A very significant event in 2014 for us, was saying goodbye to our faithful friend of the past 4 years - our beloved jeep. It has been an integral part of our efforts at Solaikadu, and a dependable workhorse.
Before we bought our farm in Solaikadu, little did I imagine that one day we will own a jeep. Sure, I've always found jeeps fascinating, and like most guys, I've always turned around to look at jeeps driving past. Just that I never thought I'd have a jeep myself.
Even when we first bought our farm, we were just happy to walk up the last couple of kilometers to reach our land. In fact, we thought we should continue walking up so that we get plenty of exercise, and at the same time leave the place as unpolluted as possible.
Our views started changing when, in the first "chithirai" (March-April season) banana planting season, we realized that taking 500-odd banana stumps up the hill by headload or by mules was not an easy thing. Not to mention taking up manure and other input required for our farm. That was when we realized we needed to buy a jeep. Of course, getting a good jeep was no easy task. We looked all around us - in Chennai, Dindigul, Batlagundu...and finally found this in a used-car lot in Chennai. I remember some of the immediate reactions to the jeep. I took a friend of mine with me to evaluate it at the lot; someone had taken it elsewhere and was bringing it back. As soon as my friend saw the jeep turn the corner, he said to me, "Buy it!" After we'd bought it, we took it to a workshop for sprucing it up. As soon as the garage owner saw it, he offered to buy it from us for Rs.10,000 more than we'd paid for it!
Anyway, after having it fixed (which took a lot more money than we imagined), my wife and I drove it all the way from Chennai to Oddanchatram, in the peak of summer. It was a trip to remember!
Well, these four years have flown by, and the jeep has been an important link in our work at Solaikadu. I have carried all sorts of things in it - cement bags, saplings, sand and metal, and of course, every now and then, 15-odd people. After we made the road up the last kilometer to our farm, the jeep has uncomplainingly climbed the steep jeep road.
And as the years have gone by, we realized that we needed more space to carry things, the ability to travel longer distances in better comfort, and lesser trips to the mechanic. When we finally decided to sell and put an ad in OLX, there was an immediate response from Kodaikanal. We got a good price, and I have to admit it was tough seeing someone drive away in the jeep. Well, we're sure it will serve them well in the years to come.
What has replaced the jeep in our lives, you wonder? Read about it in the next post....
Before we bought our farm in Solaikadu, little did I imagine that one day we will own a jeep. Sure, I've always found jeeps fascinating, and like most guys, I've always turned around to look at jeeps driving past. Just that I never thought I'd have a jeep myself.
Even when we first bought our farm, we were just happy to walk up the last couple of kilometers to reach our land. In fact, we thought we should continue walking up so that we get plenty of exercise, and at the same time leave the place as unpolluted as possible.
Our views started changing when, in the first "chithirai" (March-April season) banana planting season, we realized that taking 500-odd banana stumps up the hill by headload or by mules was not an easy thing. Not to mention taking up manure and other input required for our farm. That was when we realized we needed to buy a jeep. Of course, getting a good jeep was no easy task. We looked all around us - in Chennai, Dindigul, Batlagundu...and finally found this in a used-car lot in Chennai. I remember some of the immediate reactions to the jeep. I took a friend of mine with me to evaluate it at the lot; someone had taken it elsewhere and was bringing it back. As soon as my friend saw the jeep turn the corner, he said to me, "Buy it!" After we'd bought it, we took it to a workshop for sprucing it up. As soon as the garage owner saw it, he offered to buy it from us for Rs.10,000 more than we'd paid for it!
Anyway, after having it fixed (which took a lot more money than we imagined), my wife and I drove it all the way from Chennai to Oddanchatram, in the peak of summer. It was a trip to remember!
Well, these four years have flown by, and the jeep has been an important link in our work at Solaikadu. I have carried all sorts of things in it - cement bags, saplings, sand and metal, and of course, every now and then, 15-odd people. After we made the road up the last kilometer to our farm, the jeep has uncomplainingly climbed the steep jeep road.
And as the years have gone by, we realized that we needed more space to carry things, the ability to travel longer distances in better comfort, and lesser trips to the mechanic. When we finally decided to sell and put an ad in OLX, there was an immediate response from Kodaikanal. We got a good price, and I have to admit it was tough seeing someone drive away in the jeep. Well, we're sure it will serve them well in the years to come.
What has replaced the jeep in our lives, you wonder? Read about it in the next post....
interesting.tempted to come over there :-)
ReplyDeleteTempted? Give in to such good temptations....
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