Orange County - Coorg!!

We were getting married in August and we were at loss, as to where to go for our honeymoon.

Its the rainy season, it'll wet and slushy all over.

Then we decided , if we are getting wet, lets do it in style :) ........

We decided to go to Orange County - Coorg!!

Its a breathtaking place, expensive but worth it !!

We left for KushalNagar in the morning, reached there by afternoon, we went to the usual Tebitian Temple visit..

I love the place though , maybe for all the cool stuff we get there ... shopping basically.

Anyone who goes there should pick up the dolls there , they are exquisite..

After the shopping , we were kinda stuck , Orange county is in Siddapura, almost 50 KMs from Kushalnagar!! ...

An auto driver decided that he'll be brave enough ferry us till there, in the driving rain and bad roads.

We could'nt help but notice that, our bumpy ride offered some fantastic views :) ... and a very entertaining auto driver...

We paid the auto guy almost 400 bucks and reached Orange County! ... What a place ... What a place ...

We were welcomed in style , It was Onam , so the place was decked up in Kerela Decorations...

THe place is an Eco Resort, basically what it meant was that , we could'nt be messy and throw plastic and paper about...

It is a throughly beautiful place, in between the Coffee Plantations [whihc coorg is particularly famous for] ....

The area is so vast that , the resort is evenly spaced out and beautifully thought out..

There is a huge lake in between the resort and there is boating, in good weather..

There are activity centers, they organise treks and bicycle rides.

There are three restaurents, each serving a different cuisine.. Italian,Indian,Continental...

The place is unbelievably romantic .. Lush greenery all around, clouds hanging low and very very beautiful rooms,cottages and villas.

We had booked a Villa with a pool, the architecture was the traditional Coorgi style.

The entire house [ yes it is huge ] , was made of eco friendly materials [wood, mud bricks] ...

The interiors are beautiful, soft and antiques everywhere.. The bathrooms are a delight ... The pool was a jacuzzi :) ... so it was FUN!!

We shared the pool with a couple a swans , for some odd these birds loved our pool and refused to go back to their lake [the villas are on the lake side]

These birds poop everywhere thats the worst part :( , but the staff is so friendly that , they dint mind coming over again

and again and cleaning after and shooing the birds..

There was activity in the evenings, folk groups performing, magic tricks , dance shows ... In the morning we could go biking, trekking , play games [indoor and out door] ...

Or just lazing around [thats the best option]

Orange County is a romantic place , imagine , soft rain pelting your windows , tea and mini biscuits , exqusite chocolates .. hot showers and a book.. Heaven..

They belive in pampering the guests, so we got a lot of free goodies ... :) , chocolates and T shirts, free Wine , Coffee Beans , Umbrellas ....

Its expensive .... BUT WORTH IT !! Its worth it for the stay , the experience , goodies , food , the service , the sheer beauty !

Gokarna!!

Gokarna has always been my favorite holiday spot. I love the serene beauty of the place , its almost as if , its untouched ....

A number of people come every year to Gokarna , but even with all that, there is something indescribable about the place , it just draws you in, you feel like you can just live there forever.

Sitting beneath the swinging coconut trees, playing in the sea .. sipping lime juice ... just sitting and staring ... There is something infinite about the sea which has always fascinated me and when i go to Gokarna , that feeling intensifies....

Gokarna is a small town, there are exactly two roads in the town , one of which leads to an antient temple. Gokarna is famous with Hindu piligrims, its has two very famous temples , one dedicated to Lord Shiva and the other to his son Lord Ganesha. The town is a very important place for hindus in terms of the last rites to attain Moksha [salvation]. There are a number of tales connected to Gokarna , it seems to be a great hit with almost all the holy books in india , it finds reference in both Ramayana and Mahabharata. Adi Shankracharya seemed to have defeated a Sanskrit scholar here in a debate which lasted for days, finally establishing his doctrine ...

For the other stories : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gokarna,_India

We took the bus to Gokarna, we left Bangalore at 10 PM and reached Gokarna by 8 AM. The only drawback in Gokarna are the rickshaw fellows, the fares are always beyond 100 Rs. I mean that is highway robbery, but they know that we are helpless and we will pay :( ... bikes for hire is not a concept which is very popular .. so tourists end up spending a lot of money on travel alone. This time we stayed at Gokarna International on the Kudle beach. It is'nt all that it is made out to be , it is an average place which stinks big time ! We ate at various places in Gokarna , food is not fantastic , but since it is so hot , you don't feel like eating anyways ... so it is all good !!

The ocean on one side and the western ghats on the other , Gokarna has something for everyone .. The ocean is very very very gentle , the waves aren't too rough, you can just paddle or swim out , its great fun .. There are six fantastic beaches in Gokarna - Gokarna beach,Kudle Beach,Om Beach , Half moon beach,Paradise beach and Sangam beach.

Om Beach is arguably the most popular beach,it is shaped as an Om. Half Moon is my faveroite, it is a quite beach, where most tourists don't come, the sea is really friendly and gentle , paradise is a party place ... I don't like it too much , but again it is subjective. Sangam beach is a beach which most of us have'nt visited, its a virgin stretch of sand spreading kilometers across, with no civilization in sight.

All the beaches are separated by cliffs, sometimes its a adventurous trek or it may just be a normal trek to the next beach. The easiest path is from Kudle to Om. The most arduous one would be from Om to Half moon, the most tricky one would be Paradise to Half moon.

As i said Gokarna has something for everyone, there are cheap shacks which sell interesting knick knacks or clothing, you can get anything from chains to anklets to china ...

There are water sports, but not that interesting. There are fishing boats which take you from one beach to another , I personally love them but the pricing is steep, but worth it.

There is usually an interesting mix of people there, people are friendly and I mostly think that is coz most of them are either drunk or high. It is a proper hippy place,but no one disturbs you if you want to be left alone !! Thats the best part of all.

Overall it was a fun,relaxing experience. We drank and drank and drank some more, played all the games under the sun... swam out in the ocean,trekked ... LOVE IT!!

I will go back as always ....