Kerala, India - Munnar Tea Mueum

First port of call in Munnar

It goes without saying that there are many tea-related things you can do in Munnar. Experience Kerala, from which we hired the car, has arranged for an itinerary on places that the driver would take us to. I was not interested in all the places but was drawn to a riverside hiking through tea plantations to Attukal Waterfalls which was supposed to be in our itinerary on our first day in Munnar. 

But Jitesh did not seem to know what we were talking about and I was beginning to be pissed-off with him. We were lucky that our hotel was in the middle of a tea plantation so we could go on a tour of it later if we wanted to. So, reluctantly, we scrapped the riverside hiking and instead asked him to take us to the Tata Tea Museum.

The Tea Museum was located in the TATA Nallathanni Estate, just under a kilometre away from Munnar town centre. On the way, we passed it and as I have mentioned before, it certainly won't win the Most Enchanting Town in India competition anytime soon.



Tuk-tuks and tea stalls

Munnar town centre

On the way to the museum - Eucalyptus trees

We only had one hour but it turned out that that was just the right amount of time that you need. The museum is located in a set of buildings best descibed as rustic. It consists of several rooms displaying photos and exhibits relating to tea planting in Munnar and the colonial age, with random pieces including analogue telephones, bathtubs and an assortment of embalmed animals' heads. More significant exhibits included the original tea roller, the 'Rotorvane,' dating back to 1905 and the 'Pelton Wheel' used in the power generation plant in the 1920s. There was also a short video showing the evolution of tea planting in Munnar and how tea was first planted in Munnar by the pioneers. Sitting in that darkened musty room reminded me of my first cinema experiences ages ago back when PJ State was the most happening place in town.



Cool redefined

Then it was on to the factory/tea processing unit where there was a guided tour on the processing of tea. We were first taken to a small area where the tea leaves were sorted but it was complete mayhem and chaos with more and more (mostly local) tourists joining us. We decided to leave the group and made our own way. The other staff members were kind enough to show us the equipment and the tea leaves in various stages, probably because we were the only foreign tourists there. One of them even let Snufkin stoke the fire in the furnace, where they were trying to demonstrate how the boiler was powered by firewood. I think that kinda made Snufkin's day.

Sorting the tea leaves

Tea rolling machines

No, this is not child labour

Of course, at the end of it, you get to purchase a variety of tea at the TATA Tea sales outlet, for what is a museum without a touch of commercialism. Outside, it was starting to drizzle. The free tea offered looked very inviting and I was keen to let Snufkin get his very first taste of tea. Alas, it was green tea and he only needed to take a sip to decide that it was not his cup of tea.


Note:

Address:
Tata Tea Museum
Nalluthanni Estate
Munnar, Idukki district
Ph: +91 4865 230561

Opening hours: 10am-5pm Tue-Sun

Entrance fees: Adult: ₹75, Child: ₹35