Ooty: A day at Bethlehem

If Fern Hills Palace reminded me about the gone away royal glory, Glyngarth villa took me to the mountain of serenity. Who doesn't love the peace and silence? I love it and I enjoyed it at this place - that too on a Christmas Day. That's an awesome blend, correct?

People from Kerala might trace this place back to the movie - Summer in Bethlehem. I really wanted to visit this place, when I watched that movie years back. And it happened.

A very different and mixed feeling to stand in front of this place and by the by - I was tweeting the experience live :)

The lunch time was over when we reached the villa. Then decided for a tiny snack time.

Organized, clean and royal dining room

Relax to the core...

Fire place...

Keralites will remember this stair case forever :)

So silent and serene....

To chill

Ani examining each and every items in the room

Adding some sweetness to the evening..

Miles to go before I sleep :)

Always welcoming and wonderful hospitality...

Ready for a small ride...

Time to hit the road again

The cottages....

Ooty: Fern Hills Palace

"Deep within the blue forested hills of Nilgiris in Ooty, sits an english country manor, bought in 1873 by the young prince..."

And you will really feel that richness of the old dynasty, once you enter the place. Everything has a royal touch. Even the chairs in the garden, they look so royal :)

We decided to go for this destination because, we knew this place through some movies and really got fascinated by its beauty and architecture. The place came up in the research while we planned for the trip to Ooty and we really wanted to visit this place. 

To the garden for a walk, after finishing up with the lunch. Must say that the Biriyani was ROYAL.

I was disappointed when the management blocked us from clicking the pics around. Fortunately, as I explained them about my intention for the pics, they finally allowed to click the photos. Now I feel proud being a blogger...

A very special thanks to the property manager for the understanding and approval.

Each and every moment we spent there, we were in an entirely different world...

The backside garden view of the palace

An old building spotted in the palace premises, when we went for a walk.

A broader view of the palace from the garden.

Felt like in an another world.

Luxury at its best...

The front view of the palace resort

Extension of the palace resort restaurant where we decided to have the lunch. Why we chose? - The ambiance and privacy along with the stunning view to the garden.

Looked like the palace was opened for us alone. 

The wall of richness. And a pub which serves the royal drinks.

I couldn't find a piece of space without a royal touch. Completely covered and maintained.

Attached pub room for private discussions.

The walk way with the history depicted all over the place. Walking through the ways which the royals walked once :)

This will be a familiar location for the Keralites for sure

Naalukeetu type construction with a small garden in the midst.

Tiny cute garden

Tweeting the travel dots from the palace

Another view of the palace restaurant extension room.

Trip to the Queen of Hills

It was wonderful to be at Ooty on a Christmas day. Christmas goes well with the chilly climate and we enjoyed the trip to the Queen of Hills.

According to me, it is CHANGE, which makes the travel the best. I usually decide for a travel when I need a change from the recurring daily life. The craving to belong to a place which I never belonged to before, to meet people whom I never met before, to see the beauty of nature which I have never enjoyed before...

A sudden trip which was planned in less than a day and Ani, as usual came up with the PLAN list, which helped us to cover the places with ease.

Few places from the list:

• 6th Mile shooting point
• 9th mile shooting point
• Nawanagar Palace
• Lawrence School, Lovedale
• The Fern Hills Palace
• Gyngarth Villa
• Pine Forest
• Hotel Taj Savoy
• Pykara Waterfalls
• Pykara Lake
• Ooty Lake
• Botanical Garden
• WenLock Downs
• Sanctuary Avalanche
• Nilgiri Mountain Railway

From Bangalore, there was two ways to reach Ooty. The Masinagudi road & the Gudalur road.

Masinagudi route is a steep hairpin curve road, which we decided not to take that route for sure. We went through the Gudalur route, which is almost double the distance of the Masinagudi route, but gifted us with beautiful sideways and a tension free journey.

Two nights and three days, we enjoyed each and every moment of Christmas in Ooty.

Ciber Xmas Celebration

Christmas celebration at office - so much fun it was. As usual, I went along capturing some awesome moments.

Isaac in Toy Train

Isaac and his grand mom decided to go on a train journey. Amidst the sprouting Christmas feelings all around, he enjoyed the journey all along...