5.00/5 The Perfect Getaway
Kalarickal Heritage Plantation (KHP) is the perfect place of stay for a Kerala getaway - perfect whether you are a single woman traveller, a couple of honeymooners or like my family, a big group of 15. We stayed there for 4 days to ring in Christmas and also to celebrate our first-ever family reunion. Located amid lush green cardamom, pepper and coffee plantations (the weather reminded me of Lonavala in Maharashtra), this quaint 100 year old heritage home-turned-home-stay houses 6 rooms in its old quarters and 4 relatively modern rooms with wooden floors in the new annexe. We occupied 7 rooms and found each one very comfortable, warm and cosy, replete with soft mattresses, clean linen, ample lighting and patio furniture outside each room – just the right perch to enjoy a spot of reading. As we were a big group, we were also encouraged by the gracious proprietors to monopolise the living room in the evenings, where our group played many-a-game of Housie, Taboo, Dumb Charades and the good ol’ Indian picnic favourite Antakshiri. Some of the highlights of KHP for me included – the pebbled driveway and paths in and around the estate, the tour of the plantations by KHP staff, the basketball court where my cousins and I shot a few baskets, the array of colourful flowers and unusual potted plants which made KHP look like something straight out a postcard, and the food, prepared carefully and with love by the experienced hands of Mary, the cook par excellence (who is incidentally married to the shy but ever-helpful caretaker Joseph). She treated us to numerous cups of tea and coffee on request, as well as local delicacies at meal times– stews, aviyals and meat curries. But it is for her puttu kadala (a steamed rice flour and grated coconut mound served with a spicy dark chickpea curry) that Mary deserves a Nobel Prize! Not only do I intend to go back to KHP whenever my work- and city-weary soul craves a restful retreat (or when I crave a good helping of Mary’s cooking) I also recommend this place to anyone who is looking for a quiet place to just be (with shaky mobile connectivity and free WiFi in some parts, without cable TV), to explore Kerala’s hilly terrain and spice plantations, and to rejuvenate.