Last summer we had a family reunion cum holiday in Wellington, a quaint Cantonment town in the Nilgiris (South India) straight out of the British Raj, which hosts The Madras Regimental Centre and The Defence Staff College.
And just outside Wellington is Coonoor, a lovely hill station that does not get the attention it deserves because nearby Ooty tends to attract the tourist traffic. If I were asked to chose between the two towns, Coonoor would win, without a shred of doubt.
But even a day spent in Coonoor will make you want to come back, again and again, to rest and relax. And discover more. Like Sim’s Park. This beautiful park cum botanical garden is situated in a ravine, and was developed in 1874, using the natural contours of the land. It tends to get a bit overcrowded, but to the credit of the staff of the park, the place is very well maintained.
We had to cut short our stay at the Park because we had to two other important things to do. First, locate Baker’s Junction and second, have lunch at 180 McIver. Actually, we had come across McIver’s on our way into Coonoor from Wellington and Baker’s Junction had been highly recommended for the cheese it stocked.
After driving around a bit, we located Baker’s Junction, which was well stocked with dry goods, provisions and of course, cheese. And we were once again reminded that we live in a small world. Turned out that owner, Cedric Joseph was the brother of an old friend of Corinne.
Having ticked off the items in the shopping lists, we headed to 180 McIver. The 180 in the name comes from the unique location on a cliff that offers a fantastic 180 degree view of Coonoor.
180McIver is an old colonial era resort with a multi-cuisine restaurant, La Belle Vie.We had some delicious pastas and pizzas made from scratch after the order is placed. And the desserts were delectable. Though the food is a bit expensive, the location is so unique, that overall it is a value for money proposition.
By the time we finished a leisurely lunch and went round the beautifully appointed rooms in the resort, it was almost tea time. We headed to The Wellington Gymkhana Club for tea.
There I was introduced to NonSuch tea. And after tasting the NonSuch Broken Orange Pekoe (BOP) tea, I was hooked. I now order it directly from the tea garden to drink in Mumbai. So now we have memories of Coonoor at least four times, everyday! 😉
PS: Thanks to my brother-in-law, John Campos, for the fantastic pictures. Until he gets his website up and running, we’ll continue to showcase his talent! 🙂
Today we’re on C of the Blogging From A to Z April Challenge.
This post first appeared on From7Eight
Thank you for a lovely review of the place! The photos are indeed spectacular too! I’m intrigued about this Nonsuch tea! Sounds delicious!
Nonsuch BOP is quite a mild tea. We usually drink BOP tea, but Nonsuch has its own distinct flavor.
A Lovely travelogue . I could almost smell the clean air there . Thank You Corrine / Jose 🙂
If you live in a big city, like we do, you can feel the difference as you drive up.
Hi Jose !
Nice to see you here ! I am so happy that you have joined corinne in writing, you have done very well, I liked your post, beautiful pictures – would like to visit this place, thanks for sharing !!
Nice to see you commenting. And thanks for the nice comments. As you know, my wife is very persuasive.
Looks like a beautiful place. Must be a day for Wellington – I blogged about a Wellington too. And Sim’s park, that could be right out of the Wellington (NZ) botanical gardens. Enjoyed the post and the pics are great.
According to the regimental lore, the plans for the barracks were actually meant for Wellington, NZ; due to some confusion in London, they got mailed to India. Consequently, the architectural design of the barracks is quite different from barracks in other cantonments in India.
This is definitely on my places to see list! Thanks for sharing.
Hi Jose & Corinne,
That was lovely, and it brought back good old memories of Wellington and Staff College and the time when Dad was posted there. Of course, we were small then, but we re-visited it and that’s when we went and saw Coonoor, and just fell in love with it. Nice pictures to go with the post. 🙂
Corinne – wishing you the very best with your challenge. I didn’t know you were having it on this blog or would have come earlier to cheer you along. Sorry for that, though am glad to be here now. Take care and don’t exhaust yourself off 🙂
Both Wellington and Coonoor are beautiful places. Whilst the former will retain its charm because it is cantonment, I am not too sure about Coonoor. In time, it will get overrun like Ooty. There are early signs of this happening.
I am personaly a bigger fan of Coonor than ooty! 180McIver seems a quaint great place 🙂
180McIver is a charming and quaint place. Worth an visit for a leisurely meal. The staff (only one guy, who serves) of the restaurant, has a bit of an attitude. Just ignore him and have fun.
Loved this post and tempted to go and hav that tea and pasta
Is it also spelled as Kanur or is that a different place in Kerala ? How far is it from Bangalore ?
Do let me know
Tempted to visit
Kanur is a different place. In Kerala. We started from Mysore around 5.00 AM and reached Wellington around noon. With a longish halt at Ooty for breakfast and to repair a flat tyre. Add the Bangalore Mysore journey time.
Coonoor looks so peaceful. Enjoyed your post!! Hope to see more of your work soon!!
Thanks. Will certainly cover a few more places during this challenge.
Jose, reading about Coonoor brought back such lovely memories. I had gone there in 2004 and the memories are still so vivid. I agree with you that Coonoor has much more than Ooty. I remember we stayed in one of the tea gardens and the flowers there took my breath away. I was not sure if they were for real. Would love to go and visit once again someday. Thank you for sharing this with us.
Coonoor is a lovely place; much better than Ooty, where every shop sells chocolates and ‘varkey’. Don’t know what ‘varkey’ is, but the boards are all over. We too are looking forward to another visit to Wellington and Coonoor.
This travelogue is so well written coupled with captivating photos and it took me to a virtual tour. 🙂
Also, learned about a new kind of Tea… the ‘NonSuch’ Tea. 🙂
Wonderful tea and the garden is prepared to deliver a couple of kilos anywhere in India.
I went to Coonoor as a child and absolutely loved it ! Though I must say I spent most of my time trampling through tea gardens and looking out for the quaint bakeries Coonoor is so famous for ! During one of our tramps across the countryside we found ourselves in front of General Manekshaw’s cottage and actually met him !
Field Marshal Manekshaw’s cottage is still there, though I don’t know now who occupies it. It is on the Coonoor Kotegiri road, which is a round about route to Ooty. But worth a drive. Pristine forest, even now.
Coonoor and 180McIver resort looks like a perfect holiday destination that we need so very badly! So serene, so beautiful… Never heard about NonSuch Tea… thanks for sharing about it too 🙂
Yes, certainly worth a visit, though not on a budget. You will appreciate the Nonsuch tea, if you are into mild teas.
Sounds like one Serene and Awesome place! 🙂
Yes, it is so serene. Good for long walks.
Thanks for sharing. I had no idea there were places like this in India – looks lovely
Yes, there are many places like Coonoor in India. But urbanisation is taking its toll. Sad! But can’t be helped, I guess.
Commenting via the UBC – this sounds a wonderful place. I’ve not ventured that far East in my travels and it’s lovely to see the pictures.
Thanks for visiting. Guess there are lovely places all over. Just have to locate them, before they disappear.
Oh my looks like an amazing place!
Yes, it is. especially if you live in a concrete jungle, like we do.
Wonderfully done! Now this is on my must visit list. I am most intrigued by the NonSuch Tea. 🙂 Learnt something new today. Gracias!
Yes, you must visit. We are going to take a local agency for Nonsuch tea.
Pretty pictures!
Found your blog through the Ultimate Blog Challenge FB group.
Happy A-Z!
C is for Careers – Rhymed Acrostics at Nickers and Ink
Thanks for visiting.
Brought back fond memories of my visit to Coonoor with my parents and my kids. Loved the place, my dad preferred it to Ooty too.
Ooty has always been in the limelight. Now it is overrun with tourists. You have to wait in a long queue to visit the botanical gardens.
I have heard so much about Coonoor from friends who used to be hostellers in a school there. Ever since I have wanted to visit the place. The pictures are awesome. My determination to visit the place has just been renewed.
Do visit Coonoor. Before it goes the way of Ooty.
Nonsuch is superb. Thanks for the lovely travelogue. Great photos! Just added Coonoor to my must-visit list!
Thanks for visiting. Do visit Coonoor.
planning a trip to ooty & coonoor this month and was delighted to read this post 🙂
Hope you have a great time in Coonoor.
This looks like a great place to relax. Nice, informative post and great pics
Thanks for visiting. Yes, a great place to relax and unwind.
Jose…you got me at Tea. Now, no one can stop me from visiting The Wellington Gymkhana.
I am sure that you can visit the club. But I am not too sure whether you can have tea.
Lovely travelogue and gorgeous shots. That Nonsuch tea sounds like the perfect souvenir, as well!
Thank you for visiting my blog. Happy A to Z to you! 🙂
Tui
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@mentalmosaic
http://www.mentalmosaic.com/blog
Thanks for visiting. Nonsuch tea is a perfect pick me up.
NonSuch tea ! What a name ! Delightful coverage of Coonoor Jose .Must visit soon.
Yes, I India too has some beautiful places to visit. And you know where you can get Nonsuch tea in Mumbai.
That is one beautiful place!
It sure is.
Aah! Beautiful India ! love the photos
Beautiful India.. in pockets, of course.