Ponmudi, Kerala Hillstation - 0 views
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fazeel on 23 Dec 08A picturesque hill station in Kerala, Ponmudi is a mere one and a half hour's road journey from the beaches of Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum). And true to its meaning in Malayalam - golden crown - Ponmudi truly glitters amongst the hill resort of India. On the way to Ponmudi, the thick tropical forest greets one at the foot of the Ponmudi hill range. The road passes under a canopy of thickly matted foliage. The forest recedes gradually giving way to neatly clipped tea bushes. As one leaves the city behind, one enters the region of plantations - rubber, pepper, cardamom and tea. The change is abrupt. The tappers can be seen going about briskly gathering the milky fluid from rubber trees collected in coconut shells. Coconut thatch mats cover almost one half of the road, over which women spread black pepper for drying. One may come across a lone elephant ambling along carrying his mahout atop and his breakfast of coconut thatch in his trunk.