Bored with the mundane tasks and you just want to relax. There are sophisticated resorts that offer high-fi stuff; sprawling acres of land, artificial landscapes, the most comfortable beds, and lounges at exaggerated prices. But if you are looking for a place that can help you unwind without pinching your pocket and you want to feel at home ..this is where you must go.
Fish view cottage in Ammathi, Coorg.
Fish view cottage has just 4 rooms that can accommodate 15 people at the maximum, provided you are a bigger number and can adjust to have the resort for yourself, the resort is more than happy to offer. It is surrounded by coffee plantation, areca nut plantation, a household at a distance who work here, a swimming pool with fresh water, and a huge pond in the middle.
So for two days I would simply sit in the portico while breeze from the plantation s comforted me, or sit by the lake looking at the ducks and geese and their ducklings or feed fish, or get lost in the plantation to hear the hornbills and the cuckoo's and wild hens while I read my book. The resort also offers kayaking and fishing with the angular bait. The swimming pool, unlike the chlorine-treated water in best resorts, had fresh water that was filled and emptied at regular intervals. This reminded me of lake diving from my childhood.
I had made several trips to Coorg before, but I had my best experience at Fish view cottage. Here is what my schedule looked like...
We reached at 12 in Ammathi after a brief visit to Raja seat in Mercera and a vintage car museum on our way. After a warm welcome from.Mr. Naveen Nanjappa our host and owner of fish view cottage, all I wanted was beer and some starters. I was offered duck egg omlette. And while we relaxed our lunch was ready. Simple, hot, healthy, and delicious 3-course meal..from the host's kitchen. Naveen says, he prefers using the best quality groceries and if he can eat his lunch at the resort, he has served his guests well..so thoughtful..We took a good nap and by evening I was out for a stroll..kayaking and fishing..Mr. Naveen is a hands-on host. He is the owner of the property..You can see him around at all times. He ensures that guests are given attention plus they were given their privacy as well..he knew how to draw this fine line. He can talk about anything on Earth and is also awarded the best agriculturist for fisheries and it does serve him well when you hear him all about the trade, coffee, farming , fisheries, social issues..what not..
After I was done with activities in-house..they placed a bonfire and gave us some marinated chicken..we could make our own fire or the staff or the owner himself will help you if you need..and you can make your own barbeque.. that was fun..the best part was each guest was given the comfort of a separate bon fire..no intervention, no cross talks, and everything on preference.
At dawn, the next day I asked for a trek uphill. This was the most educative trek ever..we went on a jeep, deep inside the coffee plantation, walked around 3kms and learnt about passion fruit that monkeys loved, garbled beans for coffee, rabbit hole, steivecat poop and how this was treated to get best coffee beans that healed cancer, natural habitat for elephants and monkeys and boars and deers, wild fruits, it was awesome. I never realized I had walked so much and gained so much insight. Being a farmer was not easy unless you had made friends with mother earth and fellow inhabitants.
After a refreshing morning walk, Fish view cottage treated us with coffee made of garbled beans and home made puttu..coorgi delicacies for breakfast. I had already started missing Fish view cottage while it was time for us to leave.