Day 10 OCTOBER 02 - Travel to Periyar • Spice plantation
Do you remember when we were in Chennai on day 3? We were at the Body Guard temple where a priest blessed our bus for a safe trip to see Southern India. When you drive in India you need three things. (1) Good Brakes, (2) Good Horn and (3) Good Luck. Maybe our bus driver needed more help. Before setting out for the day our bus was again Blessing the Bus by a local priest. The priest broke coconuts, put lemons under the bus tires and walked around the bus with fire and a melon. Now that we were doubly-blessed nothing could go wrong. Well remember the Politian Jayalalitha her supporters and the people who believed in her staged public protests Protesting Jayalalitha . They blocked roads and disrupted transportation. A young girl who Jayalalitha was giving a computer was so distraught she committed suicide. Not to worry, Sudhakar knew a way around the protests and our first stop of the day at the Thirumalai Naicker Palace, a stunning fusion of diverse architectural influences, including Italian, Dravidian and Islamic.
Thirumalai Nayak Palace was erected in 1636 AD by King Thirumalai Nayak, the greatest king of the Nayaks dynasty who ruled Madurai from 1623–59. The Palace is a classic fusion of Dravidian and Islamic styles. The building we toured was the main Palace, in which the king lived. The original Palace Complex was four times bigger. The King’s grandson demolished much of the structure and removed most of the jewels and woodcarvings in order to build his own palace in Tiruchirapalli. In its heyday Tirumalai Nayak Palace was considered a wonder of the South.
After our visit to the Palace the local police gave us directions to get out of Madurai so we could bypass the Jayalalitha Protestors. While there had been no previous violence the police wanted us to avoid any confrontations with the protestors. Leaving Madurai to Periyar So we followed the police directions and left Madurai.
On the road again some parting views of Madurai and we set off toward Kumily. The vehicle in images IND_4350.JPG thru IND_4362.JPG is a funeral processional car. It was a busy morning but after a short rest we were ready for more Southern India experiences. We had not gone too far when Sudhakar saw something interesting. Our first discovery would be at a small camp where a family made construction bricks. Brick Making Using special red mud from the river the husband and wife used a wooden mold to form the bricks. They filled the mold and smoothed the mud with their hands. Then removed the mold. The sun would bake and harden the bricks. These people are wokers. Notice the bricks have the letters JPG. The brick yard owner whose house you will see in the slideshow has his initials on his house. This is a back breaking operation. My back hurt just watching them. Not only hard work but work that is dependent on the elements. Slide IND_4434.JPG shows what happens when it rains (the bricks disintegrate.)
Back on the bus we continued on to our destination. Today we are leaving the Indian State of Tamil Nadu and we will enter Kerala State. We stopped at a small café On The Road to Periyar for some snacks where some girls were creating a beautiful mandala. Mandala is a spiritual and ritual symbol in Hinduism and Buddhism, representing the Universe. Maybe it is not correct but I call these designs a mandala, as a generic term for any diagram, chart or geometric pattern that represents the cosmos metaphysically or symbolically; a microcosm of the universe.
Tonight our hotel is the Muthoot Cardamon Country Resort four star resort in the city of Kumily. The resort features cozy cottages with spacious bedrooms and a private verandah overlooking the scenic natural beauty. 'All Spice' is the pool side restaurant features an Ethnic Fusion Food menu inspired by the chefs’ credo of innovation.
- Southern India
Southern India Photo Page 10