Click here to go to the day 1 :)
I woke up by 6 in the morning. Got myself fresh and I am ready to go!! Nishku had already kept the route map print in my bag. Checked the route map and it was only 217 kms to Kumily as per the map!!! I couldn't digest that though. Nishku was asleep. Kicked him awake to say good bye and I am off by 6:45 AM from Coimbatore. First destination is Palani via Pollachi. I need to find a way out of the city first. Headed straight to Gandhipuram, again straight to Ukkadam, a U turn, then a left from the flyover and I am near the junction at Coimbatore Jn railway station. Some guys in a car were guiding me from the railway station road to Pollachi road but lost them at the traffic signal at the Pollachi road. Doesn't matter, I found the road. Crossed NH47 after a while where the red lights stopped none of the truckers or moped guys. I was waiting at the signal for the light to turn green and everyone around were looking at me as if I have come from some other planet. I think they all think that the lights are there for the coming Diwali!!
The road was good and the weather the better. Sun was just rising over the fields and the traffic was very light. Reached Pollachi and followed the sign boards to find the Palani road. It was easy. The road ahead was better than the earlier and here I go. I was cruising past the buses and trucks. Then, all of a sudden, one Scooty Pep over took me!!! I was riding at 70-80 kmph and this tiny creature just zapped past me. There was a guy of 45 yrs riding it, his daughter in the middle and wife riding side saddle in the rear. I couldn't believe it and was very angry to see this. Well, it is not that I mind somebody overtaking me but I was angry at the headless asshole riding it. I couldn't imagine what would happen if a truck just came onto the wrong lane. Forget that, what about a pothole? There was 95% chance for an accident. I have seen teenagers rash riding on tiny scooters and bikes but a middle aged guy with his family riding pillion rashing on an uneven highway on a tiny little scooter!!! That was.... I don't know what to call it!!!
I stopped in the middle of a wind farm. The view was beautiful. But only 3 or 4 of the mills were rotating!!! Again I wish I had a camera with me :( Started again and stopped to attend a call from my friend. There was a small shop where I stopped and I had a tea and some peanut cookie (Kadalamuttayi) from there. Met the scooter family after some kilometers. They were filling petrol - from a bottle! Wished them good luck in my mind and I headed to Palani. I have planned to fill petrol and air at Palani. Stopped near Palani at a junction which seemed to be - one direction to Palani town and other, a bye pass. But there were no signboards and I decided to ask at the nearby Petrol bunk. Filled some petrol and asked the bunk guy about the way and he, after a long thought, told me the way, which seemed to me, towards the town. There was no air filling at the bunk and I started again worrying about the tire pressure. I was right and reached the heart of the mess at the Palani town. Found a petrol bunk with air filling and I entered that. Filled petrol for Rs 50 and availed the free air filling!!!
After the mess of the town, I joined the bye-pass which I missed. Next destination is Oddamchittaram, 30 kms ahead. I stopped near a railway gate and drank a tender coconut. It was Rs 15!!! A tender coconut in the middle of Bangalore city will cost you only Rs 12. On the day 1 of the trip I had one for Rs 7 and I was pretty much happy with that. I cursed Bangalore guys for charging Rs 12 and re-reminded myself that Tamilnadu villages have a cheap cost of living. And now, after paying Rs 15 to the guy, I wondered about this costing!!! Rode non stop till Oddamchittaram and there I was at Oddamchittaram junction with no signboards. I asked for direction to a guy standing there and unfortunately he was new there. So I got down from the bike and asked one carpenter who was busy giving finishing touches to a chair. He told me that I got to go right to reach Vattalagundu which is my next destination. I gotta go 40 kms more to reach there. I was nearly out of cash. On a trip like this, one should always carry enough money for, well, towing the bike. Just in case. Another reason is that I may be asked to shell out money by some Police guy at any point of time. Bribe!!! You can say no to bribe, but if you are travelling through another state, alone, on a long distance bike trip, you have no other choice but to give a few hundreds. So I stopped at an ATM in Vattalagundu. ATM was also out of cash. So I thought of taking money from Periakulam, my next stop.
I reached Periakulam after a wonderful cruise through the NH48 extn. I was riding slowly in search an ATM and I found one at the end of the town. Got down from the bike and walked into the ATM only to see the security motioning to me that the machine is out of order. He told me that the next ATM is in Theni, my next destination, which is very close by. Theni... One of the Theni municipality members was my friend and I think he still is. So I was telling myself that even if some police guy ask me to bribe, I can call my, so called contact and escape. But I still remember one instance happened some years ago in Theni with this Contact. We went to a college for an admission, not through entrance exam but through this 'Contact'. All the managements said no and the Contact revealed his identity to them. They were like "Oh, so you are the so-and -so. Good for you. What the hell do we have to do with that?" So I tell myself that the Contact stuff won't work and head for an ATM!!! (Jokes apart, he is an influential person. But I would never use these influences against law and order).
At last I got the money from Theni and headed to Cumbom. Now I was in a dilemma on which route to take to reach home. I had three options. First, I can turn right from Cumbom to Cumbom mettu through the ghat road and go home via Kattappana. Second, I can go to Kumily and from there to home via Kattappana and finally from Kumily to Marykulam via Anavilasam, Pullumedu which is the shortest but not a major road. I thought of calling home and asking about the final route. I stopped near Cumbom, stretched, washed my face and called home but no one picked up the phone. I tried some more calls home and then gave up.
It was around 1:30 PM when I reached Cumbom and I turned right towards Cumbom mettu, thanks to the impulse. I stopped at the road entrance to have lunch from a Kerala hotel where me and my cousin had come some years back on a way to meet 'The Contact' for some business matters for my cousin. While I was having my lunch, my dad called me and I asked him about the routes. He suggested me to take the Kumily - Anavilasam - Marykulam route and assured me that I would get a bus very easily!!! So guess what? My parents didn't know that I was coming all the way from Bangalore on my bike ;)
I turned around from the Cumbom mettu road after my lunch and head to Kumily, Kerala. I could see the hills of Kerala infront of me. Steep hills. I have to climb all the way up and I enjoy riding uphill. I passed through the grape yards of Gundalpettu. I had an urge to stop by and have some fresh grapes but I didn't. Don't ask me why. So here I am, climbing the ghat road to Kumily. I had to crawl behind buses because there was not enough width for road to overtake, and at last, I entered Kumily, Kerala.
Hooo hooo.... KERALA!!! I was laughing hard with joy, inside my helmet. I felt like I have reached home. But I have not reached home! The sky was cloudy in Kerala and it was likely to rain in an hour. I gotta rush home before it starts to rain. I head straight on NH220 and turn towards Anavilasam after 1.5 kms. Now I was riding through a small road. I was riding through Cardamom and Coffee plantations. Hairpin bends and steep climbs. Jungle streams and tall trees. I could see the rain in the hills far away and the air around me told me that they were expecting rain in anytime. It was awesome. Sexy! Romantic! But I was alone :( :(
Nevermind!!! I gotta go because it already started drizzling. The plantation workers were going home with their plastic head covers against rain. I wanted to go fast but it was impossible to go fast through this road. It started to rain and I was still riding. I gave up after a while and stopped at a bus stop and got the cover from rain in a waiting shed. I asked an auto-rickshaw driver and he told me that it was 3.5 kms to Marykulam. Another auto-rickshaw came with some school kids and one little girl joined me. Little Safia had to go to her tuition teachers place and she was waiting for her mom to come with umbrella to take her. She told me that she was studying in 2nd standard but she took out a UKG text book from her bag and started studying. She was taking tuitions for some scholarship. My mom called me and asked me how I was coming. I told her that I was coming by bike. She called me only to ask me by what means I was coming. So my uncle, whom I have called for confirming the route, must have called her. Rain got over and I bid adieu to Safia. I took another small road from Marykulam instead of taking the main road.
I reached home by 3.45 PM. It was still drizzling and was cold. If you are in Alady, my village and it is cold, the answer is 'hot black coffee'. 100% made in Alady :)
PS: The distance Google shown was not correct or may be the route I followed was different. I travelled around 350 kms. In the Google, Palani to Periakulam was less than 40 km but it took me more than 120 kms. That was the major difference.
I woke up by 6 in the morning. Got myself fresh and I am ready to go!! Nishku had already kept the route map print in my bag. Checked the route map and it was only 217 kms to Kumily as per the map!!! I couldn't digest that though. Nishku was asleep. Kicked him awake to say good bye and I am off by 6:45 AM from Coimbatore. First destination is Palani via Pollachi. I need to find a way out of the city first. Headed straight to Gandhipuram, again straight to Ukkadam, a U turn, then a left from the flyover and I am near the junction at Coimbatore Jn railway station. Some guys in a car were guiding me from the railway station road to Pollachi road but lost them at the traffic signal at the Pollachi road. Doesn't matter, I found the road. Crossed NH47 after a while where the red lights stopped none of the truckers or moped guys. I was waiting at the signal for the light to turn green and everyone around were looking at me as if I have come from some other planet. I think they all think that the lights are there for the coming Diwali!!
The road was good and the weather the better. Sun was just rising over the fields and the traffic was very light. Reached Pollachi and followed the sign boards to find the Palani road. It was easy. The road ahead was better than the earlier and here I go. I was cruising past the buses and trucks. Then, all of a sudden, one Scooty Pep over took me!!! I was riding at 70-80 kmph and this tiny creature just zapped past me. There was a guy of 45 yrs riding it, his daughter in the middle and wife riding side saddle in the rear. I couldn't believe it and was very angry to see this. Well, it is not that I mind somebody overtaking me but I was angry at the headless asshole riding it. I couldn't imagine what would happen if a truck just came onto the wrong lane. Forget that, what about a pothole? There was 95% chance for an accident. I have seen teenagers rash riding on tiny scooters and bikes but a middle aged guy with his family riding pillion rashing on an uneven highway on a tiny little scooter!!! That was.... I don't know what to call it!!!
I stopped in the middle of a wind farm. The view was beautiful. But only 3 or 4 of the mills were rotating!!! Again I wish I had a camera with me :( Started again and stopped to attend a call from my friend. There was a small shop where I stopped and I had a tea and some peanut cookie (Kadalamuttayi) from there. Met the scooter family after some kilometers. They were filling petrol - from a bottle! Wished them good luck in my mind and I headed to Palani. I have planned to fill petrol and air at Palani. Stopped near Palani at a junction which seemed to be - one direction to Palani town and other, a bye pass. But there were no signboards and I decided to ask at the nearby Petrol bunk. Filled some petrol and asked the bunk guy about the way and he, after a long thought, told me the way, which seemed to me, towards the town. There was no air filling at the bunk and I started again worrying about the tire pressure. I was right and reached the heart of the mess at the Palani town. Found a petrol bunk with air filling and I entered that. Filled petrol for Rs 50 and availed the free air filling!!!
After the mess of the town, I joined the bye-pass which I missed. Next destination is Oddamchittaram, 30 kms ahead. I stopped near a railway gate and drank a tender coconut. It was Rs 15!!! A tender coconut in the middle of Bangalore city will cost you only Rs 12. On the day 1 of the trip I had one for Rs 7 and I was pretty much happy with that. I cursed Bangalore guys for charging Rs 12 and re-reminded myself that Tamilnadu villages have a cheap cost of living. And now, after paying Rs 15 to the guy, I wondered about this costing!!! Rode non stop till Oddamchittaram and there I was at Oddamchittaram junction with no signboards. I asked for direction to a guy standing there and unfortunately he was new there. So I got down from the bike and asked one carpenter who was busy giving finishing touches to a chair. He told me that I got to go right to reach Vattalagundu which is my next destination. I gotta go 40 kms more to reach there. I was nearly out of cash. On a trip like this, one should always carry enough money for, well, towing the bike. Just in case. Another reason is that I may be asked to shell out money by some Police guy at any point of time. Bribe!!! You can say no to bribe, but if you are travelling through another state, alone, on a long distance bike trip, you have no other choice but to give a few hundreds. So I stopped at an ATM in Vattalagundu. ATM was also out of cash. So I thought of taking money from Periakulam, my next stop.
I reached Periakulam after a wonderful cruise through the NH48 extn. I was riding slowly in search an ATM and I found one at the end of the town. Got down from the bike and walked into the ATM only to see the security motioning to me that the machine is out of order. He told me that the next ATM is in Theni, my next destination, which is very close by. Theni... One of the Theni municipality members was my friend and I think he still is. So I was telling myself that even if some police guy ask me to bribe, I can call my, so called contact and escape. But I still remember one instance happened some years ago in Theni with this Contact. We went to a college for an admission, not through entrance exam but through this 'Contact'. All the managements said no and the Contact revealed his identity to them. They were like "Oh, so you are the so-and -so. Good for you. What the hell do we have to do with that?" So I tell myself that the Contact stuff won't work and head for an ATM!!! (Jokes apart, he is an influential person. But I would never use these influences against law and order).
At last I got the money from Theni and headed to Cumbom. Now I was in a dilemma on which route to take to reach home. I had three options. First, I can turn right from Cumbom to Cumbom mettu through the ghat road and go home via Kattappana. Second, I can go to Kumily and from there to home via Kattappana and finally from Kumily to Marykulam via Anavilasam, Pullumedu which is the shortest but not a major road. I thought of calling home and asking about the final route. I stopped near Cumbom, stretched, washed my face and called home but no one picked up the phone. I tried some more calls home and then gave up.
It was around 1:30 PM when I reached Cumbom and I turned right towards Cumbom mettu, thanks to the impulse. I stopped at the road entrance to have lunch from a Kerala hotel where me and my cousin had come some years back on a way to meet 'The Contact' for some business matters for my cousin. While I was having my lunch, my dad called me and I asked him about the routes. He suggested me to take the Kumily - Anavilasam - Marykulam route and assured me that I would get a bus very easily!!! So guess what? My parents didn't know that I was coming all the way from Bangalore on my bike ;)
I turned around from the Cumbom mettu road after my lunch and head to Kumily, Kerala. I could see the hills of Kerala infront of me. Steep hills. I have to climb all the way up and I enjoy riding uphill. I passed through the grape yards of Gundalpettu. I had an urge to stop by and have some fresh grapes but I didn't. Don't ask me why. So here I am, climbing the ghat road to Kumily. I had to crawl behind buses because there was not enough width for road to overtake, and at last, I entered Kumily, Kerala.
Hooo hooo.... KERALA!!! I was laughing hard with joy, inside my helmet. I felt like I have reached home. But I have not reached home! The sky was cloudy in Kerala and it was likely to rain in an hour. I gotta rush home before it starts to rain. I head straight on NH220 and turn towards Anavilasam after 1.5 kms. Now I was riding through a small road. I was riding through Cardamom and Coffee plantations. Hairpin bends and steep climbs. Jungle streams and tall trees. I could see the rain in the hills far away and the air around me told me that they were expecting rain in anytime. It was awesome. Sexy! Romantic! But I was alone :( :(
Nevermind!!! I gotta go because it already started drizzling. The plantation workers were going home with their plastic head covers against rain. I wanted to go fast but it was impossible to go fast through this road. It started to rain and I was still riding. I gave up after a while and stopped at a bus stop and got the cover from rain in a waiting shed. I asked an auto-rickshaw driver and he told me that it was 3.5 kms to Marykulam. Another auto-rickshaw came with some school kids and one little girl joined me. Little Safia had to go to her tuition teachers place and she was waiting for her mom to come with umbrella to take her. She told me that she was studying in 2nd standard but she took out a UKG text book from her bag and started studying. She was taking tuitions for some scholarship. My mom called me and asked me how I was coming. I told her that I was coming by bike. She called me only to ask me by what means I was coming. So my uncle, whom I have called for confirming the route, must have called her. Rain got over and I bid adieu to Safia. I took another small road from Marykulam instead of taking the main road.
I reached home by 3.45 PM. It was still drizzling and was cold. If you are in Alady, my village and it is cold, the answer is 'hot black coffee'. 100% made in Alady :)
PS: The distance Google shown was not correct or may be the route I followed was different. I travelled around 350 kms. In the Google, Palani to Periakulam was less than 40 km but it took me more than 120 kms. That was the major difference.
"I was waiting at the signal for the light to turn green and everyone around were looking at me as if I have come from some other planet. I think they all think that the lights are there for the coming Diwali!! "........... was the highlight :D
ReplyDeletenwys it ws soooooo gud 2 read ur blog n ur descriptions r so vivid n shd i say candid too......:D
dont sell ur bike da......wt did u do wid al the cash tht u earned since two years ?????
yeea bro. kattan kaappi all day.
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