There are a few moments in life that you never forget, no matter what. No matter how trivial the place was, how you felt at that moment, how shitty or glorious life was, some incidents imprint on your memory and become better as years go by. One such memoryj is my trip to Coorg (Kodagu) with my family a few years back (feels like another era though).

We had begun our trip from different places and we all were meeting in Bangalore. Anupriya and I were taking a flight from Delhi, and Shivam (my brother) was flying in from Pune. We were to start for Kodagu the same evening and reach our place late night. But Indigo had different plans. Our flight kept getting delayed and delayed…and Anupriya and I could only board our flight six hours after original scheduled departure. Nevertheless, all of us met in Bangalore, and my husband decided to not let a few hours of delay, detail our glorious trip. He decided to stick to the original itinerary with some changes of course, and we left for Kodagu from Bangalore, some time after midnight.

By the way, if you are not aware, here are some useful stats:

Distance between Bangalore and Kodagu – 270 Kms
Time taken – ~6 hours

We reached Coorg as the Sun began to shine softly and checked into our hotel. After everyone caught some sleep, we left for an epic day of sightseeing. Ah, 20s! So energetic when I could survive only on a couple of hours of sleep!

But the day turned out to be super amazing. We drove down to Talacauvery (the place from where the river Kaveri originates) and Abbey falls (uber crowded; not recommended) and was looking to spend our late evening in a cafe, when we passed by Raja’s seat. And just about then, it started to rain. Our car was parked out in the hotel’s garage, which was about a kilometre from there. We couldn’t walk in those rains. So, we began looking for some shade, and then we noticed Raja’s seat which was brimming with people.

After the rains stopped, and the crowds thinned, we bought the entry ticket for INR 5 each and went inside to enjoy one of the most beautiful sunsets.

Raja’s seat, originally meant for the King of Kodagu to enjoy the sunrise and sunsets lives up to its name. With spectacular views across all seasons, this very point commands respect and a label. What could be a better label than the one associated with royalty?

What’s special, you might wonder?! It’s a high point from where you can views of mountains and valleys and the wide green expanse- it’s just gorgeous! For the best views, we recommend Sunrises but Sunsets ain’t half bad either.

The rains had stopped and we were hungry (there is something about the rains; it always make you crave fried food and chai, tea) 😀 😀

There were many a restaurant nearby. So, we went for a walk to find restaurants nearby and ate to our heart’s contents. 😍😍 Had a lot of conversations and went back to our hotel. The next day was meant for Kushalnagar and a trip to monasteries.

Years have gone by, and I have done countless trips since then. But that evening of sunset watching from Raja’s seat remains memorable.