A Kazha Mootha Adventure

May 02, 2009: This was today four of us, KMG, TGT, TVT and myself N5 decided to explore the darkness that lay beyond the much heard but little known region called Alathara. We began our journey following the road not much travelled by CETians, going towards Alathara. On the way we passed big towers that were coming up, tall in defiance of the countryside, great structures looking out to the sea. Onward we walked, without a target, following the same worn out road, leaving behind the hills which had great castles and palaces of the rich and famous lying in between the shacks and hovels of the downtrodden. A lot more of them were coming up here, leaving us amazed at how crass capitalism was destroying our countryside.

Then as we turned around a bend in the road, we caught our first sight of the great Akkulam Lake, glistening in the sunlight in all its majesty. Alas, for we were at a junction with two choices, to go either left or right. We searched for any signs which would tell us the way forward. But then the blistering heat of the high noon took over our mnds with the help of our kazha and we took the beaten road to the right. We advanced forward, ambling along the shores of the stately Akkulam Lake passing by many wonders, natural and manmade alike.

Soon we found our beaten track merging into the great NH Bypass. The road that carried vast amount of traffic at high speeds which left us amazed. We satiated our thirst at a wayside shop with lemon juice and soda and rested our feet. The keeper of the shop was amazed to hear of our journey till now but we told him that it was just the beginning leaving him dumbstruck. Others bid us good luck for our adventure. We bid them goodbye and turning south walked along the Bypass till we reached the bridge crossing the Akkulam Lake. A long bridge was this, spanning over 369 metres and built over six years, the construction being led by a woman chef engineer. We traversed the bridge slowly, marvelling at the beauty of the mighty Akkulam Lake. And slowly and steadily we had finally crossed. We looked back and the beginning of the bridge gleamed far away in the distance. We rested a little in the shade of a mango tree. Its branches were teasing us with bunches of its fruits hanging just out of reach. With the heave kotor traffic of the NH Bypass road to give us company and protection, we strolled ahead, viewing the many factories, car showrooms and other sights alongside the dusty road. We had a small lunch at a decrepit hotel offering only rice meals after which we walked till we reached another junction. 5

But there was a road sign here which read:

Kovalam 19 k.m.

Veli tourist village 2 k.m.

We were well aware of the limits of our kazha and with a sea wind cooling our minds, we turned west again, walking towards the other greater lake, Veli. We first reached the Kochuveli Railway Station. This was from where many long distance trains started. We found the Kochuveli-Bikaner Express lying at the first platform. We were now walking right on the railway tracks, filling our eyes with the majesty of the grand Indian Railways. We crossed the tracks and after a right turn and then a left turn we stumbled upon Veli. We entered the park and saw the various carvings and sculptures it had on display. With a little more rest we moved towards the beach and stood facing the wide open Arabian Sea. We strained our eyes hoping to catch a glimpse of any big ship but to no avail.

Our Kazha took us further south as we walked towards the beach of Shankumugham. We ambled along the beach with our pants folded up to our knees and our footwear in our hands. Befriending the dogs basking in the beach we moved forward, sometimes sighting crabs and other creatures in the beach. Littered along the beach were many bottles of alcohol which we tossed into the sea. Regrefully, we also found a few persons depositing their feaces in the sea. Inspite of al these distractions, we were progressing slower than we expected since the sand obstructed our speed. But we walked onward, crossing small creeks that joined with the sea. Finally we were close to our destination. We had reached within viewing distance of the Indian Coffee House building at Shankumugham. We found a bottle of red paint which we used to mark our presence and of our college’s on the new seawall constructed to protect in face of anther tsunami.

Crossing the beach we entered the ICH and ate and drank to our fill. We then walked towards the sculptures, one of the man resting on his back ever gazing at the sky and the stars and the other one of a beautiful mermaid sun bathing, basking in the glory of all nature. And so we came to the end of our journey with our kazha now diminished. We took a bus back to the hustle and bustle of the city and back to our daily lives.