Like they say a journey is best measured in friends rather than miles. So, when the triumvirate of my friends (Deepti, Fijo, and Burjees) announced that they would be joining me and Ajit to Panhala (about 20 kms from Kolhapur), we knew that the journey would be peppered with oodles of fun n frolic. We drove a good 200 kms from Pune to reach this hill station. On the journey en-route, we passed lush-green meadows and rolling hills, and some amazing landscapes as seen in the photos here. We had a brief stopover at Virangula hotel, where we stuffed ourselves with vada-pav/sandwiches and downed them with kokum sherbet.
We drove on till we reached Hotel Hill Top, where we had booked our rooms. This hotel has some interiors and paintings that extol the rich heritage of the Maratha Empire of yester years. Also, the hotel is surrounded by some age-old forts that used to be the pride of Deccan army at one point of time.
Tired that we were, we took a siesta in the hotel rooms and then trotted off to explore the place for ourselves. The Panhala fort (that was at a distance of a few meters from the hotel) looked huge and offered beatific views of the tiny villages yonder. The dappled sunlight fell on the huge boulders of the fort, whose sheer magnanimity typifies the strength of the brave soldiers who would have guarded it. According to the village dwellers, it took about a hundred years to build the ramparts and gateways of this fort. It was first built by Raja Bhoja between 1178 and 1209 CE, and many centuries later captured by Shivaji Maharaj. It was wonderful to descry a piece of art, which dovetailed some precious moments of history and amazing tales of valor. The famous Teen Darwaza (one of the few structures of the fort still intact) is seen in one of the photos here.
After a brief dabble in the forts, we drove on one of the roads to find a brimful of surprise in store for us. The view ahead of us was heavenly; a secluded stretch of land fringed with small rivulets and deserted forts. We walked aimlessly across the pasture land and spotted some exotic birds and flowers. As the sun dissolved into the horizon, it illumined this place with its divine hues. Also, the rain showers arrived drenching and shunting us all into the confines of the car. As the temperature dipped, we chafed our hands, and blinked into the darkness engulfed all around us. The roads looked scary as it was surprisingly not dotted by any street lamps. Our fecund imagination conjured up some ghastly looking figures on the secluded paths and sent a chilling wave up our spines.
We soon reached the Valley View Ground hotel, an expensive looking place with beautiful interiors. We realized we are early for the buffet dinner and twiddled our fingers before someone announced “grub’s up”. The food comprising bhakris, kadi, and other spicy curries, not to mention the colorful scoops of ice cream, were all gorged upon, by the five of us. We then retreated to our hotel to snuggle under the sheets of our air conditioned rooms.
The next morning we bid adieus to Panhala, promising to come back soon, and devour some more food and more delectable views of the place.