Day 7 - Puri

06.10.2022

Day 7

Vizag to Puri drive is about 450 kms. Plan for the day was to visit Konark Sun temple and Jagannath temple while in Puri.

We took NH16 and then New Jagannath road towards Puri. New Jagannath road is a narrow winding road traversing through rustic villages, paddy fields. After travelling about 45 minutes (20+ kms) we were stopped at a road blockade by locals protesting flood relief distribution. We were told the blockade may last for few hours and so we decided to detour. A local family who was also caught in this mess, guided us through another route to Konark. We had planned to visit the Sun temple before check in to hotel. 

One of the highlights of our tour has been the support of so many kind hearted and helpful people who we meet every day. Way to go India!

We traversed through several interior roads, mostly single lane, to bypass the blockade. Orissa reminded us of Kerala in the 70’s - vegetation, paddy fields and the roads. We were back on the clock by about three hours when we reached Konark at 5.45 pm. The timing was just right as the beauty of Konark is seen best under lights.

The 13th century Sun temple is an architectural wonder. We were blown off our feet by the grandeur of what remains of the temple complex - 100 feet high chariot with giant wheels and horses, all carved from sandstone. The temple built during Kalinga period is a classic illustration of Kalinga Architecture.

Though, what we see today is a partially destroyed edifice (The cause of destruction of the temple is unclear), one should not miss visiting this masterpiece!

Konark Sun Temple is depicted on the reverse side of INR 20, to signify its importance to Indian cultural heritage

Driving this part of the country, one must learn to navigate herds-of cattle resting in the middle of the road (including highways) - night driving is scary as you don’t see them until too late.

Visit to Jagannath temple was postponed to next day as it was too late.

We checked in at Sterling Puri for the night for a good night’s rest.

At end of day seven - 2961 kms on our tracker.

#fulltankers

Day 6 - Visakhapatnam (second day)

05.10.2022

Day 6

As mentioned previously, we had planned two nights halt in Vizag, primarily to rejuvenate. Similar halts are planned in other states also.

At Vizag we were impressed by the roads and general sense of cleanliness.

Vizag has several establishments of National importance - Vizag steel, HPCL oil refinery, Vizag shipyard etc. It is the oldest shipyard in India and also the headquarters of Eastern Naval Command. #fulltankers home town Cochin is the headquarters of Southern Naval Command. Vizag is the only natural harbour on east coast of India.

We were enthralled by the clean beaches and taste of the famous Andhra cuisine. We also visited the much acclaimed Raju Garu Dhaba, but felt it was quite ordinary.

Rushikonda beach is worth mentioning. We had planned visits to Air Museum and Submarinw Museum, but the long queues and the rains deterred us. It was Dusserah holiday in Vizag, and lots of people were enjoying the mid week break. Traffic was light which made driving much easy. 

Our stay at Welcome ITC was comfortable. We had dinner at the hotel and had an early sleep for the long drive next day.

At end of day six - 2394 kms on our tracker.

#fulltankers

Day 5 - Visakhapatnam (first day)

04.10.2022

Day 5

Guntur was a logical stop midway between Pondicherry and Visakhapatnam.  

Our stay at Welcome ITC at Guntur, though a brief one, was made extra special by the courteous and friendly staff (mentioned in our previous blog). Chef Sudhakar started his day early to ensure we had our breakfast served on time for an early start for our 380 kms journey to Visakhapatnam. Breakfast was superb and the taste of that coffee still lingers!

We continued on east coast route towards port city of Visakhapatnam aka Vizag nicknamed as the "City of Destiny" and the "Jewel of the East Coast". The drive was a breeze, particularly through some sections where it was six lanes!

We reached the bustling city of Vizag and checked in at Welcome ITC at 2.45 pm. Once again ITC team was efficient for a smooth check in. They welcomed fulltankers with a special cake made for us and some traditional savouries.

Its a 2-night stop at Vizag to rejuvenate. First things first - laundry, car wash and then for rejuvenation.

We drove around the city - some may still remember Waltair railway station en-route Calcutta - it was the city’s hub during colonial rule and a part Vizag is still called Waltair. The city is known for its beaches, museums, caves and the Eastern Ghats. (more about it in our blog tomorrow)

We had dinner at a local restaurant and back to hotel for a well earned rest.

At end of day five - 2291 kms on our tracker.

#fulltankers

Day 4 - Guntur

03.10.2022

Day 4

A relatively early start of 6.00 am, as we had to travel over 550 kms to Guntur. We took the East Coast route from Pondicherry via Ongole. Breakfast stop at 8 am and we continued on NH32/NH16…

We had trouble free travel so far but then after a brief coffee break at Gummidipoondi, “Panchali’s” AC wouldn’t cool. Outside temp was 36c and we had to find a service team quickly. After few phone calls we were able to locate an MG showroom at Nellore. MG’s service was smart and efficient. The team was quick to identify the problem - a broken belt was replaced and the issue was resolved. They waived all charges and offered a free service at our next stop at Vizag. Thank you MG team - Thajuddin #thajuddinshaik, Asgar and Motish!

We also had to correct our route couple of times as Google seemed confused in certain areas. All of this meant we lost 3 hours en-route and reached M/s. Synthite Exports Ltd Ongole, where lunch was arranged (thank you NP). After a sumptuous lunch and tour of factory we continued our journey to Guntur. 

Checked in at Welcome Hotel ITC at 7.00 pm. We were blown over by the service of ITC team lead by Ms. Sofia #sofiakumar and Chef Sudhakar who went out of their way to make our stay comfortable. A light dinner and early breakfast next day we are ready for our journey to Visakhapatnam. (more about this in next blog)

A friend from Brisbane and another from Kerala together has penned these lines wishing the #fulltankers !

Hurricane in the air

Heavy rain in splatters

Hinders not their progress

On and on, on track on time

Onward with brimming tanks

Majestic fulltankers waltz

Rolling on all terrains

On and on, on track on time!

Thank you Bernie & RG!

At end of day four - 1928 kms on our tracker.

#fulltankers

Day 3 - Pondicherry

02.10.2022

Day 3

After our usual morning routine and breakfast we set out to Pondicherry, an Union Territory, about 290 kms away. Following an uneventful drive we arrived at French quarter section of the tiny erstwhile French colony at around 1.15 pm. 

It’s a busy area with number of good eateries…we took a while to find a place to have our lunch from as all the popular cafes were full. Finally we settled for lunch at the exclusive Dupleix restaurant. 

A visit to the Promenade Beach (Goubert Avenue) is a must. Located near the beach are Children's Park, Dupleix Statue, Gandhi statue, Nehru statue, Le Café, French War Memorial, 19th Century Light House, Bharathi Park and Governors Palace.

We also drove down to Auroville, and the huge crowd was overwhelming. We were pleasantly surprised to meet our friend Swapna James in Auroville.  Quoting her FB post “What are the chances of bumping into the most wonderful bunch of “fulltankers” in Pondicherry!! Wishing this group of men with the joie de vivre for life a wonderful and successful trip around India ! Way to go Full Tankers !! - thank you #jamesapna

Pondicherry is a vibrant place and we could see lots of youngsters milling around. Heartening to see our vibrant next generation!

We checked into Club Mahindra for the night, an exotic place to stay in. We enjoyed our sumptuous buffet dinner at Seashelz.

At end of day three - 1172 kms on our tracker.

#fulltankers

Day 2 - Karaikkudi

01.10.2022

Day 2

Fulltankers had a good night’s sleep and as planned our daily routine started at 5.00 am with a brisk walk / exercise, fully refreshed and after breakfast, we drove to our next destination Karaikkudi at 8.00 am. After a fairly short drive of about 150 kms we reached Karaikkudi at 10.30 am.

Karaikudi’s several gorgeous temples, Chettinad delicacies and the grandeur of their houses (palaces to lesser mortals) makes it a must visit place.

We were honoured by a traditional greeting at the Visalam Heritage hotel. The hotel itself is a palatial Chettinad mansion converted to a hotel by CGH Earth group. We had a tour of the property led by Mr. Sam John, resident manager of the property. The hotel also arranged a demo on preparing Chettinad, heritage trail etc, to get a feel of local flavour and culture. 

A visit to see the making of Athangudi tiles at Ganapathy tile factory, was an unique experience. It’s basically cement tiles like mosaic, but unlike the machine pressed mosaics, they are handmade over glass surfaces.

Grandeur of Chettinad palaces was clearly visible during our visit to Athanngudi palace, built 90 years ago with 64 rooms spread over a footprint of 1.5 acres. Chettinad Palace and VVR mansions are places worth a visit. An impressive audio visual presentation of Chettiars at Chettinad mansions was another highlight.

We were impressed by the cuisine served at local favourite Sri Priya Mess - where we had some awesome food and excellent service. Chettinad lip smacking cuisine got its name from the Chettiars of Poompuhar who migrated in later years to the place now known as Chettinad. We had dinner at The Bangala Restaurant, rated top ten in India. Mr. Yakub, who runs the show explained the various cuisines and gave us a tour of the place. The place also serves as an important shooting location for South Indian cinema. Bumped into Chemban Vinod, Malayalam movie star, who obliged for a photo with fulltankers.

At end of day two - 841 kms on our tracker.

#fulltankers

Day 1 -Rameswaram / Dhanushkodi

30.09.2022

Day 1

4.00 am - start of an incredible journey.

As arranged before, it was Sunny who picked NP, CK, JK and Zac aka “Fulltankers” and our first stop was at “Edappally Palli” to pray for a safe journey. Our dear friend Jose Kattikkaren was waiting at the grotto. After prayers at the grotto and customary good-byes to Jose we started our long drive to Rameswaram at 5.00 am.

Breakfast halt at Krishna Mess, Pollachi, a small family run shop for some authentic South Indian b/f meal.

We took a detour from the highway traversing through the narrow streets of Madurai to see the famous Meenakshi Temple. Kudos to CK for deft handling of “our car an MG Gloster which we fondly named “Panchali” through the intrinsic maze of streets around the temple.

Drive to Rameswaram our destination for Day one was uneventful. A brief stop on Pamban bridge, an engineering masterpiece, has some exotic views on either side. The sea, a magnificent turquoise blue, was an incredible sight. Excited Fulltankers was able to capture the beauty in our travel cameras.

After check in at Star Palace hotel and a quick lunch, we visited Dhanushkodi. The ghost town of Dhanushkodi, at the south-east point of Pamban was destroyed during the 1964 Rameswaram cyclone and remains uninhabited in the aftermath. It was an enjoyable drive to this deserted place, which is about 24 kms west of Talaimannar in Sri Lanka.

Fulltankers also visited Ramanathaswamy Temple, a Hindu pilgrimage site with ornate corridors, huge sculpted pillars and sacred water tanks. Special mention of the world renowned third corridor pillars. A real architectural marvel indeed. It is believed Lord Rama paid his obeisance to Lord Siva before his departure to Lanka to free Sita Devi.

We were pleasantly surprised to get a call from Radio Mango RJ’s Adarsh & Manju to feature us in their program “Josh Junction” on senior citizens day. We reciprocated wholeheartedly.

At end of day one - 602 kms on our tracker.