The trip to Ooty was planned with some apprehensions. Back during X’Mas 2003 when we last came here, we stayed at the Fern Hill resort as we did when we came here during X’Mas 1996 – both with a large contingent of people, we saw the squalor and poor infrastructure and each time wowed to never come back till we heard of some improvement. Out of sheer forgetfulness, we planned this trip to Ooty only to have immediate apprehensions soon after making all the confirmed bookings. To top it all, we booked at the Elk Hill resort, again out of sheer forgetfulness!
If that opening para hasn’t already told you how bad things are, then wait. Read on.
The resort is in the most pathetic state that we have seen it since I bought a timeshare back in 1992. Now that should say something. Sterling Resorts used to be a premium brand (long before Mahindra Holidays came on the scene) but their “diversification” into time-share plantations, etc ruined them and the resort business is still paying for them! The Elk Hill resort is to be seen to be believed. Not that the Fern Hill resort is very much better.
But what am I complaining about, when THE WHOLE OF Ooty town is in complete disrepair?
Filth, squalor and pot holes with tarmac in-between showing where roads once were is how I’d describe Tamil Nadu’s “Pearl” of The Nilgiris.
What is intriguing is that successive governments – DMK and ADMK – who have ruled this state since 1992 when I’ve been coming here ‘regularly’, have had malevolent neglect of this once British Raj summer resort endowed with natural riches that would be the envy of any western tourist location. Yet, starting with atrocious roads and poor water, sewage and electric infrastructure, the only thing that has been booming is the invasion of the cell phone towers. I counted 16 massive towers that dominated the Ooty skyline, each with innumerable dish antennae and ugly cables and genset houses attached. Yes, this post is possible since I have mobile internet access, thanks to those very monstrosities.
This utter lack of even basic development is startling since both “camps” have been in power multiple times and yet Ooty has remained in the mountainous backwaters of the economic development of Tamil Nadu. This makes for a case of some research into Ooty’s political leanings – but after I get back home from what’s fast becoming a save-this-holiday effort.
My wife and I can’t remember when I last had a stomach upset or food poisoning. That means its almost 15 years ago or more. On the day we reached here – more than 2 hours earlier than expected, thanks to some awesome freeway between Bangalore and Mysore (plus an early start to avoid traffic), we went into town for the mandatory round of Charring Cross and Ooty Chocolates. Bad decision. By night fall, I was down with a horrendous bout of food poisoning. My travelling companion (make a note of this guy, since he’s going to figure here rather prominently!) says it’s not food poisoning since he didn’t get it. But I refuse to accept that logic since the chocolate piece I ate was not the one he did! Anyways, cribs apart, I went down like a ton of bricks. Friday was spent in bed and I only got back up on Saturday thanks to TLC and Medicare of my dear wife + an astute chemist who prescribed the right antibiotic and laxative! So when I got to rise and shine again, I just had to go back and take this picture.
Even as we drove by to take this picture, you can see the astonishment on the face of the chemist at Sree Vidhya Medicals. Why on earth would any sane person take a picture of a rundown shopping strip? Oh well, that’s me, I guess.
Got to go now, since our day trip is about to start…. Have lots of pics and stuff to share… so watch this space!