Friday, August 5, 2011

A refreshing break!



Living in a concrete jungle has its pros and cons. Tired of the rains- which are otherwise so beautiful and such a welcome change- in the city of Mumbai, where only mirth and filth define the term rains, we ventured out to Rajmachi.

Located roughly around 16kms from the city of Lonavla, is a nature lover's haven called Rajmachi. Lonavla, a hill station situated between the cities of Pune and Mumbai, is a monsoon haunt for civilised urban families as well as uncivilised young hooligans who love to get wet almost naked under the waterfalls under the influence of alcohol carried in plastic bottles.

But Rajmachi is a quaint village far away from this mockery of the modern city world- after all, it is better to be urbane than being urban! Miles away from the towns where electricity and flowing water are taken as granted, is a remote village which uses only solar power to light the bulbs and other devices, which understandably are at rest during the monsoons.



Houses with thatched roofs, some modern too, with floors layered with cow dung adorn this village. With two forts- Manranjan and Shriwardhan- this place is a must explore for adventure lovers. Our walk started from Kunegaon phata near Lonavla. The road to Rajmachi is full of greenery, rocky patches, mud, valleys, snow white waterfalls and flowing streams. This walk is not for the oh-my-foot-got-stuck-in-the-mud and look-how-dirty-I've-got crowd! You need to let your urban self which is pampered with comfort and luxury make way to the side you have never explored.

The only way to get closer to the nature is to be with it! And when you are here, you forget all the tiredness by just looking at the lush greenery, rustic remains of a temple, the hospitality of the villagers and the oh-so-delicious desi meal. After a hectic walk, we got fresh and headed towards the Manranjan fort, a small but interesting one. At night, after returning, we had a candle light dinner (there was no other option!) and loved eating the rice bhakaris and rassa bhaji!

As this was the first ever trek my husband had taken part in, we had to skip the Shriwardhan fort, as he sprained his leg! But later on we explored the Shiv Mandir in the vicinity, nestled in greenery and fog. There was a lake nearby and we walked along the banks to witness the most intriguing scene of our life- a deep valley with waterfalls and rock cut in a peculiar way! We thought we had landed in a postcard of scenery!

While leaving Rajmachi and its simple ways- yes, there were no bathrooms and we had to do 'it' in the open, eat a simple chulha cooked meal and sleep on a chatai without a fan or an AC- my heart wasn't ready to go! In the monotony of my city life, this was the most refreshing change.

The walk back to Lonavla seemed to have been covered faster as we had now got a hang of the way and the walking! At regular intervals, we posed for photos, stopped for chai and boiled anda, as we always do on treks. Then there is the usual look-at-other-groups-find-faults-and-laugh sessions, intra group teasing sessions, which complete your trek!



The most remembered thing during this trek would be living the fact that- yes we can live with bare minimum necessities, what if only for a couple of days!

The refreshing trek persuaded me to make a comeback to my dear blog :-)

(Pics by my friend Shriniwas Pawar)

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Chalo, I am glad that the refreshing break to Rajmachi persuaded you to write something for your otherwise dead blog. Great to see you again.

Vishakha said...

Thanks Akshay..it wasnt a dead blog, just coz I hadn't written in days... I didn't like the way you put it... sometimes there are other priorities that need to be attended first...