I, however, since I'm not tasked with making a life there (which I believe is what is necessary to make it work, you can't just live there, you have to make it yours in whatever small way is needed to thrive), I can say I probably have a bit of a different view of our trip to Pondicherry than my sister.
Perhaps I am getting a bit ahead of myself, because having spent two weeks there, alot had happened before our trip to Pondicherry, but it was such a great experience, that I figured I would just start there and jump back and forth from one piece to the next...so bear with me.
My view is quite a bit different than my sister's blog of the Dune's Eco Hotel.
Once we were out of the city, the sounds of the horns left far behind, the drive was beautiful. The roads were good, and thanks to Prabeesh we made pretty good time. It felt a different pace along the way, like people weren't as rushed, and like us, were enjoying the scenery.
Along the way we stopped at the zoo, which will be another blog, but was quite well laid out and had many varies of animals - like my sister indicated, suffice it to say that I felt like one of the exhibits...but I digress..... We stopped at the entrance to Pondicherry/Puducherry, and continued on to The Dunes. Getting there was a bit deceiving, we had to drive thru a very poor village, which kind of made me feel a bit uneasy knowing how they lived versus how we were going to spend our visit.
The Dune is a rather large compound of cottages and outbuildings that boast being reclaimed from other sites. Our cottage was called Kerala House, which was moved from Kerala to their site and re-assembled. It was a marvelous example of architecture, having been built over 100 years ago and mostly built with teak and rosewood. You have to hand it to the builders, carpenters and artisans - they sure do beautiful work!
There was an intricately carved inlaid door that greeted us when we arrived at Kerala House.
It was rather funny to me, considering that it was flanked solely by plants and shrubs and anyone could have stepped over the bushes to reach the pathway, but it was a novel idea!
There were, of course, a few modifications such as indoor plumbing, air-conditioned sleeping quarters and electricity. The mattresses, however, well let's just say I'm spoiled on a north american mattress...indian mattress=concrete floor...but the ambiance more than made up for it. The ceilings were very ornate, and the people must have been very slight 100 years ago, as the doors were very low.
The sliding doors opened up to the ocean breeze.
...and a gazing pond.
Very lovely.We didn't get a chance to see much of the property,
although it was mentioned on more than one occasion by the property manager, that they grew the majority of the food that was served on site, and how they were eco-friendly and recycled much of the water. Go green!! This stacking of the water jugs looked a bit odd to me at first, but once we came home from dinner I knew why they were there...they were columns of colorful light in the evening.
I think if you're expecting a five star resort, you'll be rather disappointed by north american standards. However, if you're looking for something a bit out of the ordinary, off the beaten path and away from the sound of car horns, with alot of character, then this might be the place for you. Just remember to bring sunscreen, bugspray and frog repellent. I loved it, and I'm so glad that I had the opportunity to experience it first-hand.
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