PLAN
To ride the length of Kerala from Kasargod in the north to Thiruvananthapuram in the South. Ride along the beautiful coastline, wash off my sins in the ancient temples, go back in time to the feudal era by visiting palaces and mighty forts, indulge in the tasty Malabar cuisine, meet and mingle with people whose accent, food and culture vary to what I've been used to.
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| Route Map |
HOW IT CAME ABOUT
Got a call from my friend Vishnu Pisharody one evening in office. Told him my desire for visiting Malabar. He said he got some days off during Onam. I applied for a one week leave which got approved thanks to my manager and the trip was on! My bike (a 2003 Bajaj Pulsar 150 hereafter referred to as 'Pulsy') got prepped up with new Shell Advance oil and I too got myself fit for the ride, jogging & exercising.
DAY 1: 26-August-2012
Woke up at 3.30am. Thank God, no rain. Mounted the Cramster tank bag on my Pulsy. Cold morning, not a soul in sight on the roads and an eerie silence. Rode out of Bangalore by waking up the guy at the Nice Ring Road toll gate and hitting the state highway to Mysore. Its scarily dark, the headlight beam is my only pal. Sun started to come up, damn... the sky looks overcast. Its still cold, I stop for some tea and munch on a Snickers. After Srirangapatna, a sign says go right to Madikeri. As I'm about to reach Hunsur, the heavens open up! I try to wait it out, but the rain comes down with a vengeance. I pull the rain over over the tank bag, but it keeps flapping in the wind. I try to adjust it while riding, nearly missing a car on the oncoming lane. Stupid mistake... I'm rattled a bit. It cold and misty as I arrive at Madikeri. A solider's statue stands defiantly in the middle of the town, reminding us of their sacrifice through the wordings "Lest we Forget!" I'm shivering now and famished. The rain still comes down hard... I have hot poori-masala from a hotel, and leave a pool of water where I sit. The hotel waiter frowns... The conditions are treacherous as I make my way to Kasargod. Bike's slipping and sliding everywhere... Thick forest and coffee plantations line the fast sweeping roads till Sampaje.
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| Madikeri to Sampaje |
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| Kerala-Karnataka Border |
Mularia,Boovikanam and Cherkala... some nice views along the way, including a hanging bridge.
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| A hanging bridge |
DAY 2: 27-August-2012
6.30am... We step out of lodge and ride out on to the roads. Kasargod is still sleepy. Our destination is Kumbala where the Ananthapura Lake Temple is situated. An open hill greet us... crisp morning air, wide open spaces, plants bathed in dew. Jackets and jeans are not appropriate for visiting a temple... A few curious eyes welcome us at the entrance of the temple.
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| Ananthapura Lake Temple, Kasargod |
The Ananthapura Lake Temple is a sight to behold. A beautiful temple in the middle of a pristine lake. A vegetarian crocodile called 'babiya' roams the lake and is said to guard the temple!
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| Ananthapura Lake Temple, Kasargod |
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| Ananthapura Lake Temple, Kasargod |
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| Madhur Temple, Kasargod |
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| Malik Deenar Mosque, Kasargod |
After a breakfast of idiyappam and egg curry, we visited the Mailk Deenar Mosque. The holy grave of Malik Deenar, who was the first follower of Prophet Muhammad, is situated in this mosque.
Chandragiri Fort was next up as we rode through the pothole filled NH to Kanhangad. Pulsy's suspension creaked at the punishment it was suffering. Chandragiri Fort looked deserted, not cared for by the authorities evident by the growth of tall grass and wild creepers inside the fort.
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| Chandragiri Fort, Kasargod |
"Tu hi re" song from the film Bombay was playing on my mind while riding towards the Bekal Fort. Mani Ratnam did a lot to make the Bekal Fort famous, with that soulful love song by A R Rahman, featuring Arvind Swamy and Manisha Koirala. The Bekal Fort built in 1650 AD covers an area of 40 acres!
It is picturesque with the Arabian sea stretching beyond the fort walls. 
We walked the circumference of the fort, a tiring walk indeed considering the sheer area of the fort.
The impending rain and greenery gave the place a magical presence.
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| Bekal Fort, Kasargod |
The rain started coming down hard as we made our way out of the Bekal Fort. Next stop was at Nileshwar, to meet up with our dear friend Sreekanth and his family.
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| At Sreekanth's home, Nileshwar, Kasargod |
Sreekanth's mom prepared a delicious lunch for us. After some chitchat with him and his brother, it was time to hit the road again. Kannur/Cannanore beckons...
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| Parassinikadavu Muthappan Temple, Kannur |
Rituals of this temple are unique. Fish, meat and toddy (liquor obtained from coconut palm) are the customary offerings to the deity, Sri Muthappan!
Photography was prohibited but I still managed to get a snap in. The drum beating had started inside the Madappura as we washed our face in the stream gushing in front of the temple.
Photography was prohibited but I still managed to get a snap in. The drum beating had started inside the Madappura as we washed our face in the stream gushing in front of the temple.
We reached Kannur town and after muscling past the traffic, we rode through the Cantonment area towards St. Angelos Fort. It was built by the Portugese in 1505.
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| Fort St Angelo, Kannur |
A panoramic view of the Arabian sea and Mappila Bay is visible from the fort.
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| Mappila Bay, Kannur |
The fort premises were beautiful... the gentle sea breeze, the sound of the waves crashing on the rocks and the vapor hanging in the air washed our fatigue away.
Arabian Sea as seen from Fort St Angelo, Kannur
Arabian Sea as seen from Fort St Angelo, Kannur
A magical evening ends... now have to find a place to stay. A tourist home near the railway station and a safe parking area...Cant ask for more! Camera batteries needed a recharge and so did we. We got our recharge in the form of a hot, spicy Malabar style chicken biryani! :)
DAY 3: 28-August-2012
Woke up early... took a look outside... no rains... great!! Payyambalam Beach was our destination.
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| Payyambalam Beach, Kannur |
Kids were playing football and at times hollering "Pass the ball... Over here".
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| Payyambalam Beach, Kannur |
Breakfast time and we walked into Kerala and Kannur's own 'Indian Coffee House'. A photo of Saghavu (Comrade) A.K. Gopalan who had played an important role in the formation of Indian Coffee House looked down on us.
A casual look at the newspaper headlines stunned us. At night, a tanker lorry carrying LPG had overturned and caught fire, burning down houses and killing 14 (eventual death toll). With a heavy heart we made our way to see the Arakkal Palace.
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| Arakkal Palace Museum, Kannur |
Arakkal family was the only Muslim royal family in Kerala.
Another unique feature of the Arakkal family was the eldest member of the family, whether male or female, became its head and ruler. While male rulers were called Ali Rajah, female rulers were known as Arakkal Beevis.
Another unique feature of the Arakkal family was the eldest member of the family, whether male or female, became its head and ruler. While male rulers were called Ali Rajah, female rulers were known as Arakkal Beevis.
The items on display included swords, cutlery, furniture, telephones, vases which dates back to the golden era of this Malabar kingdom.
Back to room, picked the luggage and off we made our way through Thazhe Chovva to the NH. Next stop was the wonderful drive-in beach at Muzhappilangad.
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| At Muzhappilangad Beach, Kannur |
The beach was pristine... A 3km strech of sand and surf. I got a bit over excited and started splashing on the waves. Pulsy started to misfire.
She stalled and refused to start again! We are in trouble now. Vishnu had an "You idiot... I told you so" kind of expression. No other way than to push the bike 2kms till we found a workshop.
Mechanic says sea water has shorted the electricals and only showroom guys can repair it. We find a carriage-van and take it to Thalassery town. Its a day before Thiruvonam... Showrooms are closed. The van driver takes us around the town in search of a workshop and finally we find one and the mechanic 'ettan' finds and fixes the issue with surgical precision. No wonder why people from Kannur have a reputation of being nice and helpful... Thanks a dozen for the help!
Mechanic says sea water has shorted the electricals and only showroom guys can repair it. We find a carriage-van and take it to Thalassery town. Its a day before Thiruvonam... Showrooms are closed. The van driver takes us around the town in search of a workshop and finally we find one and the mechanic 'ettan' finds and fixes the issue with surgical precision. No wonder why people from Kannur have a reputation of being nice and helpful... Thanks a dozen for the help!
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| Thalassery Fort |
We make our way to Hotel Raraavis. A lady coming down the steps, trips and Vishnu saves her from falling down and becomes a hero for the moment. Tasty 'Thalassery Biryani' settles our appetite. Thalassery/Tellichery Fort is next.
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| Thalassery Fort |
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| Lighthouse inside the Fort |
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| A British built Chruch |
The fort offers view of a couple of old churches built during the British era and the sea beyond it. As we move out of Thalassery the rain comes down again.
Rain eases off as we near the Union Territory of Mahe.We fill up petrol from Mahe which is still a scarcely believable Rs 66 to a litre.
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| Petrol at Mahe- Rs 66 per litre!! |
Police stop us and check our bags for liquor. They are stunned when we say we are riding from Bangalore to Trivandrum. The most frequent question follows "Don't you get back pain?". I smiled and said "No".
Kozhikkode/Calicut is ahead of us. We make a detour to see Lokanarkavu Temple where people stare at us as if we were some hippies. Well, uncombed, unshaved and soiled with dust is not the best way to visit a temple.
Kozhikkode/Calicut is ahead of us. We make a detour to see Lokanarkavu Temple where people stare at us as if we were some hippies. Well, uncombed, unshaved and soiled with dust is not the best way to visit a temple.
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| Lokanarkavu Temple, Vadakkara, Kozhikkode |
Kunjali Maraikkar museum was closed by the time we reached there. All because of the time lost at Muzhappilangad beach...
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| Kunjali Maraikkar Museum, Kozhikkode |
Story was same at Thikkotti Lighthouse as well... 7pm and it was closed! Disappointed...we made our way to Calicut town...
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| Thikkotti Lighthouse, Kozhikkode |
The ride in the dark to Calicut was most dangerous. On-coming vehicles never dip their high beams, buses overtake recklessly and miss us by inches! We enter Kozhikkode town hungry, tired and find a tourist home. We crash into bed and 'Casanova' film playing on TV cheers Vishnu up. Biryani again, from famed Hotel Sagar and off to sleep.
DAY 4: 29-August-2012
Early morning... its cold and damp from the overnight rain. Its Thiruvonam as well. Kappad Beach is where Portuguese explorer Vasco Da Gama landed back in May 20, 1498 and established the sea route from Europe to India.
We ride 16 kms through the Kozhikkode beach road towards Kappad. Seeing Kozhikkode Beach brings back memories as I came here with friends back in 2006 for my friend Sapna's wedding.
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| Kappad Beach |
The rain starts coming down hard as we reach Kappad beach. Its early morning and we are the first ones to visit the beach which will fill up with tourists as the day goes on...
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| Early morning fishing |
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| Pulsy rests near Kappad. |
Drenched we ride back to our tourist home in Calicut town. Along the way Pulsy misfires and I'm scared if water has entered the engine again. We plan to wait it out inside a shopping mall parking lot. Shops are closed because its Thiruvonam.
As the rain eased we made our way to Beypore Port. Its the oldest port in Kerala from where trading was done to the Middle East. The man in charge was very curious to know about us and our trip.
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| Beypore Port |
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| Waiting for the ferry |
Photography was prohibited but we got a snap from the Jengar. Jengar is the ferry that carries people and vehicles across the Chaliyar. Beypore is also famous for building wooden ships, called Dhows or Urus in Malayalam.
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| Our ferry is here.... |
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| Pulsy rests on the ferry |
The ferry journey took about 20mins... We soaked in the view of the rain soaked palms, backwaters and a old lighthouse far away. Time to bid goodbye to Beypore, the place where the famous writer Vaikkom Mohammed Basheer was born.
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| Bye bye ferry... |
I recollected some parts of Basheer's story "Pathumma ude Aadu (Pathumma's Goat)" which I studied in school, during the ride on the Jengar. People advised us to take the Kadalundi bridge to go across to Malappuram.
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| Ready for Malappuram. |
Kadalundi bridge was a spectacle in itself.
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| Kadalundi Bridge |
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| Kadalundi Bridge |
The rumbling sea-waves were beating the pillars of the bridge. Took a couple of snaps and sped to Tirur.
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| Kadalundi Bridge |
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| At Kadalundi Bridge |
Tirur wore a deserted look. Being Onam most shops were closed. But we found a small hotel open and asked for chicken biryani. It was so tasty with onion dipped in vinegar and beetroot pickle for company. Sadly Thunjan Parambu was closed.
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| Thunjan Parambu, Tirur, Malappuram |
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| Thunjan Parambu, Tirur, Malappuram |
It is a memorial situated where the father of Malayalam language, Thunjathu Ramanujan Ezhuthachan was born.
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| Thunjan Parambu, Tirur, Malappuram |
Next up was the famed temple situated in the banks of Bharatapuzha... the Thirunavaya Temple. It is the place where the Mamankam Festival used to happen years back.
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| Thirunavaya Temple |
The sandy banks were swallowed up by Nila due to the rains.
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| Overflowing Nila. |
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| Chamravattom Bridge |
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| Ponnani Lighthouse |
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| Taking a breather at Ponnani Beach |
Stopped by the roadside to have hot tea and Pazhampori (Banana Fry)... nothing beats that combination in the rains. Thrissur, here we come....
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| Guruvayoor Mamiyur Temple |
One of the major temples in Kerala, Guruvayoor enjoys a special place in the hearts of all Krishna devotees.
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| Guruvayoor Sree Krishna Temple, Thrissur |
Found a lodge to stay after a lot of searching... because of the rains, I wanted a place that offered proper parking with shetler for the bike.
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| Paramekkavu Temple, Thrissur |
Hunger was reaching its peak again and we went into a Chinese Restaurant near the Swaraj round. After that we visited the Vadakkumnathan and Paramekkavu Temples... the rivals at the spectacular Thrissur Pooram.
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| Vadakkumnadan Temple, Thrissur |
Off to sleep after another tiring day....
DAY 4: 30-August-2012
Morning.... The air feels heavy due to the overnight rain. This is the last day of the odyssey. We set off from Thrissur towards Kodungalloor.
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| Arattupzha Temple, Trichur |
A right deviation from the state highway takes us to the imposing Koodal Manikyam Temple, only temple in India dedicates to Bharata, second brother of Rama.
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| Koodal Manikyam Temple, Irinjalakkuda |
The temple looked majestic with it huge pillars shaded in a tinge of blue.
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| Koodal Manikyam Temple, Irinjalakkuda |
It was around 8am and we went to the Indian Coffee House near the bus stand to have masala dosa and hot coffee.
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| Koodal Manikyam Temple, Irinjalakkuda |
On the road again to Kodungallor. The discovery of the ancient great seaport of the Muziris happened to be in Kodungallor which dates back to trade relations during the Roman era.
We reached the Kodungallor Bhagavathy Temple. A huge queue of devotees had lined up to see Kodungallor Amma. We kept our bags and shoes in the luggage area and walked around the temple premises.
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| Kodungaloor Bhagavathy Temple, Kodungaloor |
A huge athappokalam was kept in front of the temple. The Bharani festival at Kodungaloor ranks as one of the grandest temple festivals in Kerala.
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| At Kodungaloor Bhagavathy Temple, Kodungaloor |
The Cheraman Juma Masjid at Kodungallor is said to be the first mosque in India, built in 629 AD by Malik lbn Dinar!
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| Cheraman Juma Masjid, Kodungaloor |
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| Model of the mosque |
After obtaining permission from a senior Mullah, we entered the mosque to give prayers. We removed our footwear, washed our face, hands and feet and entered. It was a mystical feeling when I knelt down, bowed my head and touched the floor, in front of Quran.
I've never been inside a mosque before. I prayed to Allah to provide me a safe journey back home.
A musuem showcasing the history of the masjid was in the premises. A beautiful model of mosque in its original form was kept there.
Thiruvanchikulam Mahadeva Temple is one of the oldest Shiva Temples in South India.
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| Thiruvanchikulam Mahadeva Temple, Kodungallor |
The grand architecture and beautifully crafted woodwork had us gazing in awe! To build something like this with the old tools they had is just mind boggling.
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| Thiruvanchikulam Mahadeva Temple, Kodungallor |
One looses track of time gazing at the serene temple pond and the peaceful temple surroundings.
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| Thiruvanchikulam Mahadeva Temple, Kodungallor |
Now we went out in search of the Kodungallor Fort which is said to be the place where the Muziris seaport was situated. We rode to the Kottappuram backwaters and rode a small rode by the lakeside to the fort site. Excavations were going on. We found a young guy spending sometime alone.
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| Kottappuram Backwaters, Kodungallor |
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| Kottappuram Backwaters, Kodungallor |
He was curious about us and a conversation started between us. We came to know that he was doing his MBBS in Govt Medical College, Trivandrum.
He bid goodbye to us and started his bike. Pishu said he would explore the place and I sat on a small step by the lakeside and dipped my feet in the cold water. The rain started pouring down. I pulled my pullover jacket over my head....
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| Pulsy takes a breather |
The chinese nets seems to blur out as the rain lashes down more heavily! Vishnu runs towards me... I start the bike and we ride to find a shelter. Shelter comes under the Kottappuram Bridge and we see that our future doctor, Sahid, also has taken refuge there. We talk a bit, snap a couple of pics with him....
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| Vishnu & Sahid |
As the intensity of the rain drops, we bid adieu to our new friend. I drop Vishnu at the bus stand. "See you on another trip buddy... Thanks for making this happen" I say as he waves from the bus. For me its a long journey ahead... some 340 kms...
I rush towards Edapally and the rain is just pouring down... I stop by a pan shop which has some shelter... shivering I lit a smoke... Back on road again till Vytilla where I stop for a nice veg meals from Aaryas hotel.
I have to ride even if it is raining.... else it will be too late to make it to home. I keep concentrated on the road ahead. Rain becomes unbearable near Cherthala. Stop again... It was then a splash-n-dash to Trivandrum. I was near exhaustion as I reached Trivandrum by around 10pm, but I screamed inside my helmet with elation. It was the culmination of a journey that I had dreamed of doing from the time I started riding a motorbike.... It was a journey that will remain in my memories forever.........
Thanks for reading,
Visakh. A
[Photography: Visakh & Vishnu]
-------------------------------------The Kerala Odyssey--------------------------------
