The road trip to Lonavala was lovely. The broad highways flanked by trees and the expressway with the Ghats rising above us on either side were just beautiful. As we closed in on our destination, the roads got narrower and the greenery closer in. But we hadn’t seen anything yet. The place we were headed towards is called ‘The Machan’; an environmentally friendly getaway in a thicket of green, with the Ghats all around it, going down into a valley. Driving through the gate, there we were. Lush green all around us, little bubbling streams running along the ground, a small dam right at the entrance and the soft hum of windmills in the background. We were greeted by Sophie, a very pleasant, humorous young ecologist who walked us to the reception. The reception was a simple but well-built shack of logs with a small bridge-like extension over the dam. I went out onto the bridge and was soon joined by Sophie who began pointing out dragonflies, crabs and frogs over, in and by the dam. What they call the dam is actually like a little pond with frogs, crabs and snakes.
So with Sophie’s, “let’s see where you’re gonna be spending your night!” we set off toward our canopy. We walked through the trees down a pathway. There were tiny frog ponds set up around every corner with cute little Lilly pads floating in them. I didn’t even notice when we reached our canopy. It was so perfectly blended in with the trees and their foliage. It was a large, elevated, tent-like structure. No walls- just a wooden framework with cloth draped all around it. It had two metal beams holding it up on one side, but it was mostly supported by the thick, metal chords it was suspended by. The ropes are there to make sure the platform with the tent stays at the right position and to take the pressure away and transfer it into the ground. To make the leg, they dug until they found the mother rock, then drilled into it and inserted metal pegs and then made the cement legs. What you could see above ground was much smaller than what was underneath. The fact that you are on a platform with 2 legs and that it's high up, makes it rock a bit- like a boat. We took the spirally vertical staircase up to the tent. What met my eyes at the top of the stairs just blew my mind away. From the deck of the canopy were hills covered from top to bottom in dense greenery, trees rising all around us, a valley running down from the hills, birds flying at eye level, blue skies all around. For as far as the eye could see were a million shades of green! The magnificence of this place was extraordinary. Never before had I beheld such insane beauty! Alive is what I felt. If there was a heaven on earth, this was it. I stayed out on the deck to stare out at nature with my mouth hanging open in absolute wonder. It took me a while to assimilate this sudden shift from honking, polluted cacophony to sheer serenity.
For lunch, we were escorted down a leaf-covered path to a shady niche. It was flat ground surrounded on all four sides with thin, tall trees. Laid out were 3 deck chairs, two carpets and a hammock out back. A small table was neatly set with our yummy food sitting on it, waiting to be eaten. What a perfect setting. Cozy, comfy and such a treat. Sitting on the carpet, we ate in silence; slowly taking in everything around us. After lunch and a little walk, we returned to our perfect home in this perfect paradise.
I happily resumed ooohing and aaahing at the scenery. It got dark pretty fast, but only after an incredibly enchanting sunset. It was about six in the evening. The large, orange, bulbous sun went down in the west, disappearing behind the hills, sending cracks of orange and red across the horizon. The sky kept getting deeper red as the sun vanished from our sight and then suddenly, darkness surrounded us. There was a nip in the air and I put on my jacket and socks. At about 7:30 we came out onto the deck and lo behold! Something impossible to conceive in our city. The vast, uninterrupted expanse of sky was dotted with thousands of bright stars. I don’t know how many years it had been since I saw a night’s sky like that. Instantly I was flat on my back, gazing up at the stars.
At 8, we got a call for dinner. The nip had now turned to a sharp chill. They had lit up the place with small, dim oil lamps, floating t-light candles in the ponds and a few electric lights here and there. (The entire place is run solely on the wind and solar power generated from their own windmills and solar panels.) Their dining area was semi-outdoor because it was open, apart from the roof and a fireplace. There we met the owner and his family, all of whom were very warm and welcoming people, and Sophie. We had a nice, long pre-dinner conversation and then an equally nice post-conversation dinner.
Back at the canopy, it was getting freakishly cold! I’ve never been too good with the cold. But more than the temperature being low, it was extremely windy. The ‘walls’ of the canopy were shaking vigorously and it sounded like heavy rain on a roof. It was lovely. I loved the sound and the feeling of being inside that cool, flapping tent. Once in a while when the rain was blowing really hard, the canopy would vibrate slightly under my feet. We were told the rocking and the movement of the sheets can be a little discerning. But it wasn’t. Not unnerving in the least. I was enjoying each little moment, soaking in every bit of everything. Getting ready for bed, I went through the photos on my camera. At the end of day one, I had 153 photos. Though we didn’t really do much. The hikes, trails, climbs were yet to come.
Before sleeping, despite it being ridiculously cold and wonderfully breezy, I went back outside- goosebumps inside my jacket. With the lights out all around, the black sky was blacker than ever and the stars incredibly bright. They were just popping out! Back in Mumbai, you’d get to see this only at a planetarium- and it still wouldn’t be half as good. It was stunning. I’m running out of adjectives to describe this place! I went back inside only when the chilled breeze became too much to take.
So that’s it from day1. Lots more to come!
