Varkala Trip

Notes from the Internet about Varkala:

Location: 51 km north of Thiruvananthapuram city in Thiruvananthapuram district and 37 km south of Kollam, south Kerala. Varkala, a calm and quiet hamlet, lies on the outskirts of Thiruvananthapuram district. It has several places of tourist interests like a beautiful beach, a 2000-year-old Vishnu Temple and the Ashramam - Sivagiri Mutt a little distance from the beach. The Papanasam beach (also called as Varkala beach), which is ten kilometers away from Varkala, is renowned for the natural spring. It is considered to have medicinal and curative properties. A dip in the holy waters at this beach is believed to purge the body of impurities and the soul of all sins; hence the name 'Papanasam beach'. A two thousand year old shrine the Janardhanaswamy Temple stands on the cliffs overlooking the beach, a short distance away. The Sivagiri Mutt, founded by the great Hindu reformer and philosopher Sree Narayana Guru (1856 - 1928) is also close by.

We went there sometime in September or October 2003...not sure about the exact dates.

As newlywed couples, we were so enamored in love and besotted with each other that we would never ever want to leave each other even, if for a moment. Life at work was hectic to be very polite. It went on from morning until midnight but it had a surprise package. Our VP at that time, called some of us and asked us, if we would be interested to go and stay in some of the Taj group of hotels. He had some vouchers to share and I was one among them. I along with another colleague of mine, Murugan got the option to stay for 2 nights at Taj Varkala for free. But we had to make our own travel and food arrangements as only accommodation can be availed based on the voucher. It was like a dream come true for me. Both of us had never stayed in a 5 star hotel before. So, it was something to discover over the weekend. Since the offer came in the last minute, we were not able to book train berths for our onward journey, except for one. it was almost an overnight journey from Chennai. So Murugan and I decided to sleep on the floor of the compartment while our better halves slept on the berthed seats. Also, Murugan & Kamala had a young boy at that time. After some time, I cuddled up next to Vidya in the same berth as we were entwined into one.

And so we reached Varkala and were in absolute delight to be checked into a 5 start hotel. Initially, we thought that we can have our food outside the hotel in some nearby restaurants as the food would be very expensive in Taj. But to our dismay, the outside food was something not to our palate and eventually we settled down to eating at Taj. We used to have direct brunch and dinner only as we used to get up late in the morning. On the first day, we went around the local place to a temple and then to the beach. On the next day, we went to nearby Ponnumthuruthu Island for a boat ride. More than anything else, it gave us all the time in the world for ourselves. To be together and enjoy the verve and vivacity bristling within us. On our way back, we had reserved 3 Tier AC Berths so the journey was quite comfortable but less exciting as compared to the onward journey.

A small poem in dedication of the lovelorn souls:

Receive me my goddess of love

Behold me in your fierce embrace

In the name of heaven and earth, my dove

Let those who see us blush in a daze;

I would forever love on

Regardless of their frown

If kisses be the food of passion

I would kiss on and build a mansion;

In honor of you oh! Delightful charmer

Such is the power of my devotion

It scales beyond one’s dreams and imagination

Your wild kisses blows me away, enchanter;

Oh! Superior queen of ardor

Love grows ever more with such fervor

There is no end to passion’s satiety

With every minute it grows with more intensity;

#Travel