Its a memoir e-mailed to us by one of our guests who was with us in the month of June. We extend our heartfelt gratitude for his kind words.
While planning to travel through the major tourist spots in Kerala we, (me and my friend Jyotika) decided that one of our stops definitely should be Munnar. I have been to the Munnar a couple of times but never during the monsoon. People always say that winter is the best time to visit Munnar- I wanted to see how Munnar was during the rain. We chose SpiceTree as our place of stay during our visit to the Munnar.
On the way to SpiceTree, we had stopped at Munnar town and bought tickets for the sightseeing tour organized by the Tourism Promotion Council of the place. The ticket for the next day offered a general tour through the major spots in and around Munnar town. We didn’t actually want to be normal sightseers but since we didn’t know much about the place and had only a night and a day in Munnar (the next day evening we had to leave for Thekkady), we decided to take it up half-heartedly.
The drive from Munnar town to SpiceTree was refreshing and picturesque. The sight of tea, cardamom, plantations; the waterfalls, the drizzle that was there at the time; the zig-
zag mountain paths; we kept on clicking photographs of the beautiful sights. Once we reached SpiceTree and all the check-in formalities were over, Mr. Hybeen, (MD of the resort) and Vivian, one of their staff, explained to us what SpiceTree was all about. When we told them that what we planned for the next day was the normal sightseeing thing, he suggested that there were lot of interesting activities like trekking, hiking, plantation walks etc which we could do instead of a hurried visit to Munnar attractions. The thing that attracted us most in what he suggested was the hike towards the Megalithic age Dolmens (burial place) which was in a nearby mountain. We were very happy to hear that we had a better option before us and decided to take up what Hybeen and Vivian suggested.
And not one bit we regretted it! The hike to the Dolmens in the morning was an amazing experience! We, along with our fun guide-for-the-day Vivian (who I should say is an avid traveler and an excellent photographer) started walking through the cardamom plantation around the place. Vivian explained to us the various stages of cardamom growing and
processing. Then we reached a small pathway where there were many small houses (of local farmers and caretakers). The people whom we met there were very friendly (they didn’t have the strange look that people give while seeing tourists; they were very nice).
Since it was drizzling and the rocks where wet, the climb up to the dolmens was slow. We had to cross small streams of water flowing downhill. Vivian explained that such fresh mountain water would contain many minerals in it and could give competition to any mineral water crands in the market. So, I tasted the water and came to know what he said was true- the water was so fresh!
The age old Dolmens were worth the climb. The peculiar stone structures stood around 100 meters apart, high on the hill. Vivian explained the historical aspects of it. After spending quiet some time there and after seeing a nearby cave, we walked back to the resort, having a great chat with our amazing guide. We together planned an afternoon plantation walk. But then, it didn’t happen. The reason, the lunch we had at the resort that afternoon.
IT WAS HEAVENLY! We had told Jaison (the head Chef) that he can select the items for our lunch. The dinner we had the previous night (special item was Karimeen Pollichathu, a Kerala speciality) and the breakfast in the morning was really good. We said we preferred 
Kerala food. So, Jaison got us Rice with Kerala style fish curry, fish fry, sambar etc. I don’t prefer fish normally, but then I thought, I’ll give it a try. It was exquisite! The best lunch I ever had! I immediately called home and told my mom that the food at SpiceTree reminded me of her. We sat there for two and half hours having lunch! The Carrot Halwa served as dessert was also splendid. We were so full that we had to cancel the plantation walk. Forget the walk, we couldn’t even move from the table for 15 minutes.
Before we left in the evening, the staff arranged for us a tea tasting ceremony. We tasted different varieties of tea grown in nearby plantations while one of the staff explained to us about the varieties. We thanked everyone there for the wonderful stay (especially Vivian and Jaison) and promised that we would be back to SpiceTree soon and the next time will make sure that we have time to enjoy and participate in all their activities.
Athul Domichen
Quick Links: Munnar Honeymoon Packages, Private Pool Villa, Honeymoon Suite, Honeymoon Cottages