My First Trip to Tiruvannamalai: Travelogue, Food & Girivalam

Disclaimer: You will not find spiritual/religious info in this blog post so do not read further if you’re looking for that. In the first place, I wasn’t curious to visit TVM but still agreed to go because I didn’t want to let my dad travel alone with his poor health. He was diagnosed with dimorphic anemia around the full moon time but was adamant about watching the mountain flame! But, BUT… Surprisingly, I fell in love with this place after being there for a day and already am planning to visit again. (But the time this post goes live, I must have visited again!)

Though I had visited this town with my parents in childhood, this was my first ‘proper’ trip and hence the title. This blog post is about our November visit. (During Girivalam!) So yes, though dad wanted to see the flame, I went there only to explore food and the greenery! (And to say hi to some monkeys maybe!)

My Outfit + What I packed?: It was a quick trip; we were planning to return the next day so I tried to keep the baggage as light as possible. I dressed up in a high neck black polka dotted top and a flared skirt (Forever 21) and I carried with me a white striped tee & black thick leggings (H&M) and also a simple wine jumpsuit for leisure/comfort wear. (must during traveling!) I also carried my moisturizers, contacts, body lotion, sunglasses, and my favorite olive beanie! I left the DSLR at home (bad idea!) as I wasn’t willing to add more weight to my bag!

Conversation during the travel 

Dad: (in a boasting tone) When I was young, I used to cycle alone to Tiruvannamalai many times. And to Tirupathi, more than thirty times from Chennai.. you know in what? A bicycle! 

Me: Really? Solo?!

Dad: Yes. The very thought of ‘I could do this’ made me feel very positive those days! My kind of ego boost. I cycled all over India.

Me: Great. Even I plan to solo travel, dad. I’ll be doing it soon.

Dad: Oh! Did you come across this news on cannibalistic men in India?

Me: WHY WOULD YOU EVEN SAY THIS NOW?! I just told you I wanted to solo travel and you’re discouraging me already. Don’t be a bad parent.

Dad: You’re a girl.

Me: Okay. I think you should sleep for a while. It’s going to take a few more hours to reach.

So this is how my trip started – with my dad telling me scary stories in hopes I’d quit my plans to solo travel. He actually wanted to go alone for Girivalam. After a huge conversation argument, I decided to accompany him since I didn’t want him to travel alone. (He’s hitting his 70s) He agreed but didn’t really like the idea of taking me with him (which he told me later, like 10 times!).

Dinner at Akash Inn

We traveled in the afternoon and reached there by late evening. It takes 4-5 hours from Chennai approx. (You could take a cab or a bus.) After checking in to the place my parents suggested, which is in the main and so noisy (That’s why I don’t want to write about it. Next stay will be somewhere else!) I went for a walk with my dad to dine somewhere good. That’s when we came across this hotel called Akash Inn. (Opposite to Ramanashram).

Akash Inn has a restaurant on the ground floor and this is what we had for dinner. (attaching the pic below!) I must tell you the food is quite inexpensive in Tiruvannamalai. The quality is excellent (fresh produce!). I had these for dinner – Cream of tomato soup, Pasta in red sauce and Stir-fried vegetables in soy sauce. Dad – Veg pulao (It was less than 400 INR for all these)

It was late at night after we finished our dinner, so we took an auto to our hotel. The auto men here are experts pretending neither to know the routes nor to know your hotel so that they can go all around the town before dropping you and charge a hefty amount. So I always suggest you be on google maps.

Breakfast at Akash Inn

I wanted to go to this restaurant called ‘The Dreaming Tree’ which I had googled earlier (rated no.1) before we started the trip but unfortunately, we couldn’t locate it. (then figured out it’s close to the Ramanashram too. A good 5-minute walk.) So we ended up going to Akash Inn again. (I wasn’t disappointed though because the menu at this place is quite interesting. In addition to south Indian food, they serve a variety of Italian/American cuisine as well)

I ordered toast with butter, oats with milk and a bowl of fruits (I asked them to papaya-proof it). Dad had masala dosa and Idly. Everything tasted so good (and fresh), especially the strawberry jam served with my toast. Totally, it was a good breakfast. Paid 315 INR for both. The staff was very helpful. 10/10 for the service.

Girivalam

Around 11 AM, my dad already made friends with an auto man and he agreed to take us for a Girivalam. We weren’t planning to get down at the lingams so he charged us 350 INR. If you’re going to get down at each temple (or lingam) then they will usually be charging somewhere around 400-500 INR.

The person (Vijay) who took us was very genuine, friendly (drop a comment below for his contact number) and kept on talking to us about the town – on how the sadhus on the street (the red-clad men!) get free food on time and they live on the streets, passing time talking to each other. I spotted many of them and I was also curious to have a conversation with them, but being photosensitive, I didn’t dare to get out of the auto. (I’m definitely trying to talk to them next time!)

But I loved looking around the town – the clean roads, trees, the shady path, and the monkeys!! (Unfortunately, I spotted only a few) The auto man said they don’t come out during monsoon/winters much as they get plenty of fruits and food inside the forest. It’s only during the summer (draught) they decide to come into the human residence and make their lives hard (by stealing the food from the devotees, etc.) Surprisingly, hearing this didn’t make me feel bad for the humans. I’d be happy if a monkey steals a bag of food from me, as long as he decides not to run away with my cell phone.

Some nice biryani in TVM!

Dad was a bit tired after returning to our hotel from Girivalam, so I decided to hang out alone for lunch – the idea which didn’t sit well on my dad’s mind. But I still managed to convince him and left the hotel. I went to this restaurant called TN 25 Ambur Biryani which served one of the finest biryanis I’ve had outside till date – a combination of mildly spiced samba rice and tender meat. It wasn’t on the spicier side but the overall flavor was so appetizing.

I wanted to try fish but they sadly didn’t have salmon so I settled with Tangri Kebab for the sides. Again, the kebab was well cooked but tender. The lunch was for less than 300 INR again and I loved it! (The quality of food is better compared to what I usually get in Chennai. No offense). When I was almost finishing my meal, my dad surprised me by visiting the restaurant and I was like – ‘I didn’t even tell you where I was going, stop stalking me, dad!’. He didn’t feel like eating; had vanilla ice cream and then we left to our room.

(Being a spiritual town, there aren’t many places here that serve good non-veg food, but this one is an exception. So don’t hesitate to visit if you cannot thrive on a vegetarian diet if your family dragged you in for a holy trip!)

Dinner at The Dreaming Tree

Finally, we reached the place where I wanted to go! The Dreaming Tree is a famous restaurant in TVM which has elegant French decor (I spotted mini Hindu statues as well). The restaurant was really calm, had a mountain view and we were the only Indians seated there when we went for dinner. This place mainly attracts the tourist crowd and the staff was helpful. The people here, I tell you, are very friendly and this restaurant is custom-made for loners like me. If I happen to visit there next time, I’m going to settle there for a good few hours with a book! (You could also go as a group)

Coming to the food – I ordered the Buddha bowl which is an innovative idea. It has layers of food – cooked brown rice at the bottom, stir-fried cauliflower, cooked chickpeas, green peas, and Tofu in the middle, peanut sauce and roasted peanut on the top. They also decorated the bowl with raw veggies like spiral carrots, beetroots, spinach, and mandarin. The bowl looked colorful and I ended up eating everything except for the raw tomato and beets which aren’t my favorites. The meal was very filling (heavy on protein) and I didn’t feel hungry during my travel back to Chennai. I’d definitely recommend this restaurant to everyone who visits the town.

A few more pictures at the dreaming tree..

It was 12 past midnight when we returned to Chennai. My dad spoke to me on how I should quit my plans to solo travel on the way back too. Sometimes, it’s really interesting to hear him talk, though it’s not that I’ll always obey what he says. Overall, my dad is happy about the trip. He is content seeing the flame and didn’t complain about not visiting the temples. And me – I loved the trip for the food and for how the place felt!

I wish I could settle down in a place like this – pollution free, full of greenery and most importantly, peaceful. I’ll keep you updated with my travelogue part-2 super soon! 

Have you been to Tiruvannamalai? Where did you love to visit/eat/stay? Share your experiences below! I’d love to read!