Munnar
..The heat and humidity in lowland Kerala is oppressive, showering three times a day makes little difference, within a few minutes of stepping outside , clothes are already sticking to the body. Cochin is also infested with mosquitoes, despite sleeping in an a/c room with 3 plug-ins I acquired at least half a dozen bites in a day. Heading off to the tea plantation town of Munnar 5,000 ft up in the hills gave a welcome relief from the heat. The southern hill country gives a pleasant combination of warm sun and cool breezes, chilly at night but not the biting cold of Simla or Darjeeling. For the first time in 3 weeks I have enjoyed not being hot and sticky and the pleasure of sleeping without a noisy fan or air-conditioner. After experiencing disappointingly dirty and overpriced hotels in Chennai and Cochin the guest house is excellent value and spotlessly clean.
.. I allowed myelf to be persuaded to join an 8 mile trek ascending around 2,500 ft to one of the highest peaks in the area, despite not having undertaken any long walks for months, and my only footwear being light slip-on shoes. Having hoped that perhaps the group might contain an elderly couple or perhaps someone really fat , who might linger at the back with me , I was dismayed to find the group contained only healthy looking twentysomethings,
Walking alongside the river at the start of the walk gave stunning views of the mist
We ascended through the tea plantations established by Scottish entrepeneurs in Victorian times and now owned by the Tata conglomerate. As we ascended my own lack of fitness became increasingly apparent , as did the increasing steepness of the ascent., and the unsuitability of my footwear A combination of progressing very slowly , and stopping to recover frequently somehow enabled me to reach the summit . The sense of relief and achievement was palpable , the views were stunning and in accordance with his national tradition , a Norwegian member of the group produced a box of the most splendid chocolate to celebrate the achievement.
