Kanya Kumari

Kanya Kumari, or Cape Comorin as it was earlier called, is about 120 kms from Kovalam, so as last minute decision, I added it in.......but after the trip, I wondered why I did.

If it was about being at the southern most tip of the country, and at the place where the three oceans meet, Yes.

But beyond that there really is nothing there. It's crowded, messy and noisy. And it's got a very religious oriented tourist feel. And with Dhruva and Diksha at this point in life being at their agnostic best, temple visits with crazy long queues just don't fit itinerary. Well, that's kind of excuse.....because it holds for me too.

Worse, a heavily overcast sky ruled out sunset the day we reached and sunrise the next, so simply put, it was a not worthwhile trip.

Luckily for us the hotel, the Tamilnadu Govt property has the best possible view, and that was one good decision, so a silver lining. This was the view from our room.

The Vivekananda rock memorial, an integral part of Kanya Kumari; When I last visited, which was way back in the 90's, it was this rock with a small temple and meditation room on it. Even from afar it had a sensibility and tranquility to it, maybe gotten from association and significance, but whatever reason, it did.

An added one to me, the works of Vivekananda was my dad's wedding gift to me:

But now it's got this huge statue added. Didn't even know whose it was until I came back and googled it.  It's a statue of Thiruvalluvar, a Tamil poet and philosopher, and with all due respects to him, I don't understand why it's placed such that it dominates a landscape that was tribute to Vivekananda. What levels of narrow mindedness can people get to. Very disappointing. 

On the way back we dropped by to see a really old temple (still agnostic, but old temples are worth it for more reasons than one :). Not crowded, and brilliant in sculpture. 

The gopuram has such detailed work that it's pretty overawing.

The drive back was real nice; some real intense and deep conversations and lots of music.