Head for the hills

Nandi Hills makes for a lovely drive in this weather.

And the weather’s been brilliant lately, I’m sure Bangaloreans would agree.

Well, talking about drives, a few of us got together, bundled ourselves and our equipment into Praveen’s Zen and went off to Nandi Hills on a cool and cloudy Saturday morning, a couple of weekends ago.

Lavannya packed some really yummy sandwiches, of which I consumed, about 15, no less. After a hot cuppa tea at her place, we set off on the drive with Praveen at the wheel.

Vivek was the other occupant, while Karthik joined us on the way. And Vineeth joined us when we reached the top.

The drive up is quite a treat, especially early in the morning, when the whole place is covered in a veil of mist. We stopped in the middle and then were back on the road again. At the top, we immediately set about in search of breakfast. Even after those umpteen sandwiches, I managed to tuck in a healthy breakfast of bread omlette followed by maggi noodles. I blame the fresh air for my embarrassing surge in appetite.

At the temple at the top, the pujari was looking on us with hawkish eyes, so I quickly paid obeisance to whichever god was lodged inside the temple. I am hoping my prayers (for enough money to buy new lens) will get answered at some point of time.

By the time we reached Tippu’s Drop however, the mist had disappeared. We climbed up to the top and spent some time lolling around, taking photographs and chatting. We had some company in the form of a few romancing couples sitting on the rocks and groups of noisy youngsters showing off how cool they were by sitting on a rock marked â€˜danger’ and taking photographs.

We made our way back around noon and we were back at Lavannya’s place by around 1.45 pm. She cooked up some delicious dal and I gobbled that up with some rice and then proceeded on to French class.

A morning, well spent I must say.

Some quick facts:
– Situated 60 kms north of Bangalore, this used to be the summer retreat of Tipu Sultan.
– The 600 m high cliff face, Tipu’s Drop, is where according to legend, condemned prisoners were pushed to their death.
– En route is also Silver Oak Farm where you can have a leisurely meal or even stay over if you want to chill out for a day or two.

Shutterbugs: From l-r: Karthik, Vineeth, Vivek, Me and Lavannya