April 5th: Munnar, Kerala
I think it is fair to say that Munnar was (if not the most beautiful) one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen in my life. It is located in India's Western Ghats. It is absolutely astonishing.
 |
| (Photograph by: Jamie Bunker) This sign pretty much describes Munnar. |
 |
| (Photo by: Jamie Bunker) I have never disliked a car ride up a mountain as much as this one,but it was worth it. |
Munnar is full of tea plantations. It is the most beautiful example of deforestation I have ever seen haha. It also has: towering mountains, creeks, lakes, waterfalls, a COOL BREEZE, wonderful people, cheap prices, TREES, wild flowers everywhere, jeeps, good coffee, STARS, great food, chilly nights, wild elephants (no, I didn't see any...), and FIREFLIES! It was the most magical place I have ever seen. We stayed in the most fabulous cottage outside of the main town called Zina Cottages. It was so cozy, I actually never wanted to leave. It was located on the side of a mountain surrounded by tea fields and mountains, with the city below it. FANTASTIC.
 |
| (Photo by: Erin McConaha) We ate at a local's favorite for lunch. I have never had so much fun eating. The place just vibrated with energy. |
 |
| This is my favorite picture of Munnar. It's taken from the Hilltop Station (where the British used to hang out). We took a two hour jeep ride to it, which allowed us to see a lot of the landscape. By the end, we were exhausted and crashed in our wonderful cottage. |
April 6th: Munnar, Kerala
We had hoped to go to a wildlife reserve, but India changed plans again so we went on another adventure. We started the day with the sunrise and a FABULOUS breakfast in our cottage, served by the owner, who was great. The rest of the day was filled with hikes, shopping, and spectacular food.
 |
| Erin and I all bundled up for the sunrise :) |
 |
| Erin, Jamie, and Megan on our hike through tea fields, mountains, and villages. |
 |
| (Photo by: Erin McConaha) We saw waterfalls! We weren't going to get wet, as we thought it would be inappropriate, with all the men around, but after some Indian women told us it was fine, we got drenched! |
 |
| After our long jeep ride, we decided to have lunch. I'm not sure what the name of this place was called, but it contained the most delicious egg biryani I have eaten in my life. It was so good, I couldn't even take a picture of it before it was gone... |
 |
| After lunch, we took a nap, went on a sunset hike, ate some dinner, and walked around the town. We ate our very first street food and didn't get sick! It was wonderful... Kerala Paratha. |
Megan got the auto driver to let her drive his rickshaw on our way to our cottage and after we packed up a bit, we crashed for the night.
Munnar is officially my favorite place in India, maybe even the world. It's impossible to convey how much I loved this place... my favorite part was the smell! In the Rockies we smell pine trees and fresh air, in the Ghats you smell wildflowers and rain. It was SO stunning, I never wanted to leave.
