At the fag end of summer vacations I received an invite from Namah Resorts in Corbett. Located in Ramnagar, district Nainital Namah Resorts is a luxurious abode surrounded by Sitabani hills and overlooking river Kosi.
I was travelling with both my daughters and Namah Resorts seemed a good option to have mom-daughter time, especially with International Yoga Day round the corner as all of us have been practising yoga for quite some time. Seated in a Volvo we were ready for a joy ride with many other blogger friends keeping us company, some of whom I had met earlier and others whom I knew virtually and then some more whom I had met for the first time. It was a fun ride and the Volvo was comfortable with munching and music and jokes and introductions taking up most of the time we were at Namah around 7. As soon as our bus entered the parking lot inside Namah, I heard a melodious musical rendition and was pleasantly surprised to be welcomed like really wanted guests – ‘atithi devo bhavah’ I said to myself and smiled. Soon all of us were dispatched to our cosy and comfortable rooms with awesome views of the 9 acre (almost) property and around 7:30 pm we joined the special regional dance performances by the local troop at the huge garden just outside Pratha – the restaurant, enjoying the performance with evening tea and pakoras.
Dancers treated us to wonderful Kumaoni and Garhwali performances
Sitting in the garden, with sweet music flowing in the air, nimble feet dancing to the folk music, the moon too seen amongst the audience and the skyline replete with trees and mountains of Sitabani the entire experience just freshened us up. Ah! What a welcome break it was from the city life where all we hear is honking and see concrete skyscrapers hogging all the limelight in the sky.
I am still transported to this wonderful evening, all I have to do is close my eyes and think about it – the effect of Namah is such
We were so delighted and involved in the performance that we joined the dancers, learning to tap to the folk song, trying to emulate their dance steps.
After a sumptuous dinner at Pratha, all three of us called it a day.
Yoga enthusiasts trying their hand at Jal Neti kriya
Early morning on June 20th was our session with the yoga expert, Tarun who taught us the basics of Kunjal Kriya and Jal Neti and then we also did some Pranayams and were all set for the International Yoga Day which we celebrated on June 21st by doing Kunjal and Jal neti and paranayams in the huge garden just beside the pool overlooking the Kosi river and the mountain range of Sitabani hills.
It was a wonderful experience to do yoga in the fresh and crisp air of the resort which has many mango trees laden with ripe mangoes which is a beautiful sight to behold and then there are gorgeously green 100 bonsai trees which don the entire property.
There are about 100 bonsais in the resort adding to the raw beauty of Nature surrounding the resort
I wanted to believe that life is just made of such a simple and yet so fulfilling regime that connected me to myself and mother Nature and actually it did for a few days till I was the guest at Namah. No pressures, no deadlines, no pollution, no traffic jams, no phone calls – we three were one with nature.
After enjoying the yoga session and having a healthy breakfast at the buffet at Pratha we three decided to take a walk around the property. Now what caught our attention was the pool which had a splendid view of the hills and then without even discussing all three of us just started walking towards our room as if we understood that we are going to get our costumes and getting into the pool.
My little girls enjoying themselves in the pool with a splendid view
And that is what we did, some swimming, some water polo and then just gazing into the hills endlessly thinking may be a tiger or an elephant could be looking at us from a distance (nah! that thought didn’t cross our minds for two reasons – first we were too busy enjoying with each other and then you don’t really go to Corbett with the thought of only seeing the tiger, while if you spot one it is like cherry on the cake but then it is also about the whole experience and then for me the thought that the tigers are safe and are there in the jungle so close to me is gratifying. After all, we have just so many tigers left)
The evening was well spent with all the friends playing games both real and virtual. Then we decided to hit the bed early as I had to get up early for the yoga session on the International Yoga Day. We enjoyed yoga sessions and I also tried Jal Neti for the first time there under the guidance of our Yoga teacher Tarun who was specially called in by Namah Resorts for the International Yoga Day. We as a family have been practising yoga for some time now and doing yoga in such a wonderful and natural surrounding was a fulfilling experience. My wellness quotient really shot up and I was feeling happy inside out. Indeed, Namah is a super awesome Wellness Retreat so close to Delhi yet a world apart.
Beautiful sights like these are aplenty in Namah.
After breakfast, we all played treasure hunt, all planned and executed by the Iffort team, now this was not the usual treasure hunt but a game with a tech angle to it. These guys had hidden QR codes all over the property and we were supposed to find them, and tweet about them and of course the first person to do that got the prize. With 10 questions in all and with a phone that was heavily loaded with photos and videos and was quite slow (you see the phone did not do yoga with me and wasn’t as active) I managed to win the last question which was a special dessert by Chef Mukesh and was totally customized to my kids’ liking. Let me confess, I had given up hope of winning, let alone winning I thought that I was never in the game as my phone was so slow but it was the sheer determination of my daughters that we won the 10th question. They ran about and located the last QR code which we scanned and won the special dessert as the prize.
Special dessert that we won during the Treasure Hunt
Chef Mukesh who is a cheerful person and always treats his guests to great food prepared wonderful chocolate balls for the little girls who love chocolate, of course I shared this bit of information with him. We shared the dessert with all the friends some of them who were lucky and won other prizes like special drinks, Corbett souvenir, spa sessions etc.
It was the sportsman spirit in my lovely little angels that prompted them to share their prize with everyone. As I write, I realize that may be adults need to take a cue and learn from the little ones the act of ‘sharing is caring’; no offence to anyone but if we only learn to share and care everything will fall in the right place and the world would be a more happy place to live in. Only if we share such an idea, we could have heaven on earth. Why wait to die and go to heaven which no one has reported exists, why not create one for ourselves here and now?
We also had the pleasure of listening to Imran Khan, a naturalist who has researched a lot in the Corbett. He told us that under Article 51a of the Constitution of India it is the fundamental duty of every citizen to save the tigers. I heard about it the first time and was left wondering, we as the citizens of India are mostly worried about our rights, only if we paid a little more attention to achieve a balance between the duties and rights as a citizen it could make a big difference and we could be more happy as the citizens of the nation.
The 30 ft wide tree that has witnessed the story of bachelor of Powalgarh
Khan also apprised us of the various species of birds that are found in Corbett and some of the birds like wild crested kingfisher is exclusive to Corbett. He also told us about how tiger is important for human survival, sometimes I wonder is a human being really as intelligent as has been proved? If that were correct then why do we have to tell this ‘intelligent’ species to save trees, save water , say no to pollution and many more such basic things. This question of mine was to myself too and I had no answer.
We all were amazed with the kind of presentation Khan made in the amphitheatre of Namah which proved that this resort is multifaceted and is not only a leisure and wellness abode but is a great option for MICE too. It was indeed beautiful to talk about nature amidst nature.
All set for the jungle safari
On our 3rd at the resort day we also went for a jeep safari inside the jungle, for both my daughters it was first jungle safari. They loved every bit of it and adhered to the basic rules of safari like no loud clothes, no talking in the jungle, and no getting down from the vehicle while in the jungle. We did spot some wild boars, some deer and langurs and the jeep ride from Namah to Corbett was a stunning ride on the highway.
The stay at Namah was an experience that we enjoyed together as a family, it is a place where you can relax, rejuvenate and connect with yourself and nature.
For reservations and more information: Namah Resorts
Coins and Maps 