Ooty outing

 Hi! You will not believe what an adventure I had in the past few days! Let me tell you all about it.

We went to Ooty (Udhagamandalam) for a relaxing vacation after all that we had been through over the past year. With the lock-down and the Covid-19 pandemic, things have been a little tight in my family. We loosened the knot by relaxing to the core!

We were not having many expectations about the hotel because the last 2 trips have flopped out of our trip pans like a floor pancake. My sister was very excited. She hadn't been to a hill station for quite a while now. As the car passed through the bumpy, ghat road, I could feel the pressure decrease as we gained altitude. The hairpin bends, reverse bends and blind curves made my stomach lurch. It made me feel like I was in one of the VR game stations back in Chennai. I asked my parents to push the windows down since I was feeling nauseous. The air was cold, sharp, and smelled like eucalyptus with neem. The trees towered in front of me standing at least 3 stories tall. I heard sparrows and bulbuls chirping but couldn't see them anywhere. The sun shone through the thick canopy, like gold flecks on a green carpet. My nausea was forgotten. Beside me, I saw Shanu sprawled on the seat and drooling on the pillow. I smiled and drifted into sleep.

Mom nudged me awake, telling me that we had arrived. I stretched and found Shanu copying me! I snorted and got out. Immediately, I was blasted with immense cold and found myself hugging my arms. We got our luggage and ran in. Accord highlands reception was a very cozy place.  A fire burned merrily in one corner, there were intricate tribal statues in another, comfy couches lay scattered and there were sanitization pods everywhere. After checking in, we went to check out the restaurant. Savour was a very elegant place with exquisite cutlery, Chinese bamboo mats, and abstract artwork on the walls. We ordered pasta, spring rolls, vegetable stir fry and brownies. All of the food was finger-licking good! We also made a new friend! Mr Parthiban was one of our waiters and he seemed to take a lot of interest in Shananthika. He was very funny and friendly. After lunch, we went to our room to freshen up.

We explored 'Escape' the fun zone. It was our favourite place! They had a basketball hoop, volleyball court, swings, trampolines, cricket nets, Xbox games, air hockey, Jenga, a library, table tennis and a bonfire. They also supplied us with free chai, coffee, milk and special Ooty rusks and butter biscuits. After tea time, we trooped back to the room.

At 7 in the night, I dragged my parents to play games at the bonfire. We had a very good time. The activities manager: Mr Shiva was one of the best people there. He was a local and shared a lot about his culture. After dinner, we were so tired that we couldn't even walk.

The next day we went for a boat ride. The water was cold and we spotted lots of birds and animals. We also went to the thread garden. Thread garden is a garden made up of thread. The flowers, leaves, and soil were made from thread! It was so amazing to feel the flowers and they looked very realistic. We also visited the largest rose garden in India. We spotted a thousand varieties of roses, each very different from the rest. To wrap it all up, we went to the local chocolate shop for lunch. I was over the moon after I tried their amazing eats and drinks. The shop is called Moddy's and they are very popular in Ooty. 

After reaching the resort, we attended some guitar lessons. I can surely say that I am very bad at it. Shananthika and mum got it really quickly but I and dad were left in the fields. After that, we had a pretty normal evening and started to pack up.

I may not be sure of many things but I am for this one. Ooty is the BEST place ever! And that the stay will only be interesting if you don't have any expectations! Goodbye for now👋🙋‍♀️.