So, last monday I had an off, because half my class visited wonderla , and the other half decided to idk, do something by themselves. Then, there was a third group of a few of us who decided to do a trip by ourselves. After a lot of contemplating, we decided a place close by and not very commercial or explored. So that effectively, ruled out pondicherry, coorg, ooty, coonoor etccc. So while googling up places , i stumbled upon this thrillophilia list (btw, the internet is SATURATED with thrillophila articles , if ever you decide to google) and i saw YELAGIRI as a destination. Excited, i searched the internet for articles about the place. The websites boasted of paragliding, trekking, parks and a lake. Which, we figured was enough things to do , as we were planning ONLY a day trip. HOW UTTERLY WRONG WERE WE! First off, against all sensibilities I paid no heed to traveller's review of the place which claimed "nothing to do here", "boring!!!" "Dont waste time here" .. and still proceeded to travel here. Yelagiri is a hill station in Tamil Nadu and unless you have a car at your disposal (which, i didnt) this journey will prove to be very tedious. I caught a train to jolarpettai from cantonment - from buying general ticket and travelling in LADIES COACH (for rs. 75 /- it was a bargain) and having to jostle with hostile ladies for space to climbing up on top berths , it was nothing like anything we ever experienced before.We further caught a bus from jolarpettai to Yelagiri hills. And once we reached the place, what can i say? To put it simply, it was a disappointment. It was not chilly at all, nor were there any tourists about. We didnt speak the language, so it was not easy to communicate. We headed towards the hills only to find that the main attraction (the temple on top) remains closed on Mondays, and the swami malai hills aint tall enough to offer a great view.WHAAAAAT! We decided (half way the trek , mind you!) to abandon the trek and head downwards towards the village where we got the chance to draw water from the well and wash our faces. After that, we decided to head to the main city and whole we were waiting for an auto to pass us by, a tractor passed us by and by some sheer luck, he agreed to drop us off at the desired location. This is something, i've been meaning to do for a longgg time and i'm so glad it happened! :D Blah blah blah. Turned out that even para sailing doesnt happen any more and that it actually stopped, 3 years back! And the website false advertises even now!! Sigh.
So basically, the trip was a flop. But the purpose behind it wasnt! I still got to get out of bangalore, bonded with my girls, and somehow still had fun .
This trip has taught me to do my research properly, and not to land up at a place completely lost with different expectations and most importantly DO NOT BELIEVE THE ONLINE ARTICLES 100% and yess.
Till then, keep galavanting folks! :D
