Coorg

WOW, feels good to be writing again - about travel. We had taken a break from traveling for over a year as our lil one was very small. We have done just one road trip - to Bandipur (a one night trip), a trip to Pune to meet family where we flew, and few road trips to Mysore to visit family.

So, we are back to TRAVELing :) And I am soo excited!! Our lil one is now 1+ , I know, he is still very young, but old enough to travel ;)

It was our wedding anniversary, and so a perfect time to plan for a vacation. We chose Coorg, as its not too far for a road trip. Takes about 4-5 hours from Bangalore. We decided to stay at Amanvana Spa Resort.

We left Bangalore on a Saturday morning at 6.30am. Took the 'nice road' to join Mysore road. We stopped at Maddur for a quick breakfast at around 7.45-8am. From Maddur we continued on Mysore road. Immediately after Srirangapatna, we took a right onto a smaller road that leads directly to Yelwal, bypassing Mysore. Its about a 17km stretch, takes about 30 min to reach Yelwal, as the road is not in a good condition. Very few vehicles on this road as well. From Yelwal, its just one road, that goes to Hunsur, and Coorg.

The Amanvana resort is near Kushalnagar. It took us 4 hours to reach the resort. We reached around 10.30am and checked in to our room. The resort has 19 bungalows and all are similar rooms. Each bungalow has a courtyard with a gate, giving each room privacy. The courtyard is lovely, with chairs to sit and read or listen to the birds. There is also a fish tank in the garden. The rooms are lovely, with the space divided into a living and bed room by 2 steps. The bathrooms have a glass roof near the bathtub, overlooking plants/flowers.

After feeding A2, we explored the place a bit, walked around the property. Its green everywhere, they have grown lot of plants. Went to the spa and booked a slot for myself in the afternoon for 2 1/2 hours of pampering! We had lunch around 1pm, which was a buffet. The restaurant is beside the swimming pool. We used to sit outside near the pool everytime and enjoy the outside view.
 

After relaxing in the afternoon, we headed out of the room, and went to the swimming pool. A2 had a great time in the pool. Later in the evening we had tea in the garden overlooking the river Kaveri. We saw a big beautiful peacock fly from one tree to another. We sat there till it got dark and headed back to the room. It had started getting slightly chilly by then. The weather during the day was warm and sunny. After having dinner, we went back to the room and chilled. I got to read my book in the night, after a very long time, as A2 slept off early :)

The next day, we woke up around 6am to the sound of birds. Had tea in our courtyard, listening/seeing the different kinds of birds flying around. We had breakfast around 8, and then headed down to the river side. Kaveri river flows right next to the resort (its actually inside the resort itself). We walked along the river, sat on the rocks in the middle of the river for a while, crossed the wooden bridge and climbed few rocks. We spent some time on the banks of the river on the opposite side and A2 got to play in the river for the first time. And he LOVED it. Overall it was a small trek, but good enough for A2.

The rock where we sat

We headed back to the room, changed and went to the pool. It was sunny and warm, so we all enjoyed playing in the pool. A had the most fun in the water. It was lunchtime by the time we all freshened up. We had a good lunch with cold beer! It was perfect! We relaxed for a while in the courtyard/room while A2 played in the garden.

We went out for a drive for 30 minutes around 4pm. It was a good drive. Got back to the resort and had masala tea near the Kaveri river, listening to the birds, and watching the sunset.

A2 was super tired by 7, so he slept off. We had a nice long dinner overlooking the pool. Later on I got to read my book, before sleeping :)

Next day, we woke early, had tea in the courtyard and went out for a walk. After breakfast, we went down to the river and sat on the hammock close to the river. Sound of "river flowing, birds chirping and our son talking in his language" = PEACE :) This has been one of the highlights of this trip :) We sat here for a while, and then walked along the river and headed back to the room.

Bridge to cross the river

We packed and got ready to leave the resort. We left Coorg around 11.30am, had lunch at Adigas near Maddur, and reached Bangalore by 4.30pm.

We all had an awesome time in Coorg. Loved the resort, full of greenary, and the river flowing makes it an excellent place to stay. We have visited Coorg many times, and each time stayed in different places. Everytime the experience has been different and great. This trip was a relaxed one.

A refreshed me, signing off, till next trip :D :)