Trip to Kodaikanal & Madurai

srikanthpotluri · 10th December 2009, 12:41

Hello Aquarian, Punto aka Shine was superb throughout the trip, since she is brand new we didnt bother to check anything. There was no trouble whatsoever. As i said we covered the distance till Trichy in 3.5 hours, was keen to unleash her power on the highways, we didnt have to worry about the handling, comes from masters of handling right "Fiat".

I think I had mentioned somewhere but worth it again - while I was on my way back I was at a very high speed and all of a sudden i bike guy came & took one u turn and was in front of me

when i applied brakes my wifey and friends were worried, I smiled

Shine slowed down as if i was on butter.

srikanthpotluri · 10th December 2009, 12:42

Hi Rahul - thank you!

Hi M - yes, some more pics are to be posted, will find some time today to post them.

Majic · 10th December 2009, 13:13

Hey i am still waiting for those photos, please do post them when you get time

srikanthpotluri · 11th December 2009, 11:29

After a very nice sleep I am not sure for some reason I got up by 5:30 AM, and was not able to sleep after that. So went out to see from hotel window whats there, it was clear without much of mist or fog and very very cool. Didn't want to disturb wifey so left her to sleep while i switched on TV and was watching some nice drama movie.

We both got ready and came down to have breakfast at Hilltops vegetarian restaurant. I had hot Idlis and wifey took her favourite masala dosa.

We inquired with the hotel manager about the places to visit and how to get there, he advised us to take a walk first towards Coakers walk and Lake. So we did. Coakers walk is very near to the hotel and a 5 min walk took us there. Its a nice round walk with good views, more in pics.

After the walk we came out and while coming down we saw the Garden to our left, went inside, it was beautiful flowers & different plants. We went into the Glass Garden and it was even more beautiful. We spoke to the ladies working there and let me tell you its very very tough to maintain the nature and present the beauty to us. Thanks to them.

While we were coming down towards the lake from the Garden's second gate slight drizzle started and the whole scene was beautiful. We enjoyed the drizzle walked towards the lake and spent some time there. After spending more than 2 hours we came back to the hotel and decided to take our Shine and see whats in store.

By this time the clouds were everywhere and the main peak view points were all covered in misty clouds, there was no point going there, hence we decided to just roam around see whats there. First we headed towards the Pine Forest. After spending some time here we drove further and came across a view point, here we didn't see much except for clouds & a monkey who tried to take away my antenna

We then went further and found a nice valley view for the lake, some photographer told me that its the shape of India, I am not sure though.

After the valley view while heading down we came across the pillar rocks, however we couldn't see anything due to the clouds, we headed down towards the lake and came across a beautiful Golf Course, some old retired men were playing as well.

We went into a Punjabi Dhaba for late lunch near to Hilltop but the food was bad, we walked out and went into Hilltop's southern restaurant and had nice Biryani and Andhra Chicken. Post lunch we headed towards Madurai - again we enjoyed the views and greenery around, the whole road from Kodai to Madurai was very nice.

Once in Madurai we went and met our friends and the rest is all about his function. Post function the next day we were back in Chennai.

I hope you enjoyed the log and here are the pics-

srikanthpotluri · 11th December 2009, 11:36

Some more pics of the place...

gopikb · 11th December 2009, 12:01

Srikanth, wonderful pictures. I am planning to drive to kodai with my family over the Christmas weekend. These pictures give us an idea of what to expect. My 7 year old daughter was thrilled seeing your pictures as she had never been there before. By the way, the window tints on your Punto looks exactly like mine. Did you put Llumar Diamond series N35 sunfilm by any chance?

Chevy_lover · 11th December 2009, 12:05

Hey Sri, very nice photos and nice narration of your short sweet trip.

We also loved the Chicken Biriyani at Hilltop. It brought back memories of my hometown. I usually avoid Punjabi dhabas, when I am in the south. Their dishes usually turn out horrible!

Any more pics coming up?

Fordmanchau · 11th December 2009, 12:17

Hey Srikanth,your Punto in red looks awesome.Some very nice photos of the Punto. I need to go to kodai. The pics are good.very nice trip.

srikanthpotluri · 11th December 2009, 12:29

Hi Gopi, thank you, you will surely enjoy, do share the experience once back.

I havent put any sunfilm so far, its just the standard tinted glass.

Hi CL, thank you, I am glad you liked the narration, no where near yours

Most probably we might go back in Feb mid, to attend the same friends wedding, I am hoping to stay this time atleast a day more.

Hi Ford, thank you! Shine is too good to look at and I never get bored

hi all, these are the last set of pictures, they show the greenery around and these were taken while we were on descend to Madurai. Enjoy!!!

Note from the Team-BHP Support Team : Please use the "edit" button if posting within 20 minutes of the first post, instead of creating another back-to-back post.

Also use "Multi Quote" option for quoting Multiple posts.

10th December 2009, 12:41	#31
srikanthpotluri BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 472 Thanked: 769 Times View My Garage	Hello Aquarian, Punto aka Shine was superb throughout the trip, since she is brand new we didnt bother to check anything. There was no trouble whatsoever. As i said we covered the distance till Trichy in 3.5 hours, was keen to unleash her power on the highways, we didnt have to worry about the handling, comes from masters of handling right "Fiat". I think I had mentioned somewhere but worth it again - while I was on my way back I was at a very high speed and all of a sudden i bike guy came & took one u turn and was in front of me when i applied brakes my wifey and friends were worried, I smiled Shine slowed down as if i was on butter.
	() Thanks

10th December 2009, 12:42	#32
srikanthpotluri BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 472 Thanked: 769 Times View My Garage	Hi Rahul - thank you! Hi M - yes, some more pics are to be posted, will find some time today to post them.
	() Thanks

10th December 2009, 13:13	#33
Majic BHPian Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Kottayam Posts: 588 Thanked: 8 Times	Hey i am still waiting for those photos, please do post them when you get time
	() Thanks

11th December 2009, 11:29	#34
srikanthpotluri BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 472 Thanked: 769 Times View My Garage	Day 2 - Our day in Kodai After a very nice sleep I am not sure for some reason I got up by 5:30 AM, and was not able to sleep after that. So went out to see from hotel window whats there, it was clear without much of mist or fog and very very cool. Didn't want to disturb wifey so left her to sleep while i switched on TV and was watching some nice drama movie. We both got ready and came down to have breakfast at Hilltops vegetarian restaurant. I had hot Idlis and wifey took her favourite masala dosa. We inquired with the hotel manager about the places to visit and how to get there, he advised us to take a walk first towards Coakers walk and Lake. So we did. Coakers walk is very near to the hotel and a 5 min walk took us there. Its a nice round walk with good views, more in pics. After the walk we came out and while coming down we saw the Garden to our left, went inside, it was beautiful flowers & different plants. We went into the Glass Garden and it was even more beautiful. We spoke to the ladies working there and let me tell you its very very tough to maintain the nature and present the beauty to us. Thanks to them. While we were coming down towards the lake from the Garden's second gate slight drizzle started and the whole scene was beautiful. We enjoyed the drizzle walked towards the lake and spent some time there. After spending more than 2 hours we came back to the hotel and decided to take our Shine and see whats in store. By this time the clouds were everywhere and the main peak view points were all covered in misty clouds, there was no point going there, hence we decided to just roam around see whats there. First we headed towards the Pine Forest. After spending some time here we drove further and came across a view point, here we didn't see much except for clouds & a monkey who tried to take away my antenna We then went further and found a nice valley view for the lake, some photographer told me that its the shape of India, I am not sure though. After the valley view while heading down we came across the pillar rocks, however we couldn't see anything due to the clouds, we headed down towards the lake and came across a beautiful Golf Course, some old retired men were playing as well. We went into a Punjabi Dhaba for late lunch near to Hilltop but the food was bad, we walked out and went into Hilltop's southern restaurant and had nice Biryani and Andhra Chicken. Post lunch we headed towards Madurai - again we enjoyed the views and greenery around, the whole road from Kodai to Madurai was very nice. Once in Madurai we went and met our friends and the rest is all about his function. Post function the next day we were back in Chennai. I hope you enjoyed the log and here are the pics- Attached Thumbnails
	() Thanks

11th December 2009, 11:36	#35
srikanthpotluri BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 472 Thanked: 769 Times View My Garage	Some more pics of the place... Attached Thumbnails Attached Images
	() Thanks

11th December 2009, 12:01	#36
gopikb BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 555 Thanked: 393 Times	Srikanth, wonderful pictures. I am planning to drive to kodai with my family over the Christmas weekend. These pictures give us an idea of what to expect. My 7 year old daughter was thrilled seeing your pictures as she had never been there before. By the way, the window tints on your Punto looks exactly like mine. Did you put Llumar Diamond series N35 sunfilm by any chance?
	() Thanks

11th December 2009, 12:05	#37
Chevy_lover Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Köln Posts: 1,209 Thanked: 130 Times View My Garage	Hey Sri, very nice photos and nice narration of your short sweet trip. We also loved the Chicken Biriyani at Hilltop. It brought back memories of my hometown. I usually avoid Punjabi dhabas, when I am in the south. Their dishes usually turn out horrible! Any more pics coming up?
	() Thanks

11th December 2009, 12:17	#38
Fordmanchau Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Hyderabad Posts: 1,666 Thanked: 340 Times	Hey Srikanth,your Punto in red looks awesome.Some very nice photos of the Punto. I need to go to kodai. The pics are good.very nice trip. Last edited by Fordmanchau : 11th December 2009 at 12:22.
	() Thanks

11th December 2009, 12:29	#39
srikanthpotluri BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 472 Thanked: 769 Times View My Garage	Hi Gopi, thank you, you will surely enjoy, do share the experience once back. I havent put any sunfilm so far, its just the standard tinted glass. Hi CL, thank you, I am glad you liked the narration, no where near yours Most probably we might go back in Feb mid, to attend the same friends wedding, I am hoping to stay this time atleast a day more. Hi Ford, thank you! Shine is too good to look at and I never get bored hi all, these are the last set of pictures, they show the greenery around and these were taken while we were on descend to Madurai. Enjoy!!! Note from the Team-BHP Support Team : Please use the "edit" button if posting within 20 minutes of the first post, instead of creating another back-to-back post. Also use "Multi Quote" option for quoting Multiple posts. Attached Thumbnails Last edited by Dippy : 12th December 2009 at 00:06. Reason: See note in post.
	() Thanks