There are small uninhabited islands near Bangaram, namely Parli 1, 2 and
3 and the islets of Thinnakkara. These islands are part of the Bangaram atoll
and provide additional opportunities to explore the corals and marine life. Visiting
the Parli Island is an exotic
experience where one can enjoy the blue lagoons, shining soft beaches and the
swaying palms. It is an ideal destination for various water sports popular in
the region like snorkeling, pedal boating, scuba diving, boating, sailing etc
We had one of the most memorable experiences visiting these islands.
Hamid had made arrangements for cooking on the boat itself. We watched him and his two colleagues fishing while we
were sailing towards the islands. It was fun watching them fish. Every time they
caught a fish, everyone yelled in excitement. The kids were little scared when
a big fish was caught and killed onboard.
While the fish was being cooked on the boat, we swam to the island .The
water was soothing cold and so clear that we can see the underneath corals. We were,
however, told to be careful because the corals were sharp edged and could have
caused injuries. It was just a couple of minutes swim to the island that was
surrounded by white and shiny sands. After drying ourselves at the beach, we
went into the island. We were the only ones on the island. We walked around for
a while after enjoying the enthralling view of the sea and the Bangaram Island
from a distance. Since the time was short and we had to return to Agatti, we
decided to go back to the boat.
The return journey to Agatti was no less adventurous. While we enjoyed
the smooth sail in the lagoons and the view of the adjoining coral reefs, we
had no idea of what the return journey would be like. We enjoyed the fish curry
with rice , which tasted so good that we still remember its taste .Meanwhile
Hamid put a sheet on the floor of the boat and asked the kids to sleep and rest
there with life jackets as the pillows. He told us that the voyage back to
Agatti will not be smooth as this was the small boat unlike the one that bought
us to Bangaram. After about 10 minutes we entered the deep sea and the sea all
of a sudden behaved like a spoilsport brat. We could spot high waves
approaching us every now and then and it appeared at times that the waves will
go over the boat. I could see the fear on the face of my wife and the kids look
scared too. To be honest, I too was a bit scared but was relaxed after a while
when I saw Hamid and the other boat men smiling and talking among themselves
normally. Since from their body language it appeared that everything was
normal, it did gave comfort to all of us. Hamid, however, could see through our
eyes the confusion and fear that we were going through. He was quick enough to clear all suspicion and
told that it was normal in high seas and that’s why he made that arrangement
for the kids and asked them to sleep. Although he did admit that the sea was
little more rough than expected. After a ride of about an hour, we entered the
lagoon and could see the Agatti island clearly. We took a deep breath. My wife
admitted that she was scared and also felt why the hell we ventured into deep
sea at all. But everything was back to
normal-the turquoise blue waters, swaying palms, the innocent villagers,
fishing nets –all started appearing beautiful as ever. Hamid handed over the
catch to his family and invited us for the dinner. The invite was straight from
his heart and we did not had the option but to accept it.
The next morning we were all set to fly back to Cochin. However, the
weather god played spoil sport this time. The weather in Lakshadweep is very
unpredictable typical of an island weather. Our flight got delayed by over
three hours and it also appeared that it can get cancelled anytime. It was not
a bad idea to spend another day at the beautiful island but we had plans for
visiting Kanyakumari for which we had advance bookings . We were really
concerned but the weather god seemed in a mood to appease us. The black clouds
hovered again and again and our hopes of flying back were dying fast. Soon the
rains stopped and the weather turned windy and we could see the black clouds
flying fast. While we still sounded optimist, the Sub District Magistrate
informed us that the flight has taken off from Cochin. We took a sigh of relief
and after an hour spotted that tiny little aircraft landing on the airport.
That was mesmerising Lakshdweep. Hope
many would be tempted to plan a visit to these beautiful islands.
oh yes, you are right....so mesmerising area...the only ones on the island....is it possible? it's hard to believe for me hahaha...here always someone is everywhere lol...Mirella
ReplyDeleteIn India , with the type of population we have , its even more exciting to be at a place where there is no one else except a handful of people and its even more exciting if its only you and your family on an island
ReplyDeleteThat the best place where I would like to be :-). How I get there. Irena
ReplyDeleteIf the blogger happens to be your friend then the question "how i get there?" seems irrelevant.. heheh .All what is required is that you make your mind to visit India Irena
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