Coonoor

Editor's Note

This could be Ooty's twin, but Coonoor with its distinctive charm is different. Mist-clad Nilgiri hills, the bright green of the tea estates contrasting sharply against the red poinsettias and quaint bungalows that speak stories of what this was. It was once home to the Coons tribe, and possibly that's where the name comes from. Of course, legends have it that Coonoor owes its name to the kurinji flowers that bloom on its slopes every 12 years, bathing in a sheer blue. Whatever be the reason, this British town retains some of its colonial flavour - in the old-world cottages with names with Honeysuckle Views, in lanes called Elk Hill and in the quiet final resting places shaded by drooping trees. Trip to the hot-spots, trek as much as you wish and gulp endless cups of the aromatic Nilgiri tea.