Last week we went on a short holiday to Chennai to spend some quality time with my mom and grandmom.
Chennai at this time of the year is always boiling hot (it’s Agni nakshatram meaning fiery star referring to the hottest time of the year), and we must have been absolutely nuts to try this trip. However, snubnose was getting restless at home during the summer holidays and since I couldn’t take time off from work to go for a longish trip…a long weekend in Chennai it had to be.
Surprisingly though, it was pretty good fun, and chock-full of new experiences for both the snubnose and piglet.
Very quickly we realized that outdoor activities were pretty much impossible. After a miserable trip to Birla Planetarium where piglet all but melted while we waited in queues in almost 40 degrees temperature, we retreated to the comfort of malls where there was enough fun activities for the kids while at the same time maintaining our cool.
Funcity (a chain of games arcades present in a lot of malls in India) is one of the absolute best places for kids to hang out. Tons of rides, games, and rather useless prizes to be won. Since this was already a favorite with the snubnose, we decided it was a safe if slightly predictable option for her.
Snubnose for the first time in her life worked up the courage to go on a lot of rides all alone. Usually, I accompany her on most everything she does, but this time I was occupied with piglet and so she had to try the rides on her own.
I was worried for her, but she did absolutely fine going on the Drop Zone, Columbus, and Bumping Cars without getting hassled or worked up. She’s growing up so fast all of a sudden. During this trip, I could really make out just how much she has matured in the past two years…she was an absolute trooper, a very mature and helpful young girl while still being her fun-loving giggly self.
Here is a rather blurry shot of her driving the Bumpy Car:
As for piglet, his travel experiences were primarily of the culinary kind. During this trip, he sampled most anything that was on offer and it was great to discover his likes and dislikes.
Piglet does not have a sweet tooth for sure. He tried ice creams for the first time during this trip, and he didn’t like them too much, neither the vanilla nor the chocolate flavors could entice him for more than a few sample licks.
He does gravitate towards the carbs though. He happily wolfed down however much he could of the chilli cheese toast (with chilli flakes!), garlic bread, and even was tempted by the bruschetta although he did look askance at the tomatoes on the bread. He even loved the nachos and potato chips. Salt and carb overload!!! Just like mom 🙂
Piglet also made his first trip to the beach. We went to the beautiful Taj Vivanta near Kovalam beach, and enjoyed a wonderful non-crowded beach experience. Snubnose and I escorted Piglet into the water…the expressions on his face when the water hit him were priceless…shock and awe is the phrase that slips into my mind.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t take too many photos of our trip. Piglet is super-frisky these days and it was impossible to photograph anything. Most of the photos I took during our trip were at home chilling out at my mom’s place, or shots taken one-handed while trying to hold on to Piglet and stop him from grabbing the iPhone.
Oh well, at least we had a great time 🙂
😀