Munnar

The mountains that surround Munnar are flanked by tea plantations.Some of the most beautiful country I have ever laid my eyes on.The greenest of green as far as the eye can see.The air crisp,clean and pure.

I liked our bus driver,don't get me wrong he had the craze that makes riding a bus in India exciting,very intense eyes,only smiling to break into a crazy laugh.Foot to the floor,bidi hanging out of his mouth...and always a thick mustache.

Two things have worked for me since arriving in Kerala.My Russian Futurists button,Kerala has a Communist elected government.And that my name is Chris, there is an Indian movie that was released this year called kris,spelled with a K. Kris is a super hero,India's equivalent to superman.So never under estimate the power of a button and a name when traveling in India.They take there Superhero's,Gods and Politics very seriously!

There is a small restaurant in Munnar called the Bamboo Hut,it's owned by a sculptor named Isaac.Most of the restaurants in Munnar are ordinary,I noticed the Bamboo Hut the night of my arrival.It was late and after my eight hour bus ride I wanted a comfortable bed.

The next day I dropped by the Bamboo Hut,it had only been open 16 days.Issac and I hit it off immediately,the town was about to go on a one day strike.A one day shut down to protest against the communist government.The Congress party had been in power for 20 years before losing to the Communist party this past year. The leader of the Congress party had caused some trouble,I doubt it was of the drunken brawling sort,but enough to land his behind in jail.He is very popular in Munnar,my button is not!My upward nods and smiles turned to downward nods and frowns.So in protest of there leader being hauled off to jail,the town will shut down for one day.Issac assured me not to worry,drop by tomorrow and you will be taken care of.

The next day I awoke from my late night stupor of biscuits and chai,I knew that third glass of chai was a mistake,sometimes you gotta live a little.I take to the streets,and sure enough not a thing is open.There is no one around,not a soul in sight.It was a little eerie,almost as if the town had become deserted overnight.A ghost town in the span of a few hours.

I show up at the Bamboo hut and Issac asks,"how do you feel about hiking?"...Hiking?I'm all about hiking...!So we start to hike,I'm wearing my black office shoes,a toque and a blazer.Yes well prepared for hiking!After two hours of "hiking" I ask,"Are we there yet papa smurf" he doesn't understand the reference but giggles anyway,telling me we'll be in time for lunch.And tea...what about tea? Will there be tea as well?We walk through a maze of tea plantations,a tea lovers dream,the olfactory organs all charged up with clean mountainous air,tea leaves and something cooking not to far off.Up a hill,across a bridge,through a lagoon,all the while being mocked and laughed at by the crows.

We arrive at Issacs mom's place to a beautiful spread of Thali all layed out for us.
Thali is an India dish that generally consists of some rice,curd(yogurt),Dal, vegetables,chapati,papad,pickle or chutney and a sweet dish.There are different variations from region to region,North to South.It's delicious,quite filling and takes care of indecision at lunch time.

After lunch we took a walk over to Issac's grandfathers house,he looked to be around 105 and was wearing a tea towel on his head.I could tell they were very close after some conversation of what I gathered to be of a serious nature. Isaac later told me that his grandfather was happy that he had moved back to Munnar from Chennai.After tea we slowly made our way back to town,most of the trek was downhill,avoiding the lagoons and the hills,the crows still mocked and laughed at us!