Bangalore to Palakkad – A Monsoon Road Trip
I’ve always believed I was born for the monsoon. Scratch that. I was literally born in the monsoon, which probably explains my lifelong obsession with rain-drenched getaways. While some people chase summer sunshine or winter snow, I find pure joy in mist-covered hills, chai that tastes better when it’s raining, and watching clouds sneakily swallow entire landscapes. And when it comes to monsoon magic, Kerala is my perennial weakness. After spending the last two birthdays in Munnar (yes, the hills have officially started recognising me as a regular, I decided it was time to give another corner of Kerala a chance. Enter Palakkad – a town on the Kerala–Tamil Nadu border that comes with hills, forests, paddy fields, coconut trees, and just enough charm to lure me in. Those four days were a delightful blur of Chukku coffee by rain-soaked windows, UNO games that got a little too competitive, cycling along the dam in the mornings, feasting on fresh fish, and, of course, celeb...