A great Review of the
Kairali Healing Village by Mail Today

The Mail Today recently published a great and very unbiased
review on Kairali ? The Ayurvedic Healing Village. The article other than highlighting the exquisiteness of
Kairali also highlights the best places to visit near the healing Village. Mail
Today is a daily newspaper in compact format and is published by Mail Today
Newspapers Private Limited, a joint venture between the India Today Group and
Daily Mail of London. It is clean and
straight- talking and is a very widely circulated newspaper.

To Nature?s Village

Fly down to Kerala & settle in an Ayurvedic village for a week to
shut the world out.

Marco Polo in hi book has stated that Kerala is the best of all Indus.
So what can be said about Kerala that hasn?t been said before? Everything that I
would want to extol about my home state has been elucidated and most of it
would seem clichs. To add to expected I
was headed to the Kairali Ayurvedic Village in Palakkad for a few days of
healthy food, fresh air and a whole lot of silence.

the town being closer to Tamil Nadu than Kochi, it only made sense to
fly down to Coimbatore and drive down to Palakkad. And to prove that it is definitely
Bacchus?s land, as one crosses from Tamil Nadu border into Kerala, the first
building is a toddy shop. For those of who didn?t know, Kerala is India?s
tippler country.

Driving on you realise that the landscape and the skyline change with
borders. What was peppered with buildings and a lot of factories puffing out
smoke effortlessly slip to chocolate coloured western ghats, languid greenery,
paddy fields, and multi-coloured villas.

As you get part the castleesque gate to enter Kairali you realise that
silence is a virtue here. The sight of the undulating, expansive grounds
studded with coconut, mango and other trees prompts the thought that some
things are still right with the world. Your bags will be taken care of as you
step through the gate. After you are greeted by an affable manager, slip off
your footwear while you stroll across the lush lawns to your room.

With tounge- twisting sun- sign names as Thriketta, Anizham, Moolam and
Revathi, you will be hard-pressed to choose your burrow. After all there are 27
star signs in Kerala. The rooms are simple. This is a place for those wanting
to de-stress and not for those who are enamoured by five-star hotels. There is
no fixed menu and it is an all vegetarian place. You?ll know what you will be
served as soon as you saunter into their restaurant and take a peek on to the
blackboard. Made from fresh ingredients, some of them from their own garden,
each meal is a variety. Let your tongue be open to surprises for the flavours
are different and evocative.

After an afternoon?s rest, you could consult with the in-house
Ayurvedic doctor?s for your treatments,
be it the seven-day detox or just the famed massages. The Panchakarma treatment
is for those wanting to sweat iy out. Rigourous as it is, it cleanses the body
toxins. They also attend to infertility problems, facial paralysis, paraplegia,
arthritis and obesity. But, if like me, you are just in for a couple of days
and want to make the best use of it, opt for the shirodhara, abhayanga,
neytradhara and thalpodhichal. Do it over two days and you will realise what
rejuvenation means. And if you feel like stretching out, they also have a yoga
centre.

The cyan-coloured pool amidst the splendid outdoors is all yours. But,
do not jump into it if you just out fron your treatment. You could ask for a
breakfast to be served here, while you soak in the sun.

If sitting idle or reading abook is not your idea of fun, take a ride
to Palakkad town. In the heart of this
idyllic setting is Tipu Sultan?s fort, which was built in 1766. For the religious,
there is Kalapathy Shiva temple. It is an ancient Brahmin agraharam too. Just
15 ?kms away is the Malampuzha dam. It is a must- visit for it is locked amidst
the Western Ghats and a sight to see. If you don?t mind driving 60 ? odd km,
then Nelliyampathy is where you should go. Called the queen of Palakkad hills
and nestled atop the Western Ghats, you can walk around waterfalls, orange plantations,
or tea and coffee estates. For those with a cultural bent of mind, a visit to
the Kalamandalam, around 70-km away, is an awakening of sorts. Situated on the
banks of river Nila, it I the centre of south Indian arts. There are many who drive
to the Silent Valley National Park (100 km away) from here too.

After you day out, come back for tea to Kairali and nestle up on a warm
bench with pakodas and a book. For those who refuse to enjoy nature at its
best, hunt for the games room to indulge in a game of tennis or pool. The service id friendly and you will feel at
home.

This is usually a year-end destination. If you don?t mind the Kerala monsoon,
head there as early as July or August.

Published on: October 13 , 2013

Reviews