Travel with Sanil
to...Kerala

If you’ve been following our Travel with Sanil series on the MakeMyTrip Facebook page and the blog, you know that author Sanil Sachar is all set to release his new book The Dark Side Of Light, which features his exciting new travel story, ‘An Everlasting Travel, a Never-ending Journey’. In a face-to-face interview, we got him to play 20 questions with us on another one of his favourite travel destinations: Kerala! Below are some excerpts:

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First, the basics:

Favourite beach?

- More than the beaches, going to Ashtamudi Lake and spending time near the backwaters is an absolute treat.

Favourite Kerala food?

- Appams by a mile! I am close to being an addict. It’s a menacing task to stop me once I start eating them with vegetable stew.

Favourite place to stay?

- House boats. Although make sure not to fall asleep without any shade as I have done in the past. (I woke up more tanned than Ross from Friends in the tanning salon episode.)

 

Digging Deeper:

Kerala is full of wildlife sanctuaries. Do you like wildlife spotting?

- I love wildlife spotting and I prefer sanctuaries where animals are kept in their true habitat and not tamed.

What’s your favourite place for wildlife spotting in India?

- Ranthambore. I was in Ranthambore with a few friends and we had several great sightings, including three tigers in the same session!

Speaking of which, are you fond of animals?

- I love animals and elephants, in particular, are my favourite. I had the opportunity to bathe elephants when I went to Jaipur a few years ago. That’s where I learnt they really are mischievous—they kept drenching me with their trunks full of water.

Dogs or cats?

- Dogs.

- Have you ever travelled solo?

- Yes! Goa is a city I love travelling alone to and I was travelling around England for over a month in May this year. I am also keen on traveling to South America solo and writing about my experiences there.

One thing to do in Kerala that you’d recommend to solo travellers.

- Spending the night in a house boat to catch the first glimpse of the sunrise on the serene backwaters.

If you had to choose an Indian author to travel to Kerala with, who would it be?

- Anita Nair. She’s originally from Kerala and it would be great to travel around her home city which, I imagine, she’d know better than anyone else.

What’s your go-to place in India for a beach vacation?

Goa! It’s my go-to place for any sort of vacation in India.

One thing about Indian travellers that annoys the heck out of you.

- I am not one to get annoyed easily but if I had to be picky I’d say not too many Indian travellers experiment with new things. At times, it’s good to get out of your comfort zone.

Kerala is all about peace, relaxation and tranquil backwaters. Do you like peace and quiet while you’re writing, or do you like being at the centre of all the action?

- When I am writing I lose myself in the world my characters are in. So even if I am at the centre of action, I will be in a complete state of trance. But generally speaking, when I’m writing, I prefer being by myself.

Any favourite Malayalam-English authors?

- None I can think of right now.

 

Rapid Fire

River cruise on the Periyar or beach bumming at Kovalam?

- Beach bumming after the river cruise!

Houseboat at Alleppey or colonial lodge at Munnar?

- Definitely a house boat!

Kathakali dance or Kalaripayattu marital art: what would you rather watch?

- Kalaripayattu martial art! I’d love to learn it as well.

Filter coffee or tea?

- I thrive on strong coffee every morning and there’s nothing better than a good cup of filter coffee.

Coolest travel souvenir from Kerala

-I’m not one for souvenirs but I tried imbibing the culture and positivity of the people of Kerala. It was a unique and free souvenir (Bargain!).

Three places in India you’d like to visit in 2016

- Leh, Coorg and Andaman.

Find out more about Sanil’s latest book at  http://thedarksideoflight.in/ and watch out for his exciting new travel story: only on the MakeMyTrip Facebook page. Have something to say? Tweet to him @SanilSachar