The night train from Jagdalpur town (Chattisgarh) brought me safely
to Araku Valley (Andhra Pradesh). The solo traveller on a hopping spree from
one state to another…LOL!
|
Araku Valley Railway Station
|
It was dark and extremely chilly. To make matters worse it was
an ungodly hour. I knew there was dormitory facility at the railway station.
The station master room was open. I knocked and entered the room. Upon enquiry
about availability of dormitory rooms, I learnt from the station master that
dormitory rooms are only for men. I was dejected. My next course of action was
to ask for availability of single rooms. The station master informed me the
only single room has already been booked. Sad news for me!!! With nothing else
to do at that ungodly hour, I made up my mind to spend a few hours at the
waiting room of the small railway station. The cold night slowly gave way to a
foggy morning. Everything was enveloped by the dense fog. As visibility
improved I emerged from the waiting room. I walked on the main road looking for
a hotel. After some searching, I found a good hotel at a reasonable price. |
a foggy street in Araku Valley |
WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU ARE IN ARAKU VALLEY?
That’s a good question. Read on to find out what I did on
the first and third day of my stay.
Araku Valley is a small hill station nestled in the Eastern
Ghats. The place is mostly inhabited by different tribal groups. It is blessed
with enchanting natural landscape, cascading waterfalls, gurgling streams, lush
green landscape, sprawling coffee plantations, and good weather. Hence it is often
referred to as the “Ooty of Andhra Pradesh”. It is a quick weekend getaway for
locals from nearby towns. So expect weekends to be extremely crowded. If you
are one of those who do not like crowds then avoid coming on weekends and
holidays.
TRIBAL
MUSEUM
|
entrance gate of Tribal Museum |
The Tribal Museum is right at the centre of the small town. I
bought the entrance ticket and entered through the huge gate. The museum
complex and the museum grounds showcases numerous artefacts from tribal life of
Eastern Ghats. It is an ideal place to learn and acquire information about tribal
culture and their lifestyle. The museum complex is well-equipped with informative
sign boards to aid the visitors. The main museum building is a circular shaped two-storey
structure. You will be greeted by life-sized clay models of tribal men and women
engaged in variety of activities. Traditional ornaments are on display as well.
These ornaments were indeed interesting.
|
ticket counter of Tribal Museum |
|
exhibits at the Tribal Museum |
|
exhibits at the Tribal Museum
|
|
exhibits at the Tribal Museum
|
|
exhibits at the Tribal Museum
|
|
exhibits at the Tribal Museum
|
|
exhibits at the Tribal Museum
|
|
exhibits at the Tribal Museum
|
|
the main circular museum building |
The outer walls of a few structures scattered
around the museum ground are beautifully decorated with tribal floral patterns.
Display of rice grains and pulses, and many other things related to tribal life
are exhibited in those mud houses. Interesting tribal sculptures are placed
around the area. Not to be missed are the dancing figurines of tribal ladies doing DHIMSA DANCE. It is a popular tribal folk dance performed by 10-15 tribal women forming a circle. It is performed during marriage celebrations, chaitra festival or any other festival occasion. You can pose with the dancing ladies by standing in the gap between the ladies. There
are a couple of shops within the premises where you can purchase souvenirs
including local coffee powder and locally produced organic honey. I purchased
local coffee powder at one of the shops. You can grab coffee or tea or cold
drinks at the mini café. A small park with a swimming pool completes the museum
complex.
|
tribal designs
|
|
exhibits at the Tribal Museum
|
|
exhibits at the Tribal Museum
|
|
exhibits at the Tribal Museum
|
|
coffee powder and coffee beans sold at the museum shop
|
|
visitors shopping at the museum complex |
|
Dhimsa Dance |
|
one for the memories
|
Just outside the main gate of Tribal Museum are many small eateries.
These eateries sell the popular BAMBOO
CHICKEN. It is a traditional tribal delicacy of Araku Valley. The small raw
chicken pieces after being marinated with spices are placed inside a green bamboo
stalk. It is to be mentioned no oil or water is used. The open end of the
bamboo stalk is then closed by leaves. This is placed over hot coal fire. The
bamboo piece is occasionally turned slowly over the coal fire till the entire
outer parts looks burnt. Do give it a try. You won’t be disappointed. The eateries
and the other small shops constitute the local market; and it lies on both
sides of the main road that passes right through the small town. You will
notice tribal ladies sitting on both sides of the road selling local vegetables
placed on tarpaulins. These tribal ladies mostly arrive from the neighbouring villages
to sell their wares and then return back home.
|
Bamboo Chicken |
|
Bamboo Chicken
|
|
a bowl of tasty Bamboo Chicken
|
|
ghee halwa
|
|
bunches of bananas
|
COFFEE
MUSEUM
Away from the hustle and bustle of the market area, an inner
road leads to Coffee Museum. It is located close to the Tribal Museum. This is
a must visit for a coffee lover. With interesting and attention grabbing
catchphrases such as “Caffeine is not a drug, it’s a vitamin” and few more, the
museum narrates the interesting story of coffee from seed till it reaches your
cup with the help of diagrams, visuals, and pictures. I learnt the story
regarding the origin of coffee here. You can purchase variety of home-made
chocolates and coffee powder from the adjacent bakery and also grab a hot cuppa
of varieties of coffee. You can satisfy your hunger pangs from the few standalone
eating carts within the premises where sandwiches, burgers, fries, etc. are
sold. Late evening Dhimsa dance performance is held here. I missed the dance show since I left the place early.
|
one for the memories
|
|
sitting chairs at the Coffee Museum |
|
Coffee Museum
|
|
Coffee Museum
|
|
ticket counter of Coffee Museum
|
|
sunset as seen from Coffee Museum
|
PADMANAPURAM
GARDEN
The location of the botanical garden is a bit far from the
town centre. A huge ornamental gate welcomes you to the expansive garden. It is
ornamented with well-maintained flowery pathways and variety of flowering
plants and green plants. The huge open spaces is a welcome relief; and you can
either take a leisurely walk or jog or sit in the grassy lawns. It is a good
place for some quiet time and to relax with friends and families or even alone.
After exploring the garden, I lied down on the green grass gazing at the blue
sky for a long time. A toy train facility is available which takes you
around the huge garden. The toy train ride is a favourite activity with the
kids and adults as well.
|
entrance to Padmanapuram Botanical Garden |
|
Padmanapuram Botanical Garden |
|
Padmanapuram Botanical Garden
|
|
Padmanapuram Botanical Garden
|
|
flower blossoms on the way to the garden |
|
kolam decor infront of a house |
|
a bamboo gate |
|
a shop on the way to the garden
|
CHOMPI
VILLAGE
|
the way to Chompi village |
After my visit to the botanical garden, I decided to visit a
tribal village. I couldn’t get any public vehicle to go to the tribal village
from the town. Hence I walked all the way. It took me around 40-50 minutes from
the botanical garden to Chompi village.
It was a long walk to the village. Leaving behind the hustle and bustle of the town, I slowly became aware silence enveloping me during my walk and found myself absorbed in the music of the chattering of the birds and the rustling of leaves. I had to pass by a railway crossing as well. A horticulture cum training centre was on the way to the village and I dropped in out of curiosity when I saw the open gate. I was there for only a few minutes. At one point I realized I was followed by some women and young girls. They were bringing
bundles of dry twigs/branches by skilfully balancing it on their head. They took a shortcut through the paddy field to
go to the village while I continued walking on the road. Chompi is a small Adivasi village. The houses are modestly
built. Life went on in the village and I was the quiet observer. A few village
folk were engaged in the paddy field, some women were cleaning utensils in a
corner away from the prying eyes, some lazing at the veranda of their modest
hut.
|
railway crossing on the way to Chompi village
|
|
horticulture centre on the way to Chompi village |
|
huge anthill at the horticulture centre
|
|
betel leaves at the horticulture centre |
|
paddy field at Chompi village
|
|
the road to Chompi village
|
|
village folks crossing the field |
|
village folks busy at the field
|
|
a school in Chompi village
|
|
a hut in Chompi village
|
|
a hut in Chompi village
|
|
a hut in Chompi village
|
|
ploughing tool in Chompi village
|
Oh yes, I also came across an entire family – husband, wife, and their
kids - busy in cleaning coffee beans (removing the bean from inside the coffee
cherry) with the help of a small machine. It was something very new to me…to see
the process. Just across the courtyard saw coffee beans being laid out on a mat
for drying. The family informed me they make coffee powder from the fully dried
coffee beans and later on sell it in the market. It is a good source of income for
the family. I had to wait for sometime to get a
shared auto while returning from the village.
|
drying of coffee beans |
|
separating coffee beans from coffee cherry |
|
separating coffee beans from coffee cherry
|
No doubt Araku Valley is blessed with natural beauty. But what
appalled me was the sight of litters and garbage practically everywhere. It
looked as if the town was made up of litters. It is a pitiful sight. The
concerned authorities need to wake up from their slumber and do the needful
regarding this menace.
I will make a separate post regarding my activities for the 2nd
day in Araku Valley.
Thank you
for stopping by!
Travelled
on: 19 & 21 January 2020
© The content and images are copyright of Hema
Hazarika (thehaflonggirl).
No comments:
Post a Comment