IN THE MIDST OF GREEN TREES - #WRITEAPAGEADAY #BLOGCHATTER

 

The Athirappilly waterfalls have always had their charm, right from when we were children, skipping from stone to stone, and wading through the water along with friends and family members. Many were the trips we had undertaken, and carefree ones at that. Those days, we had no qualms in getting wet, falling into little water bodies or screaming for all we were worth when the water chilled our very bones.

So when my two sisters and I decided to take our octogenarian mother for a trip, it most certainly had to be Athirappilly itself. The hotel was all set to welcome a mother and her three toddlers, till we broke the news that the mother in question was 85, and her daughters in their fifties and early sixties.

The first sight of ‘Green Trees’ left us with a feeling of being in the midst of verdant nature. In fact, that is their tag line – “One With Nature’. The large wooden gate opened to a vista of tall bamboos that led to the reception festooned with colourful upholstery and bright cushions to offset the green outside.

Green Trees has a total of fifteen rooms, situated on different levels with steep steps leading to every set of rooms. The swimming pool lies directly below the rooms, and on the other side is a breath-taking view of the hills which are supposed to boast of a tiny waterfall or two. In the absence of those, the hotel has set up its own little cascade which comes on at the touch of a switch.

The staff of Green Trees were all friendly and welcoming. The day we reached there, we were practically the only visitors, and since we were naturally loud and exuberant, we certainly made a difference in the vicinity breaking the silence at so many levels. There was an entry in the register which asked for one’s birthday, and I joked about getting a cake even if there were no birthdays in sight.

To my astonishment, the next thing we saw was a special cake just for us, which my mother cut obligingly, as we stood on the stone patio, leaning against the railings below which was a deep pool swarming with shoals of fish. That was a sweet gesture and made us all fall in love with the place even more. 

One of the walls had a slate grey mural of two cows, very apt as cows seem to be the reigning creatures who are slated to even take over Valentine’s Day this month.

We had asked for one room for the four of us since we wanted to spend quality time together. Two extra mattresses did the trick, and the air conditioning was put on and off, according to Mom’s whims. It was a treat to stroll around the property on day 1, where we posed for photographs at every nook, ending up playing table tennis and foosball. By twilight, it was quiet all around since only two rooms were booked, and an eerie silence prevailed.

Since we had reached the resort only around three in the afternoon, we were all ravenous. The food was delicious, and we complimented the chef. Lovely tawa parathas, rich butter chicken, dal tadka, prawn fry and a pulao for lunch made our day. We were so stuffed that dinner was just sweet corn chicken soup and Hakka noodles.

The dining room décor was chic, with coffee quotes on the wall that made us smile. The furniture was smart, with black chairs and glass tables offset by a floor resplendent with rust tiles. From where we sat, we could see the greenery outside through the glass wall that faced the hills.

Day 2 saw the three of us going on a short trek with a gentleman who doubled up as pool cleaner and tourist guide. Mom decided to stay back and watch her Hindi serial on her tablet.

The said guide seemed to know the origin of every plant in the vicinity. We walked down to the water body as his conversation echoed in our ears. The place seemed a haven for medicinal plants.  As we got to the water, we realise that we were no longer as spry as we had been in our teens. While the littlest one of us stayed back to click photographs, the two of us stumbled into the water, trying not to slip as we crawled across. Finally, we both grabbed the hand of our guide, who seemed rather sheepish, and crawled a bit more. In ten minutes, our trek was done, much to the relief of our guide.

Our appetite was back and once again, the food was delicious – tawa parathas, chicken, tadka dal and some fresh lime soda to rejuvenate us after the so-called trek! The only part of the meal that was disappointing were the desserts. There was only ice cream, which we had to turn down as three out of four of us had sore throats. The other option was fruit salad, again not a favourite. We suggested that they should add tender coconut pudding the next time around.

The charm of Green Trees is its serenity and quaintness. On Day 2, many more rooms were occupied, and the crowd swelled. There were people gambolling in the pool, and yet, the feeling of solitariness continued. There was a gym for all those who wanted to work out, a children's area and a recreation room with various indoor games as well. 

The biggest plus point, we all felt, was the friendliness of the staff who went all out to make us feel comfortable. After all, isn’t that what matters in the long run? As Maya Angelou put it,

“I have learnt that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

 Pictures: Courtesy Deepti Menon

The main Athirappilly Falls around 2 kms away from Green Trees Resort, Athirappilly

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