Thekkady, the Mistress of Spices
Kerala and her tempting spices brought Vasco da Gama to India and changed India. Lalit Mohan writes about a trip to Thekkady, its spices and an early morning cruise along the waters of the Periyar lake
At the Cardamom Hills that surround Thekkady, silver oaks that have thick creepers wrapped around them, stand tall in the middle of rolling greens in tea plantations. A closer look reveals strings of little beads on them. This is pepper, or the ‘King of Spices’, that brought Vasco da Gama to India in 1498 and went on change the course of India’s history.
We check in at the Spice Village in Thekkady, where the forests are verdant and estates are filled with spice trees. During a tour of the spice plantation, our guide Sheena talks about the various types of pepper and shows us plants of nutmeg, bay leaves, turmeric, coffee, clove and, finally, cardamom. The cardamom plant is large, but the pods grow on a wispy, aerial extension of the root. One has to bend low to notice it. Picking cardamom is a tedious process and a plant that can yield about 600 grams in a year, it is considered to be a good.
We get ourselves booked for a boat tour of Lake Periyar at 7am. But we had to get up at 6:15am, as the boat station was almost 15 minutes away. Rousing senior citizens on vacation at that hour on a cold morning should be listed among the crimes against humanity. Standing on the upper deck of our boat gives us a great view of the lake. Our happiness lasts only as long as the boat does not move: Once it starts picking up speed, we shiver in the cold wind. Our light sweaters and life jackets fail to protect us from the chill. The view, however, is stunning. The sun rises from behind a hill that’s in front of us, its rays lending the lake waters a shimmery hue. Up ahead are scores of trees with truncated trunks jutting out of waters which submerged this forest when the Mullaperiyar Dam was built. As mist rises in the far distance with the sun, a surreal, Dali-esque scene unfolds before us.
Later, while at the Periyar National Park, we could only see a few bisons, wild boar and deer. Kingfishers, hornbills and cormorants made guest appearances. Although the lake-forest is listed as a tiger reserve, we did not see any and our guide told us that he is yet to see one since November. They live in another part of the sanctuary.
LODGING PLACES
Thekkady has several other hospitality options. Car-
damom County, next door from the Spice Village is
one such place. Tree Tops is another hotel close by.
The Elephant Court is a five-star affair. There are also
places to stay on the lake. Our trip, which involved
pickup from Cochin airport, the full circuit of Munnar-
Thekkady-Kumarakom-Allepy and back, was organ-
ised by Open World Holidays (e-mail: vp@indoasiaholidays.com).
HOW TO GET THERE
Thekkady, the gateway to central Kerala is 184km
from Cochin airport. One can come here first and
return via Kumarakom and the backwaters. A longer
trip starts from Cochin, to the tea hills in Munnar
and then to Thekkady.
SUGGESTED READING
For any trip to the interiors of Kerala two books
can add value to the sojourn: House of Blue Man-
goes by David Davidar and The God of Small
Things by Arundhati Roy. Both are set in these
parts. The former, in particular, describes the
scene very vividly. One enjoys the books more
when one is in a position to actually see the
places being written about.
Kerala and her tempting spices brought Vasco da Gama to India and changed India. Lalit Mohan writes about a trip to Thekkady, its spices and an early morning cruise along the waters of the Periyar lake
At the Cardamom Hills that surround Thekkady, silver oaks that have thick creepers wrapped around them, stand tall in the middle of rolling greens in tea plantations. A closer look reveals strings of little beads on them. This is pepper, or the ‘King of Spices’, that brought Vasco da Gama to India in 1498 and went on change the course of India’s history.
We check in at the Spice Village in Thekkady, where the forests are verdant and estates are filled with spice trees. During a tour of the spice plantation, our guide Sheena talks about the various types of pepper and shows us plants of nutmeg, bay leaves, turmeric, coffee, clove and, finally, cardamom. The cardamom plant is large, but the pods grow on a wispy, aerial extension of the root. One has to bend low to notice it. Picking cardamom is a tedious process and a plant that can yield about 600 grams in a year, it is considered to be a good.
We get ourselves booked for a boat tour of Lake Periyar at 7am. But we had to get up at 6:15am, as the boat station was almost 15 minutes away. Rousing senior citizens on vacation at that hour on a cold morning should be listed among the crimes against humanity. Standing on the upper deck of our boat gives us a great view of the lake. Our happiness lasts only as long as the boat does not move: Once it starts picking up speed, we shiver in the cold wind. Our light sweaters and life jackets fail to protect us from the chill. The view, however, is stunning. The sun rises from behind a hill that’s in front of us, its rays lending the lake waters a shimmery hue. Up ahead are scores of trees with truncated trunks jutting out of waters which submerged this forest when the Mullaperiyar Dam was built. As mist rises in the far distance with the sun, a surreal, Dali-esque scene unfolds before us.
Later, while at the Periyar National Park, we could only see a few bisons, wild boar and deer. Kingfishers, hornbills and cormorants made guest appearances. Although the lake-forest is listed as a tiger reserve, we did not see any and our guide told us that he is yet to see one since November. They live in another part of the sanctuary.
LODGING PLACES
Thekkady has several other hospitality options. Car-
damom County, next door from the Spice Village is
one such place. Tree Tops is another hotel close by.
The Elephant Court is a five-star affair. There are also
places to stay on the lake. Our trip, which involved
pickup from Cochin airport, the full circuit of Munnar-
Thekkady-Kumarakom-Allepy and back, was organ-
ised by Open World Holidays (e-mail: vp@indoasiaholidays.com).
HOW TO GET THERE
Thekkady, the gateway to central Kerala is 184km
from Cochin airport. One can come here first and
return via Kumarakom and the backwaters. A longer
trip starts from Cochin, to the tea hills in Munnar
and then to Thekkady.
SUGGESTED READING
For any trip to the interiors of Kerala two books
can add value to the sojourn: House of Blue Man-
goes by David Davidar and The God of Small
Things by Arundhati Roy. Both are set in these
parts. The former, in particular, describes the
scene very vividly. One enjoys the books more
when one is in a position to actually see the
places being written about.
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