The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Head for the hills of Kodagu and relax

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jul 04, 2007
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Head for the hills of Kodagu and relax

Bageshree S.

P.T. Bopanna’s booklet ‘Discover Coorg’ brings alive aspects of Kodagu

Steeped in tradition: Kodagu, with its unique culture, is attracting tourists from far and wide

Bangalore: There is no place like Kodagu if you want to get away from it all . Any season is good if you aren’t averse to a spot of adventure. It’s cool in summer and the place to head for to know what rains can be like during the monsoon and to feel the cold air hitting your bones directly in winter. A misty Madikeri morning inspired G.P. Rajaratnam to write a poem- “It’s as if clouds have hugged the earth, as if silver is growing on the streets…”

The hilly district, best known for its lush green coffee plantations, has seen a tourism boom recently. That explains why journalist P.T. Bopanna’s booklet on Kodagu, “Discover Coorg”, has gone into print again within a year of its publication.

The book opens with Jawaharlal Nehru’s interesting observation on Kodagu. What follows are short chapters that update you on various aspects of Kodagu The more interesting parts are about Kodava jewellery, recipes, birds of Kodagu and the annual hockey festival unique to the district. The most interesting chapter is the one on Princess Gowramma who had no less than Queen Victoria for her godmother and married a British army officer nearly thrice her age. Their daughter went by an impressive name- Edith Victoria Gowramma Campbell.

The book, a Prism publication, is enlivened by photographs and cartoons.

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