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The sound of silence

PHOTOS: K. ANANTHAN

Watch life roll by At the Adderley Guest House

ADDERLEY, GLENDALE ESTATES
NEAR COONOOR
USP: Chill out with a cheering cuppa

If you discount the talkative birds and the creaky swing, you can actually hear the plants growing. It’s that silent at Adderley, Glendale Estates. And, that one fact alone makes it a great escape. Add to that a bungalow built in the 1800s where you can stay, and you have the perfect weekend.

Not just drinking tea, even watching the tea gardens all day is therapeutic. Sitting on the swing under a jamun tree, you have in front of you a colonial bungalow, with undulating tea gardens as a backdrop. You have nothing more strenuous to do than follow a ribbon of smoke as it joins some clouds lazily making their way somewhere. And, just behind you is the spread of the Mettupalayam plains. Just wait till it starts to get dark. Pinpricks of light appear in the distance and suddenly, there is this huge spider web picked out in crystal and gold flung over the plains. It is inspiration enough for several odes.

A two-levelled garden has varieties of plants and trees neatly labelled with their botanical details. A huge rock sits plumb in the middle of the garden. It couldn’t be moved, so a hedge was planted around it; the depression on top forms a natural birdbath. You are clearly in the minority here. It is bird territory and they hop and peck and completely ignore you.

Long walks are, of course, de rigueur and one can either walk up to Dolphin’s Nose a kilometre away or trek to nearby cinnamon and spice plantations. And, Coonoor’s regular tourist beats are not too far. But, it is unlikely that you will want to stir out at all. Mobile phones are useless here. But there is dish TV if you are bored enough to want it. Yesudas, who has been at the bungalow for the last 35 years, brews you as many cups of tea as you want and also cooks.

The food is simple and wholesome. The rooms and bathrooms are large and spotlessly clean. Best of all, pets are allowed!

How to get there

Adderley is just a km short of Dolphin’s Nose and approximately 10 km from Sim’s Park in Coonoor (15 km from Ooty).

The nearest airport is Coimbatore (75 km); you can take the train to Mettupalayam and take the hill train to Coonoor, or simply drive up the ghat road from Mettupalayam.

Tariff

Suite: Rs. 3,000 per day

Room: Rs. 2,000 per day

Meals: Rs. 60 per head for breakfast/Rs. 100 per head for lunch and dinner.

One can also rent the entire bungalow (5 bedrooms) for Rs. 9,000. There is also the option of bringing provisions, etc, and have the resident cook make your meals. For reservations and other details call: Rin Otter at 9444993176/04232206779

or visit www.glendalestays.in email: Glendale@dataone.in

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