Statue of Unity.

 If USA has its Statue of Liberty we have our statue of Unity. Located in Kevadia village, about 200km.from Ahmedabad. Visited this place on 25th December, 2018 and the only word that comes to our mind as we first glance at this statue is awesome and  colossal. Standing at a height of 597feet the statue of Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel, the first Deputy Prime Minister of Independent India, is the tallest statue in the world. There are a series of escalators that take you till the feet of the statue. There is a beautiful huge gallery beneath the statue pedestal and it has a film running on the statue and Sardar Patel. There are huge display of photographs and it is nice to know that we are indeed showcasing  an alternate history and finally recognising the contributions of others also besides the Nehru, Gandhi family in the making of Modern India. There was a lot of criticism that so much land has been lost, farmers lost their livelihood and we have wasted so much money in the making of this statue. However, this has certainly given us Indians a sense of pride. The whole area surrounding this is a rugged terrain surrounded by rocky cliffs and shrubs. Nothing can grow here and certainly no agricture can flourish. This statue has given a huge boost to tourism and the whole area will now develop. There was a huge crowd near the statue. I only wish we Indians learn to be disciplined and keep our surroundings Clean. There should be a system of time alloted in a pass as is done in USA for the Statue of Liberty and though there is a rush in the US too, due to different time allotment, it is not so crowded as it was here. Any way, I am indeed proud of this  achievement and it was inaugurated only in October, 2018 and sure that  in the coming years the area will become more green and beautiful and will attract tourists from all over the world.

The mangroves of Picchavaram

 Visited the  mangroves of Picchavaram near Pondicherry on 16th december, 2018 which are the largest in India. I had never seen a mangrove. A friend of mine Chhavi Nath Pandey and also the husband of a very  dear friend Renu Singh Pandey who retired from Indian forest service and currently teaches at IIT Ahmedabad, is an expert on Mangroves. He had gifted me two beautiful books long time back on Mangroves and I was fascinated by them.  One of these was a Coffee table book and had lovely pictures of the mangroves. Finally in Picchavaram for the first time, I could see the mangroves spread for miles together. This is an amazing eco system and the plants are able to convert the salt water into enough fresh water to survive. I plan to go back to Chhavi's book again and read them. In fact this whole area historically was known as Thillaivanam  due to the Mangrove Jungles and it was the  Cholas who in 10th cen when they established the Natraja temple renamed this place as Chidambaram, clothed in wisdom. It was a beautiful experience roving miles together into the Mangroves and admiring them. We found a very interesting boatman, Ganesh, who spoke perfect hindi and proudly stated that he was the only one among the fifty boatmen who spoke Hindi for he had worked in Saudi Arabia for six years. He was born in this place and obviously very attached to it. A very interesting person who told us that the boatmen get Rs. 65 for each ride and since there are fifty of them some times their number does not come at all. They are all temporary employees but the persons who issue the tickets are all permanent employees of the Government and get more pay than them. He told us that the climax scenes of the film Dasavatara and Jamai raja were shot in he Mangroves. He had immense knowledge about the Mangrove, including their botanical names and lot of myths and stories related to them. He told us many things about Saudi too and his experiences there. He is an expert boat's an who can take you for miles together in the mangroves and keep talking about them. He also informed us that during the Sunami in 2006,this area was not affected and it was protected due to the Mangrove Jungles around it.

Bye to Thekkadi

 Bye to Thekkadi as we move towards the sea to Allepy. On the way stopped at few tea gardens and saw beautiful Churches and houses. I really love the Kerala houses and my driver Arun told me, Madam there are so many beautiful houses that if you click each and every one your phone memory will disappear in no time. Amazing structures, amazing houses and Churches.

Alleppy

 Alleppey a also known as Allappuzha, backwaters are spread for nearly 225 sq.miles.We have a house boat, Rajdhani, to our selves and it has a drawing room and a bed room with attached bathroom. The room has air-conditioning and all modern amenities are available with television, games, sofa sets on the boat. The boat left the entry point and crossed a large stretch of backwaters. One can see a lot of birds, and stretch of endless waters. We will be here for two days and can see the sea at close quarters. This seems to be a big business for there are so many house boats and one can be amazed at the huge sizes for they carry many passengers and have multiple bed rooms.One is greeted by huge paddy fields as we enter Allepy. This is known as the rice bowl of Kerala, Keralathinte Nellara. Kerala backwaters are also a must see for the traveler.