Travelogue of a 12 year-old

I was in 6^th standard when my uncle took me out on a tour to the distant Palakkad town. In fact it was the first time I had gone out of my village except for my trips to my mother’s house – which was in another village just about 15 kilometers from our house. But Palakkad! That was more than 40 kilometers away and I had only a mental picture of the place, which I had sketched out while reading newspapers and magazines. I was so thrilled!

After my half yearly exams were over, uncle announced that evening, ‘I am going to Palakkad tomorrow for some work. Let Kunchoo (my petname) come with me. Anyway, his exams are over and his holidays are starting’.

So, next day morning, I finished all my morning routines fast and was ready to take the first bus to Palakkad, along with uncle. He was going to some Government office and as we reached Palakkad at about 8.30 in the morning, he said.

‘I have to go to an office near the fort. But now it is only 8.30 and the offices will open only at 10 O’clock. So, we will go to a restaurant and have some breakfast and then we can go and see the fort.’

So, we had dosas with hot – yes, chilli hot- coconut chutney and tea. Somehow, I felt it did not taste the same as we used to have at home. When I mentioned this to uncle, he said,

‘See, they are making and selling dosas for profit. At home the dosas are made – or for that matter, any cooking is done – with lots of love! That would make a difference, wouldn’t it?’

We saw the fort, built by Hyder Ali. Uncle explained the history little bit and also there was a board on which a brief description of the fort was written. What fascinated me most in the fort was the huge wooden door!

After 10 O’clock, we went to the office where uncle finished his work in about an hour. The peon and the clerk knew him and the peon gave me a lozenge to put in my mouth as I waited on the verandah.

‘If you are not very hungry, then we will go to Malampuzha and will have a late lunch after coming back from there.’ Uncle said.

I was in total agreement as the morning breakfast was big enough to sustain us even till evening.

So, we went to Malampuzha.

The dam, which was like a huge wall, built between big mountains, was an amazing sight for me. I wondered at the effort building that dam and the beautiful garden. We went on top of the dam and looked at the huge lake of water. Then we got down to the garden through the stairs on the side of the dam. Also, we went inside the dam which was like a corridor. That also was a surprise because I never thought that it was a hollow wall. We could enter at one place and come out at an exit at the garden.

The beautifully laid out garden, the stream where water falls through in steps, the hanging bridge across the water outlet from the dam etc were all new experiences. Today, after a few decades, I know there are many more attractions in Malampuzha such as the Dancing Musical fountain, the big 'Yakshi' statue, Fantasy Park, Thread Garden, Rock Garden, Snake Park, a Cable Car over the garden etc.

A quick visit to the aquarium where there were many varieties of fishes and then we returned to Palakkad. Lunch was a quick affair with curd rice and pickle and laddu for sweet (I was a sweet tooth then and am a sweet tooth now), as we had to catch the bus at 5. Otherwise we would be reaching home very late – 7.30 ish was pretty late those days.