P.S. with Poovar....

Weekends are usually very boring for me unless I have work in labs..normally I wake up late, sometime very late!! (can be at 1.00 clock say!),which is good in one way I don’t have to worry about the breakfast and lunch, which is really a tention for me on weekends as our canteen is closed! Normally I make a combo of that, say, a cup of coffee and dosa or aloo paratha..For the later stuff I have to shed a few hundred calories..Because the typical punjabi paratha is only available at “Sharmaji’s Dhaba”..near Trivandrum station. The official name of the shop is Sharma Dhaba ,shuddha shakahari khana ..now, the tagline is quite common here. All the north Indian shops transformed thenma s “Dhaba” and claims to provide shuddha shakahaari khana, but very few can be good for your platter! The first one I visited after reading a review in a website is located near station, but not the one that I am talking now! What I ended up is, with a huge parcel of sabzis, and parathas and I couldn’t eat even a total chapathi there!..then my labmates told me about this, my only pocket friendly week end lunch and dinner destination!

This Sunday was actually the second day of kerala monsoon, hence, it started showing a trailer of the rest of the season. But the shower stopped when I finished my lunch. Now sharmaji won’t provide tea or coffee so I have to go in another KTDC restaurant which is just a minutes walk. I finished that too.

 It was around 2 p.m.

Suddenly, the rebel inside my mind gave me a call. I stared at the sky and understood that today the sunset would be quite colorful! ( Well, well, I have mastered in the in this art of prediction of the quality of sunset visual just like a zulu prophet, tips is very simple, look at the sky and the time see, whether there would be a shower before or after, see the clouds and rest is off-course my tramp card, and I am not ready to tell you. Come to kerala, meet me , I will guide you then!!!)..There was only one the most ancient model of KTDC bus, with a broken window, “lorjhore” desi riders, and someone with paint has written on the front glass, to my surprise, in English, POOVAR!! Doyeli, my childhood friend and an amateur travel advisor for most of the Indian tourist destination, having a specialization on kerala tourism, once told me, Paramita, just visit Poover whenever you get time!!..And it clicked timely..I just asked one or two local guy the time it takes to reach Poover, someone said 1 hr some said two, checked in google its 35 km, so if not stuck by any calamity I can reach there definitely about 5 o clock.

And..the paramita, with a set of uncombed hair, sans lipstick n kajol, with a polythene pack full of jeera rice and kari..say, fifty bucks in the purse, boarded on the bus! People were staring at me as usual , this is not new for me now, they can’t imagine a woman with such a short hair being a localite, my cross bodied sling bag and English pronunciation often make them feel invariably a tourist ..can’t decide the country, mostly they end up with some afro-american origin of mine (west indies, latin America blab la)!!! I don’t mind you see, I am proud to be a colored skin, and after having an experience of working in ICRISAT, I feel very proud to be called a SAT people!

Anywayz, asked the conductor about Poover, first he can’t get the name and I came to know the pronunciation should be “pooaar”, a local boy of class 10-12 helped me to tell him the destination and I got a ticket of 26 Rs!! Dats it! Yes, this is the beauty of India you can travel like a Raja or a Faqir (A king or a begger)..and I preferred to be the second one after being here! Poover is actually the southern end point of kerala, a small fishermens’ village, famous for the Poover island where you can only reach through the spectacles of backwaters and it is situated exactly at the junction of where backwaters meets the Arabian sea!! This much of info is good enough to raise my curiosity. After a half an hour of bus ride the route enters the villages of kerala, which don’t know why always remind me of my native West Bengal. Is it that all villages will look the same if the vegetation is alike? The only and most important difference is that here the road is well built and maintained even in a remote village area too! Here too, like the villages of Bengal, huts are surrounded by mostly banana and coconut tree, I found one or two hibiscus trees, which invariably reminds me of my Maa’s small garden and a range of hibiscus plants.

Atlast at around 5.30 I reached poover. It is a small bus stop, where you get frequent buses to Trivandrum, Nagarcoil and Kovalam. As I was quite irritated with my Jhola full of food, I just asked a local shop that whether he can keep it for an hour, and with a big smile, he said, yes why not? (Even without checking what is there!). Don’t know why till now, my sincere dependence on the humility of keralites has not betrayed me till date (touch wood!). And I started walking through a road; it’s a green avenue a late post shower sunlight was shining on me. It ended in a small bridge and the sight just compelled me to stop. Wow!! it was over the back water filled with monsoon rain and the joining of two of them is worth a snap.

I just asked people where the boat trip starts. They told me most of the back water side, is occupied by a resort company and they conduct the boat ridings. I was not aware of how it would be actually is it that the back waters are there and may be another route is toward the sea beach. Well, I just requested and enquired about the charge, it was 1500 (good enough for me to take a decision to get back!) But as its me possessed with that ancient travelers spirit in my mind (Srikanta or Indranath? Later suits with my ideas actually, who are they well ask any bong will explain better). With all my acting skills I told him like a crying baby that I am  student and  a tourist came to see the poover, this is just too much for my pocket. The guy, with a very gentle smile replied, then madam come next year with a  group of 8-10 friends and you can share the money. This is a private service not a govt one! As if, Indian govt has gladly taken  the sole responsibility of the mantra to cover the travel experience of all students of Incredible India!! Now plan B! Suddenly An elderly couple around 50 age was approaching with the same aim it seemed, I greeted them saying hi, I’m Dr….(All my fellow holders of the prefix, make it a point to introduce yourself as Dr. ..this, God know why on the earth the opponent voice becomes polite suddenly and whatever research you do your lab they will either think you as a hair of Einstein, if not they thought of you a doctor!!) . I said them if they are Ok I can join them for the ride. They told me they are “gujrati CHe”..And with my little gujrati vocabulary I have succeeded to impress them ! The cost came down 300 Rs (Oh, the bust stop had an ATM, I forgot to tell you!). Yousee, mostly the plan B works, if not, think a bit, surely you will get a plan C instead!

It was almost 6.00 so we are all set to ready to explore the backwaters..it was a ride of one and half hour..I can only share some of the pics with you, hope it would be good enough for your visual pleasure, rest, is cant be expressed by words!! The backwater has a train of marshy jungle in both side, its evening and hundreds of birds are coming back to their home, they are chirping , playing at the branches!

I have a lot of complaints about my life as like all of you! But sometimes these are the moments for which I thank my independence and sheer luck..after a half an hour ride suddenly as if the screen in front of eyes get widen! I can hear the screams of the sea! And what a view! It was the time of high tide you can see the waves dancing, eager to meet the backwater!! But there is a shallow land divider between them. They are so eager to meet each other; every approaching wave is throwing some water towards the backwater trail with a determination to diminish the wall. We landed on the vast golden beach and it was a knee deep water, The boat man warned us that water level is rising as the sea is approaching may be at night this land border would be diminished and they will meet!!

There is an amazing resport at Poovar Island Resort which is quite famous and can be an ideal place to spend a night to see the heavenly beauty of sunset!

The two old couple who were very formal to each other except the wives’ one or two request of catching a photograph suddenly started giggling like a child , I asked them to pose so that I can take their photo in their camera..The wife seemed to be quite shy and conservative till now, suddenly get possessed with the soul of a teen. She was laughing loud, telling a lot of words in her mother tongue and was thanking her husband for the tour. Suddenly she has become a friend of mine , as if, jumping with me in the waves, and the old man smiling and telling me see, sometimes your camera and all technologies fall short in front of nature, It’s  your memory that makes things immortal. I was quite confused before this to get the right frame to cover the visuals , but then after hearing this, I refrain myself , for the first time in my life to take pictures!! There was another family , it seems a couple with their two kid and their parents, the daughter in law with a handy cam pleading her in laws to pose in Tamil, but they were shying like a newly wed! They were not talking but I can see the gratitude and happiness in their face which is priceless.

I always refer Kerala as is the most sought after place for honeymoon, but I should add one more line, you can plan this special honeymoon trip at any point of your age, even at your sixties with your loved ones!

There is not more to tell, don’t know why the couple was thanking me profusely saying, they were feeling very awkward as their family was feeling skeptical about this tour of two but I made it a D day for them. (God knows why always strangers shower me with compliments for being a great company!!). I was only thanking myself for my fatal trait of taking desperate decisions this time. And again it is proven for me, sometime morning could not show you the day, its you who make it worthwhile!

P.S. As usual like my most of my memorable days of life during journeys, My mobile charge is finished, keeping me half hearted and full in tension. But this time I have not forgotten to pick up the food packet from the shop!!