Kerala Trip - Iddukki Dam

I visited Kerala during the Dassara holidays with my family. We first stopped at Kochi, where we stayed for two days. On the second day of our trip, we went to old Kochi and saw the famous Chinese fishing nets. We had also planned to visit Vasco Da Gama’s house in Fort Kochi, which is located close to the fishing nets. However we missed the place and we realised we had seen it only after we returned to the hotel! (Did you know that the Chinese fishing nets are found only in Kochi and China?)

The next day we left for a place near Thekkady, on the way we visited a small historical town called Kalady. It is historical, as Adi Shankracharya, the great Advaita philosopher, was born here. The house that he lived in, now the Mutt, is on the banks of river Poorna (also known as Periyar). Shankracharya left home at a very young age to become a sanyasi. He travelled around India to spread knowledge about Advaita philosophy. His mother Aryammba also died in Kalady. He established mutts all over India and he died in Kedarnath. Some of the other places in which mutts are located are in Sringeri, Kedarnath, and Puri.

From Kalady we drove to a place called Ramakkalmedu, which is a hamlet near Thekkady. We stayed in a resort called Wind Haven. It was a very nice place and we stayed in a tree house. The place was cosy, except that I encountered some unexpected friends like a snake and a scorpion in the tree house that we stayed in!

We went to the Perriyar Forest reserve located in Thekkady, where we took a boat ride in the river Perriyar. Although we did not see any tigers we saw a few sambar grazing on the river banks.

We also visited the Cheruthoni Dam, which has a large hydroelectricity project. The same evening we went for hiking into a sandalwood forest located near our hotel and also climbed the Ramakkalmedu Top Station to get a wonderful view of the plains of Tamil Nadu.

We left for Bangalore the next day after a short but enjoyable trip.

Comments

A Ferrari Masterpiece from the 1950s: The Vignale-Bodied 250 Europa

While scrolling through YouTube, a clip of an old, screaming F1-style V12 engine stopped me in my tracks. That unforgettable sound led me down a rabbit hole—one that ended with a stunning, coachbuilt Ferrari from the 1950s. The car? A rare and elegant 250 Europa. And the coachbuilder behind it? None other than Vignale . This car marked the beginning of Ferrari’s legendary 250 GT line—arguably the most iconic and successful series in the brand’s history. And more specifically, it was designed by Giovanni Michelotti, a name that may not be as well-known as Giugiaro, Gandini, or Pininfarina, but whose influence in automotive design runs deep. Michelotti crafted timeless designs for Triumph, Alfa Romeo, and even Ferrari—each filled with distinct character and elegance. Setting the Stage: Ferrari in the 1950s Back in the early '50s, Ferrari was still a motorsport-centric name. Its presence on the road was limited mostly to the 212 Inter , a gorgeous grand tourer powered by the Gioacchin...

Born from Imagination: The Story of the Ferrari 3Z Spider

The Californified ferrari as I jokingly called it while discussing with my friend a truly odd ball Ferrari that one would not have heard or come across. Those who have seen or heard of this Ferrari would have the statement or expression as “oh that Ferrari” or “is that even a Ferrari”. Which Ferrari am I talking about, you ask? It's none other than the Ferrari 3Z Spider concept, designed by Carrozzeria Zagato and shown first at the 1971 Turin motor show. About the design and the car Luigi Chinetti The car was under Luigi Chinetti's commission, the design is distinctive from other custom body Ferrari’s. Zagato was a famous coach designer from Milan, Italy. The car was commissioned by Luigi Chinetti, a famous Italian race car driver. After immigrating to the United States during World War II, he went on to contest the 24 Hours of Le Mans twelve times, winning on three occasions, and claimed two victories at the 24 Hours of Spa Francorchamps. He went on to create the North Ameri...

The Renault R5 Turbo

The beginning The Renault R5 turbo was a beast, a rally car that dominated the tight tarmac circuits in the World Rally Championship (WRC). The small footprint and big power allowed it to slide around like nobody’s business, the R5 turbo was a replacement for the Alpine A1 that was outdated and being beaten by the Ferrari powered Lancia Stratos. The R5 Turbo would leave fans unsettled and in disbelieve about the cars handling and performance, the R5 would leave the each sharp turn with a loud bang from the exhaust and would shoot flames in the straight stretches, the flames and pops pushed the crowd behind the tape. The little hatchback borrowed turbo charging technology from formula one, the engine was a 1.4L engine as if it was a 1.5L then it would have been put into a class above where it would have been the weakest of the lot. The small French hatch could not have handled the massive 300 bhp from the 4L engine in the year 1972. In 1984 the car would sit on a brand new ch...

Aniruddha's Blog

Search This Blog