Home away from Home at "The Bungalow" Ooty

"The Bungalow" at Ooty managed by Tranquilitea is truly a home away from home. I had booked the entire Bungalow located in the heart of Ooty near the Race Course for 3 days. The occasion - my parents wedding anniversary and my son's freedom from Board exams.

The caretaker Amudha and her family took enough care to make our stay very memorable and what I liked is their prompt service and never say no attitude. The best thing about the package was the FOOD and being a foodie this comes top on my priority list. Amudha charged us ONLY for the ingredients that were used to cook our meals. You can't believe it,but yes its true. The cost used to be a measly 200 or 300 bucks for a great meal dished out to a family of 5 foodies !!!! Its always said that our appetite increases while we are at a hill-station and if the food is great, what a combination for a hearty meal be it vegetarian or non-vegetarian....

The Bungalow has 3 large bedrooms with attached bathrooms; a dining room and a living room with a lone Television set. The Bungalow must be atleast 80+ years old but well maintained and the furniture is real antique. T he weather was very cold even while it was scorching summer elsewhere in India but the caretaker ensured we were kept warm by lighting firewood at the fireplaces located in every bedroom and living room. Fortunately there was no power shutdown while we were there and this ensured 24 hours hot water running in the taps. The place is well maintained and kept very clean including the bed linen and bath towels changed every day.

The Bungalow has a sit out in the open lawns outside, where one can enjoy nature and chirping of birds while sipping hot coffee. I could spot so many sparrows which is now rare in cities like Bangalore. At night one can use the Barbeque setup but thanks to rains every evening, we had to give this a miss.

On the trail of Rocky and Mayur of HOMP fame (NDTV Good times), we also took time to meet Sandeep Subramani at Coonoor, who manages Tranquilitea. Tranquilitea apparently appeared in this famous Foodie TV show recently. He showed us around the vast tea gardens located within the other property called Tenerife. We were treated to the best tea I ever had in my life (without milk and sugar) plucked from the tea gardens. I never ever imagined, tea tasted so good in its original form. Sandeep is a young entrepreneur (mid 20s perhaps) who says "Tea runs in his veins more than blood" and is very passionate about tea tasting. He is now successfully into managing Holiday stay properties at Ooty and Coonoor.

I would rate "The Bungalow" highly and recommend to all my friends who read my travel blog http://arvind-kamath.blogspot.com

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