Freddy Mama. 80 or 8?
Freddy mama turned 80 in September & we went on an overnight trip to celebrate the landmark event. ‘We’ being K’s mama, mum, masi, K & me. Freddy Mama loves nature & K zeroed in on Oleander Farms at Karjat based on recommendations of friends who had gone there for a drive from Mumbai.
Atul Setu
The folks at the hotel suggested we take garden-view cottages as these had ground-floor rooms, which were more accessible for older folks to navigate. We went by an Uber Outstation car & hired a car for the return from a local contact given by the hotel. Luckily we had good cars & drivers both ways. We picked up K’s folks from Dadar, took the Atal Setu & then the Karjat Highway. The roads were smooth & we reached in 1.5 hours. This was perfect as a more extended drive would not suit the family elders. The journey took half an hour more for K & me as we went to Dadar from Bandra. The monsoons made the drive scenic & it was the perfect time to visit Oleander Farms.
The family elders outside their ground floor room (s). K&I took one on the upper floor
The property is vast: 2 lakes, a mini hill and lots of greenery, which was really lush thanks to the rains. We stepped out on the first evening when it began to drizzle, which brought out the children in the family elders. Mama made us pose in the rain to click pics (his finger covered the lens in most cases), masi sang Hindi film songs, and K’s mum refused to walk like a petulant child. I loved the breeze, the wind, the spattering of rain. It left one rejuvenated. It could have been romantic… in different circumstances!
The facilities were good. There were cars to take us around and umbrellas as well. The service was efficient & warm. The rooms were quite tastefully done. The food at Salt (their restaurant) – I tried the khow suey, nihari, Alfredo spaghetti, kali dal, smashed avo toast – was pretty good. Wood-fired pizzas seemed to be popular & were flying across the tables. The family elders were happy with the breakfast options, I enjoyed the benne dosa. The coffee shop good espressos & cappuccinos. We took the Le 15 Patisserie eggless hazelnut cake, which the family loves, for the occasion.
It’s fair to say that the birthday boy was quite happy. K had put in a lot of planning into the trip and the result was a break that we will all remember.
PS: We booked Oleander Farms through their website. Would strongly recommend it for a quick outing from Mumbai. Prices are comparable to Mumbai 5 star business hotels.
