Back Recognition Photography

I was sitting on a boat and taking a cruise through the Periyar Tiger Reserve of Kerala. My eyes were searching the banks for signs of any wildlife, but for a long while I could just see plain green grass.

 
To keep myself occupied, I decided to capture the various people sitting in the boat through my lens.


It was during this shoot that I figured out that maybe there should be a thing called “Back Recognition Photography” on the lines of “Facial Recognition/ Smile Capture Photography” as these shots offer a new and very interesting perception.

What do you think?

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Through the winding tea estate roads of Munnar!!

A drive through the winding tea estate roads of Munnar is pure elixir.
  
 
Every turn has something to offer. But, overall, the GREEN colours are enthralling.

 
I have been lucky to drive/ride/walk on these roads quite a few times and that too in various seasons of the year.


Each and every time, the serenity and beauty of this place make my jaws drop.

 
This tea town of Kerala nestled in the Southern half of the Western Ghats is a great place to be one with nature!!

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The Sun is shining on Munnar Tea Estate!!

One can enjoy the charming sights of the Munnar Tea gardens in multiple ways.


It can be a drive through the winding roads surrounded by tea plantations, a stroll through the tea estates or simply on horseback.


And the beauty quotient of this picture book tea town increases exponentially when the sun is shining nice and bright.


And, as my luck would have it, the day was bright and the skies were blue when I walked out of my tent pitched amidst the tea gardens.


Thus, I got treated to some heavenly views of the Munnar horizon laced with an exotic combination of clear blue skies, dreamy clouds, bright sunshine, barren hills, tall trees and lush green tea plantations.


A stroll deeper into the tea estates brought me in close proximity to the workers of the tea estate who were busy picking fresh tea leaves.


The GREENS here are so hypnotic that I lost myself in it for a good while.

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Campsite amidst the tea estates of Munnar!!

My friend and I were at Munnar, the tea capital of Kerala. It was late evening and heavy rains forced us to stop at the first piece of available flat land and to set up camp there.


Only when we got up in the morning did we realize that we had pitched our tent amidst tea gardens.

 
Unlike the evening before, the morning was bright and the skies were a clear blue.


The entire landscape of tea gardens wore an entrancing look.


Though the icing on the cake was taken by a group of kids diving and taking a swim in a nearby water tank!!

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Waterfall amidst a Tea Estate!!

I was meandering through the winding roads of Munnar when I chanced upon this very pretty sight.


It was the sight of a lovely waterfall set amidst lush green tea estate.


This waterfall is named “Periakkanal Waterfall” after the Periakkanal Tea Estate amidst which it is situated. The Periakkanal tea estate is owned by the Tata Tea Limited.

 
It sure is one of the abundant rich bounty of nature at Kerala’s tea capital of Munnar!!

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The Blue Mountains of Kodaikanal and its charming sights!!

I have been to Kodaikanal many a time before. In fact a generation back, my family had their roots here.


Hence, Kodaikanal occupies a special place amongst my Western Ghats travel list.


I have visited this pretty hill station in almost all months of the year, but I find it most endearing when the skies are blue and the days are washed in bright sunshine.

 
Such sights seem to have a calming presence. The tall pine trees stand graceful and the sun just about manages to squeeze through their dense canopies.


Biting into a juicy orange carrot under these canopies acts a great relaxant for me.


My favourite way of exploring this hill town is on horse back. That way I get to trot about leisurely and am able to explore the extremely beautiful, yet not touristy places.


The views of the blue skies and the bluish white clouds on top of the Nilgiri Mountains makes this entire place so very special. The icing on the cake is provided by the dense green forests and its rich flora and fauna.


Having said the above, the view points and the tourist attractions of Kodaikanal are also amazing, but for the huge crowds, the loud noise levels and the litter trail that is left behind. 

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Weekend Getaway to Honey Valley Estate in Coorg, Karnataka, India

Five of us left Bangalore one fine Friday morning to spend the weekend at Honey Valley Estate in exotic Coorg that is nestled in the Western Ghats of Karnataka.

 
It was smooth travel till we reached Hunsur. We had sumptuous breakfast of steaming hot idlis, maddur vada and filter coffee at Maddur Tiffanys’. But, just after Hunsur, we had a bad flat and the tyre itself had cracked open.


We fixed the spare tyre just outside Hunsur and then bore the brunt of the extremely bad roads till Virajpet.


At Virajpet, we had a brief stopover for chai (tea) and some snacks to go with it. Then, we took the small winding roads that took us to Kabbinakad. It was already night time by the time we reached Kabbinakad.


From here, a steep dirt track took us to Honey Valley. We lost our way once and then our SUV lost grip at a couple of places, but we overcame these small, yet eventful hurdles to make it to our destination.


At Honey Valley, we were taken to our cottage rooms by the hosts, the Chengappa family, where we freshened up before heading down to the common room for a great dinner.


Post dinner, most of us decided to explore the territory nearby under torch light. It was a great experience, though we could hardly see anything.


Next morning, was an early Coorgi breakfast. The homemade jam and honey are a real treat here. The hearty and healthy breakfast got us all charged up for our day’s trek.


We ditched the traditional trekking route to Thadiyandamol and instead opted for the more steep route to the top of a nearby waterfall.


The ascent was fairly easy as we climbed up with the support of the long grass blades, but when we looked down below us, we knew that we had to find an alternate route for our descent.


While we were searching for the alternate route, we came across a large group of gaurs and this freaked us out completely. We stood frozen till this large bovine group moved away from us.


Soon, we found our way down. Enroute our descent, we enjoyed a great dip in one of the many streams flowing down from the waterfall. Lunch, as with all the other meals, was sumptuous. All I can say is that the Chengappa family have a great cook.


We relaxed for a while after lunch, bought ourselves some original Coorgi coffee, honey and jam and then packed up to make our way back to Bangalore.

Honey Valley nestled deep in Coorg is a great weekend getaway from Bangalore!!

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