place in Kerala. As per my experience , the best time to drive in Kerala is at Night. Traffic is very much sparse after 8 pm. |
This might have been a good idea, however we wanted to enjoy the sights of the mountains and the seaside while driving. Also I am not a great night driver and try to avoid it if I can.
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Originally Posted by venkyhere You must be joking. Read about "Gadgil report" and the amount of illegal mining and quarry operations in western ghats. Its an eye opener. It's been more than 10 years and if anything, the destruction of western ghats has accelerated over these past 10 years. The findings of the report are in the dustbin. It's no different from anywhere else in India. The greenery is because this tiny sliver of land is on the windward side of the western ghats and the SW monsoon clouds get blocked and shed their water, replenishing the water table and all those hundreds of flowing streams/rivers go on and enrich the soil, year after year. It's not because 'people of kerala' are particularly bothered about environment. |
I feel sad to hear this, I hope common sense prevails in future and Kerala does not go the way of Tamilnadu in terms of deforestation.
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Originally Posted by anbaras Nice pics. All the hotels You have chosen for staying seems to be good. Because of crowds, I never venture out for long trips in the December End. I prefer the March End to do road trips and long trips.
As we are also Vegetarians, Choosing the right hotel will be a tough task in the unknown places. I usually fix the timing of the trip and the place of Dining in advance to overcome this. You could have stayed atleast one more day in the Munnar to enjoy that place in depth.
Any how it was a nice trip. |
We actually planned to stay in Munnar for another day, but the Sterling cottages we stayed in weren't the best. The property is old, the beds were musty and the bathroom wasn't well maintained. We have been to Munnar before and will probably go back in future too.
Luckily finding vegetarian food was never an issue. We did not seek out any pure vegetarian restaurants, just ones which had vegetarian food.