Hill stations during winter have their own charm and beauty. We had been planning for Ooty since quite some time. Then we decided why not during the winters. Basically we wanted to feel the chilling cold. And she wanted to stay in a house with wooden floor.
So we booked a homestay called IJK House (Irinjalakuda house) and started off. The homestay is located approximately 3 kms from the bus stop. I had informed the person in-charge of the homestay and she had sent a cab to pick us up from the bus stop. As soon as we reached there, we were greeted by the caretaker, Kathir. Though our check in time was 12 noon, and it was 8 in the morning when we reached, still Kathir had managed to clean up the room for our early check in. The House and the garden was straight out of our dreams. A neat li’l garden just in front of our house and a mesmerizing view ahead. It was a family room with a wooden floor!! We fell in love with the house immediately. The start couldn’t have been better.
We had talked to the cab and had decided to roam around Ooty and coonoor in that same cab. We started off with Doddabetta Peak, the highest point of Ooty. The sun felt good. We had some carrots straight from the field. Since this was not the first time for me in Ooty, I had been to almost all the places before. The Ooty Botanical Garden and the Rose Garden were almost similar. So we decided to skip the Rose garden and go the the Ooty Lake straight away. This lake is one of the most beautiful places in Ooty. A stroll along the lake makes u feel fresh and rejuvenating from inside.
Next we visited the Ramakrishna Math over there. A lovely place to visit. Soon we came back to our homestay. By then the last rays of the sun had started setting. We settled down on the small bench to gaze at the sunset. As soon as the Sun slide behind the mountains, it became so cold that it became almost impossible to sit there for long. We came back to our cozy room. On request Kathir had already arranged onion pakodas for us. At dinner time, rice and chicken curry was served, which was one of the best we had ever had. Kathir later told that he had been a cook in some restaurant for the last 10 years (quite an experience in his domain.!), but now he takes care of this homestay singlehandedly. A delicious hot supper on that cold night was everything we could have asked for. I wondered how peaceful life would have been, staying at that cottage. Looking beyond the glass walls I realized that life is not all about earning money, its also about spending some time with your close ones, cherishing the beauty of the nature.
The next day we headed towards Coonoor, an equally beautiful place but much lesser commercialized. We enjoyed the toy train journey on our way back to ooty. In the evening, as we had snacks and tea at the our homestay before checking out we vowed to revisit again, be it with friends or with family.
You too can book your stay at this place from booking.com
