 Cardamom
House is owned and managed by a retired British physician who lives
there much of the year. The atmosphere is completely informal and
the daily activities of the house are tailored to accommodate the
individual planned programme of the guests. Cardamom House, although
off the beaten track, is closed to several major tourist
attractions. Here you can experience true unspoiled rural and
village Indian life at your own pace. Activities such as walking,
bird-watching, photography and painting, are popular but when the
spirit moves you, we help arrange trips to nearby fascinating places
such as the famous Temple City of nearby Madurai, Dindigul (Rural
Crafts tour), neighboring Kerala.
Its close proximity to
the massive mountain range of the Western Ghats and its location on
the side of one of its hills ensures that Cardamom House enjoys a
relatively cool climate compared with the host plains around.
 12
guests stay in 6 twin bedded rooms all with western style en-suite
bathrooms. All our rooms face south and overlook (monsoon dependent)
Kamarajar Lake. Four of the rooms have hot water provided by
eco-friendly solar collectors. All rooms are comfortably but simply
furnished.
At Cardamom House we take pride in the side
selection foods that we cook for our guests. Our fulltime staff of 6
prepare both non-vegetarian and vegetarian dishes encompassing both
European and Indian cuisines. All ingredients are bought freshly
each day from local markets and some are picked from our own garden.
The choice of meals depends on the availability of fresh produce and
the season of the year.
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 Tropical
fruits like papaya, mango and banana grow in our garden and when
in season, grace our tables. Bird life is abundant and numerous
species can seen. The sight of a large flock of painted storks
is something to behold whilst egrets, cranes, storks, peacocks
and kingfishers are (depending on the season) common. Big highly
coloured butterflies flit amongst the flowers. Occasionally seen
are wild animals including wild boar, mongoose, mouse deer,
chipmunks, and even leopard, black panther and lynx…. So
bring your binoculars and a camera.
A great attraction
of the house is its apparent remote location. But whilst indeed
we are some 3 miles (5 km) down a track from the busy village of
Athoor. There you will find a bank, a post office and an English
speaking doctor. In the nearby town of Dindigul (30 minutes by
car). Dindigul is also a major rail junction direct connections
to Chennai (Madras). In the historic town of Madurai (90
minutes) which home to the exquisite Meenakshi Temple, there are
excellent shops - and, should they be needed, good well equipped
medical facilities. Madurai also has a domestic airport with
direct flights to Mumbai (Bombay) and Chennai.
 So!
Remote we may be, but we are well served with excellent
facilities all within easy access. Anthoor is typical of so many
villages you will find if you take the trouble to leave the main
roads. Clustered around the small Temple dedicated to the Hindu
Deity "Kali", are shops catering to the everyday needs
of the villagers. The tiffin shop owner pours tea with unerring
accuracy from one cup to another 3 ft (1m) away without spilling
a drop! Life here is relaxed and soon you will find that you too
will slow down from the frenetic pace that is the way of life in
the West and adjust to the calmer and relaxed approach of the
villagers.
 Village
life is leisurely indeed. The creaking wooden cart laden with
farm produce trundles slowly through the market place pulled by
two oxen, their heads nodding rhythmically from side as they
walk. Sari clad ladies with brass pots on their heads "glide"
past gracefully as they wend their way home after filling them
with water from the village well. Freshly harvested rice is cut
and  then
left to dry before being winnowed by the roadside. But on
festival days the peace is shattered by Tamil music, both
traditional and from the latest cult movie blaring forth from
loudspeakers mounted on posts… no part of the village is
spared the din! In SHARP CONTRAST 3 miles (5 kilometers) away in
the fields around Cardamom House, flocks of sheep, goats, water
buffalo, cows and oxen graze peacefully in the fields. This is
true India … the India that few foreign tourists ever see.
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