My Manimalayar Trip

Manimala river, popularly called Manimalayar in Malayalam, is one of the important rivers in Kerala with a length of 92 km. Last week I made a short trip from Ponkunnam town to Manimala town, which covers a portion of the Manimala River.

 This trip was part of my bike trips to cover less popular inland locations in Kerala. 

I started my journey by 3 pm from Ponkunnam town.

 While on the journey, I took some photos of the Manimalayar. Since it is the beginning of the summer season, you cannot expect the Manimalayar in its full beauty.

 As you can see from the photos, the water level is low. 

 It is a picture of the Manimalayar check dam. I took a selfie from that location.

Due to the check dam, this part of the Manimala river has enough water. 

There are rumors about the government's plans to build more check dams across the river to solve the water problems in the nearby areas. 

Having more check dams will definitely help to retain water in the river in the summer season.  

To see the real beauty of the Manimala River, you should come here in Mansoon season.

 However, Manimalayar is notorious for floods in the Mansoon period.

Tomb of Blessed Kunjachan at Ramapuram Forane Church

Ramapuram Forane Church is a famous Christian pilgrim center in Kerala because of the Tomb of Blessed Kunjachan.

Kunjachan is the pet name given by the people of Ramapuram, and his real name is Fr. Augustine. 

Augustine is a common name among Christians at Ramapuram. It is because the patron of Ramapuram Forane Church is St Augustine.

History of Blessed Kunjachan

Fr. Augustine born on 1 April 1891, at Ramapuram, is well known as Kunjachan spent his life uplifting untouchables in this area. 

Kunjachan died on 16 October 1973, and the process of Beatification and Canonization started on 11 August 1987.

This room is the Vadyapura, used by blessed Kunjachan to teach people.

Feast of Blessed Kunjachan is very famous and celebrated on 16 October every year.

How to Reach the Tomb of Blessed Kunjachan



Ramapuram Church situates 37 km from Kottayam Railway station and well connected with roads. The road distance between Cochin International Airport and Ramapuram is 63 km.

Evening at Varkala Papanasam Beach

Varkala Papanasam beach is one of the important tourist places in Kerala. In addition to a tourist spot, this beach is a famous pilgrim center. 

In tourism season you can see many international travelers at this beach.

 
The presence of a top view of the beach from the cliff differentiates Varkala Papanasam beach from most other beaches in Kerala.

You can see the photos we took at Varkala beach below.

Vavubali at Papanasam beach

In Malayalam month Karkkidakam, thousands of pilgrims will come to Papanasam for the Vavu Bali function. Vavu Bali is an important Hindu custom for their departed relatives and ancestors. Varkala beach got its name Papanasam (means destroy sin) from this custom.



Another major attraction at Papanasam is Janardhana Swamy Temple. To read more about this temple, click on the link below.
Janardana Swamy Temple Varkala


How to Reach Papanasam beach

Papanasam beach is situated at Varkala. If you are coming by train, you should stop at Varkala station, and the beach is about 6 km from there.

Where to Stay at Papanasam

There are many "tourist homes" available on Varkala beach. However, if you plan to come here in peak season, better book rooms in advance.



Best time to visit

The best time to visit Papanasam beach is between September to May. However, there is a chance of rain in the months of September, October, and even November. So plan your visit according to the weather.

Janardana Swamy Temple Varkala -Dakshin Kashi

Janardana Swamy Temple is situated in Varkala, also called Dakshin Kashi. According to traditions, this temple is 2000 years old. The main deity of this temple is Lord Vishnu.

Lord Vishnu is called Janardana Swamy, and this temple is a famous Hindu pilgrim center.

Janardana Swamy Temple situates on the way to the famous tourist spot Papanasam beach. You can see the Janardhana Swami Temple Pond in this photo.


Origin of Janardana Swamy Temple Varkala

According to traditions, this temple is built by Devas (gods) to recover from the curse by Lord Brahma for abusing him. 

According to this story, Narada (son of Lord Brahma) once visited his father, who was invisibly followed by lord Vishnu. 

By understanding the presence of Lord Vishnu, Brahma deva bowed in front of him.

1. Alleppey- Venice of The East
2. Golden Valley Tourist Spot
3. Kollam Beach
4. Vazhvanthol Waterfalls At Kanithadam

However, Lord Vishnu was invisible to Devas present there, and they thought lord Brahma was bowing to his own son. They laughed by seeing it.

This incident made lord Brahma furious, and he cursed Devas. Repenting Devas asked to pardon, and according to the advice of Narada, they built a temple for Lord Vishnu at Varkala.

How to Reach Janardana Swamy Temple

Janardana Swamy Temple situates 25 km from Trivandrum City. To reach the temple, you should stop at Kallambalam, and the temple is 3 km away from there.

1. Thirparappu Waterfalls Kanyakumari
2. Bekal Fort Kasargod
3. Kumarakom Backwater
4. Photos of Trivandrum Museum

Golden Valley Tourist Spot near Trivandrum

This time we had a trip to Golden Valley tourist spot. As its name mentions, it is a good picnic spot for families and small teams.

Golden Valley tourist spot is situated on the way to Ponmudi from Trivandrum city. When we reached the location, one danger board welcomed us. 

As in the warning board, the rocks are a little bit slippery. Right now, the river has not much water, so the rocks are dry.

Five persons were on the team, me, Vino, Jaison Joseph, Jibin P, and his brother Jithin. At first, we planned to visit one waterfall at Vazhvanthol, but the forest department closed the entry for a short period. So we decided to come to Golden Valley.

Some of the pictures we took at Golden Valley are:

When we reached the golden valley, it was evening time, and most of the visitors were about to leave.

The major attraction of this place is the small river and the surrounding forest.

Of course, you cannot miss the beautiful rocks.

We made an attempt to travel through the jungle, but it was too late, so we canceled the program.

It is the summer season in Kerala, so there is not much water in the river. In Monsoon season, you can see full of water in this river.

1. Thirparappu Waterfalls Kanyakumari
2. Bekal Fort Kasargod
3. Kumarakom Backwater
4. Photos of Trivandrum Museum

We plan to come back to this location in June (monsoon season in Kerala).

In addition to a tourist spot, you can see this place as an ideal location to take a rest during your journey to Ponmudi.

1. Janardana Swamy Temple
2. Manimala River
3. Alleppey- Venice of The East
4. Varkala Papanasam Beach

Pradeep's Marriage at Palakkad

After celebrating Christmas, the next journey was to Palakkad to join Pradeep's marriage function.

Pradeep's marriage was at Palakkad on 28th December. The proper location was Mangalamkunnu, around 30 kilometers from Palakkad town.

I reached Palakkad at 3 pm after a few hours of journey from my home on the 27th.

 Jineesh and Pradeep came to pick me from the bus stop. Then we moved to the tourist home where our stay was arranged.

Some of the photos we took are:



There is a paddy field opposite Pradeep's house.






We spent our time as a group on the paddy field. Soon Ranjan, Kurian, Madhu, Sumesh, and Jineesh joined our group. 

By early morning, Madhu also reached our tourist home. 

 When we came back to Pradeep's home, we met Sumesh, Kurian, Ranjan, etc.

Pradeep's marriage was at this temple.

We took some photos from the temple.





At night we started our journey back.

1. Thirparappu Waterfalls Kanyakumari
2. Bekal Fort Kasargod
3. Kumarakom Backwater
4. Photos of Trivandrum Museum
5. Alleppey- Venice of The East

My Kanyakumari Visit (Cape Comorin)

Last week I  decided to visit Kanyakumari with my friend Rajan. 

Kanyakumari is a famous tourist destination situated at the southern tip of the Indian subcontinent. Kanyakumari is also known as Cape Comorin.

We started our journey to Kanyakumari from Trivandrum in the early morning. There is a nearly 85-kilometer journey from Trivandrum to Kanyakumari.

We went to Kanyakumari by motorcycle.  I must say the route is very beautiful. You can watch the Western Ghat on your way.

You can see a Church on the hill.

At Kanyakumari, we can have a clear view of sunrise and sunset. Thousands of people come to Kanyakumari just to watch the sunset and sunrise. 

Besides the sunrise and sunset, the confluence of three ocean bodies (the Bay of Bengal, the Indian Ocean, and the Arabian Sea) is another attraction of Kanyakumari.

Vivekananda Rock

No one can miss Vivekananda Rock due to its spectacular sight and importance. This rock was named after the memory of Vivekananda, who meditated on this rock. 

There is a meditation center at Vivekananda Rock to celebrate the memory of it.

Vivekananda Rock Memorial was built in 1970. It is a popular crowd-puller now. 

Thiruvalluvar statue at Kanyakumari

It is a big statue of Thiruvalluvar, a great poet, and author of the Thirukkural.

This statue has 133 feet in height and 7000 tons of weight. To visit the Vivekananda rock memorial and Thiruvalluvar statue, we need to use the boat service available there.

The Mahatma Gandhi memorial also attracts tourists besides the Thiruvalluvar statue and Vivekananda Rock.

1. Alleppey- Venice of The East
2. Golden Valley Tourist Spot
3. Kollam Beach
4. Vazhvanthol Waterfalls At Kanithadam

Evening at Kollam Beach (Quilon)

Kollam beach is one of the most suitable places to spend an evening in Quilon (the English name for Kollam).

 
This beach is situated very near to the town and well maintained for tourists.



Till evening Kollam beach looks deserted like most other beaches in Kerala.


We reached Kollam beach around 3'O clock in the evening.



We were lucky to spot some of the fishing boats here at that time.



When it reached 4:30 PM, the number of visitors increased.





How to Reach Kollam Beach

The nearest airport is Thiruvananthapuram International Airport and, Kollam town is well connected with railway and road.

1. Janardana Swamy Temple
2. Photos of Trivandrum Museum
3. Vazhvanthol Waterfalls At Kanithadam
4. Varkala Papanasam Beach

Vazhvanthol Waterfalls Near Kanithadam, Trivandrum

Our latest trip was to one of the least explored tourist places in Thiruvananthapuram named Vazhvanthol. 

Vazhvanthol waterfall is situated near Kanithadam, Vithura, and it is an emerging tourist destination for those who love trekking and site seen. 

We started our journey to Vazhvanthol Waterfalls from Trivandrum with a team of 15 members.

It is a 45-kilometer journey (According to Google map, the distance from Vazhvanthol Waterfalls to Trivandrum is 48 km), and it took more than one hour to reach the Kanithadam forest check post.

We need to pay entry charges for each person and vehicle.

Idol Worshiped by The Tribal People



After obtaining permission from the forest check post, we started our journey to the waterfalls. It was wonderful trekking through a dense forest which we cannot forget in our life.


We need to walk 2.2 km from check post to Vazhvanthol waterfalls.


We found a beautiful spot to took some photos.




Sometimes we took some rest.


If you are a fan of trekking, you cannot avoid the trip to Vazhvanthol waterfalls. Have a look at the photos we took.





The route to Vazhvanthol Waterfalls is very adventurous.


We assure you the bamboo bridge is very strong.






At Vazhvanthol Waterfalls

Finally, we reached Vazhvanthol Waterfalls. Though it was just a 2.2 km journey, we felt at least a 6 km journey. 

I would like to give you an advice, do not come here without food.



There is a natural swimming pool at Vazhvanthol waterfalls.


Some of us (including me ) managed to reach the top.

1. Janardana Swamy Temple
2. Manimala River
3. Tomb of Blessed Kunjachan at Ramapuram
4. Varkala Papanasam Beach