‘Dialed Down’ Camping with CampMonk
I hadn’t planned particularly anything for 2018 new year’s eve and then I got this mail from CampMonk calling for acoustic performers for a camping event they were organizing at Nachekuppam Tamil Nadu. Well, that piqued my interest and submitted my application with a small portfolio that I have. Though I have played at bars and cafes, I knew this was going to be a different setup, a more engaging experience with the audience and was supposed to be more of an ‘informal entertainment.’ My happiness knew no bound (such a cliched ‘expression’, I know!) when I was chosen for the performance. Performance for two nights (30th, 31st night) at an exquisite location for what campmonk guys term as ‘dialed down’ experience, away from the busy city life into the quiet woods sounded like ‘the way’ to start off 2018. Well, this is my short account on that experience.
The journey started on 30th afternoon from Bangalore. Steering through the mighty traffic of Bangalore I headed towards Tamil Nadu and yada yada yada, after a journey covering about 85 kilometers which encompassed scary deserted, twisted road guardian’ed by gigantic rocky hills, a couple google maps navigation mishaps, memorable encounters with local tamilians (Thanks to my 4 years of education at Tamil Nadu), I reached the venue and it was already time to start rocking as I could see the fellow campers sitting around the campfire. The campsite was at such a location that it was almost unbelievable. A small valley surrounded by hills, with an open space and thanks to the perfectly timed ‘lunar cycle’, it was a full moon cloudless night. Tents were already set up and I instantly realized that I was going to have a time of my life.
I sat beside the campfire took out my guitar, adjusted my harmonica in my neckholder and started off with the classic, ‘Knocking on Heaven’s Door’. With the lovely fellow campers joining me in it went for about two hours. I mostly played my favorites and I was immensely happy to find classic rock lovers and the beatlemaniacs amongst. After about two hours of strumming and singing we headed for a quiet ‘dialed down’ dinner and it was lovely. Most of the fellow campers had arranged their own drinks (it was obviously not possible to get a liquor shop there). Well lucky for me, I got a chance to sip ‘local tamizh rum’, stronger than the ‘Old Monk’ and was tempted by the caretaker to take a drag of bidi. I am not a smoker but I must admit, I yielded to it and believe me, in such an ambiance it felt totally worth it. With a trekking planned for the next morning we went to our respective tents. As I laid down to sleep I couldn’t stop thinking about the whole unexpected plan that had unfolded in front of me welcoming for the new year, the open valley, the campfire, the music, the trees and the moon-lit sky!
31st morning started with a small trek in one of the surrounding hills. We passed by a small cute treehouse, stopped by a hot water spring and reached the top where a beautiful Lord shiva temple was there. Looking down the valley where we had come from gave a wonderful feeling and made us more appreciative of the beauty that lay there untouched far from the crying rat-race of human civilizations. It’s one of those moments where you feel like you are done with the modern city life and want to live as a recluse in the woods. It’s one of those moments where the romantic you easily overpowers the logical you but somehow you are aware of the chains and bounds that are eventually going to call you back from the ‘romantic land’. We climbed down the hill to a lake and walked by the mango orchard to our camping site for the breakfast.
After a day of relaxation, leafing through some pages of your favorite book while laying on the hammock, a couple rounds of playing shuttle and cricket with the kids of fellow campers, roaming around in the valley, we could feel the eve we all had been waiting for was coming nearer by the moment. We set up the campfire and started chatting in our own little groups, friends we had made in a day. By the afternoon I had managed to pick up some regional songs which had been requested the previous night and was all psyched for the moment to start.
We all sat by the campfire and I started playing music. People started joining in and it was soon like our own little orchestra trying to harmonize with the music inside each of us. I played ‘twinkle twinkle little star’ for a sweet shy little girl and her happy wide smile has been one of the highlights. I tried to play in the line of what my dear fellow campers were enjoying the most. I could see the expression of nostalgia in the eyes of ‘high performer IT guys’ ,who once had a band, when I played tunes by The Beatles, Eagles. After a short dinner break we gathered around and continued on our celebration. Singing ‘what a wonderful world’ by Louis Armstrong made me realize the power of those words: green trees, red roses, skies of blue, clouds of white, friends confessing love for each other, curious children who were going to know much more about this world than us. Everything felt perfectly timed. Everyone joined on in the song ‘Leaving on a jet plane’ by John Denver and all of us knew that our dear lover was the manifestation of the memories we had made and were going to cherish forever. We wished for world peace and sang ‘imagine’, we went a little loco screaming at the top of our lungs for La Bamba and there were many more.
All in all, it was a hell of an experience and honestly I couldn’t even think of a better way to start off the new year. It turned out to be a perfect way to be close to the nature, let go free of yourself and enjoy the moment to the fullest.
Thanks to CampMonk for this monstrous arrangement!!
Happy New Year 2018!!
