Hollanders Green, by the blue

"Bheemunipatnam is probably more myth than substance, more worthy of being talked about in somebody's cool drawing room, than being ridden through...", thoughts like these irritably run through my head as I am caught up in a traffic jam on the road that winds through this sleepy little town.

I hope I will not lack for your empathy when you consider that I was just looking for some peace and quiet and a chance to hunt out some fresh sea food (and, of course a cold beer). I certainly hadn't bargained on having to clutch and de-clutch and bang on the gears for close to 15 minutes, under a hot, burning sun, sweating profusely all the while. 

The reason for the traffic jam is almost as historic as the town itself. The road that passes through it is narrow and if that wasn't enough, has a clock tower literally bang in its middle. But then, when there is a wealth of so many happy faces (and historic structures) of what bother is a traffic jam?

By the by, the jam sorts itself out, with no one hurting the venerable clock tower and finally I am in a position to park my by now very hot Bullet at the Bus Stand. The road curves to the left here and as I know from past experience, the blue and balmy sea is to the right.

No, I am not telling this story straight, so let me begin at the beginning.

I discovered Bheemunipatnam (Bheemili for everyone I know in Vizag) pretty much by serendipity when, something like 11 years back, I took a bus to it from Rushikonda (as opposed to one to Vizag) to just kill some time while gazing at the sea-fringed road. And thus, history was made.

While you excuse my mock megalomania, some key facts about Bheemunipatnam. India's second oldest municipality and allegedly the fore-runner to Vizag's position (in terms of maritime importance) on this coast, it is situated around 30 kms from Vizag on the same road that takes you to GITAM College and the now famous APTourism Resort.

Now that I have stated all that for the record, let me tell you about the road itself. As roads go, this is probably one of the longest stretches "by the beach" in India and one that twists and turns, dips and peaks and also goes straight. So while you are passing toddy palms which no one owns and coconut groves with boundaries of thorn, you have adequate reason to ride really slow, what with the blue and the green all around. There is of course the added advantage of the roar of the sea crashing on a coastline that is rich in rocky headlands and small, crescent moon shaped bays.

Bheemunipatnam is supposed to have originated in the days of the Pandavas (it is named after Bheema) and also has a couple of old temples to boost that claim. That aside, its recent history probably starts from the 16th century, when a boat load of Dutch dropped anchor with the intention of making the lovely harbour (the River Gosthani meets the Bay of Bengal here) theirs.

What followed thereafter was the establishment of a Dutch trading post, from where the galleons used to carry away" the wares of Inde". Proof of all this is has always been very much in my face: there's an old church (dating back to the 1850's) that stands mournfully amidst slanting coconut trees, a lighthouse whose light is no longer lit, a cemetery that looking positively gloomy in the evenings, and two of the most noticeable buildings in Bheemili. The Municipal Choultry (now, thankfully a preserved structure) overlooking the Bus Stand and the Port Shipping Office (currently in use as the Municipal Office) that stands besides a now sand-ravaged harbour.

Incidentally, the Municipal Office is flanked by old warehouses, with most having still intact roofs. However, quiet a few are are now just thick-built walls standing forlornly, grown over with weeds and serving as perches and nests for Parakeets and Rock Pigeons that suddenly explode in flashes of brilliant colour, even as you are getting the zoom on your camera just right.

Just besides (Bheemunipatnam, after all, is pretty small) is a rumoredly haunted cemetery called Hollanders Green. As the name indicates, it started as a resting place for the dead Dutchmen but one can see many English graves too... and and some are fairly recent, dating to the 1930's. Hollanders Green certainly makes for a poignant visit: it has the sepulchral distinction of having the oldest Christian grave in Andhra Pradesh and yes, the graves of the early Dutchmen with their ornate cenotaphs does give one a bit of the willies.

A bit away from Bheemili, on the road to Vizag is a mini Chambal, called Erra Matti Dibbalu, literally meaning Red Earth Hillocks. This place is pretty much more famous than anything else in Bheemili, thanks to the fact that any number of Tollywood songs have been picturised here. The place is a nice maze, of red earth hillocks, red sand walkways (I did manage to ride into it) and the usual Rock Pigeons and Parakeets exploding out of the ochre / red tableau framing the horizon. While these are certainly not as grand in scale as the "Wild West", they are a  wilderness -- of grottos and wind-eroded mini mesas -- nonetheless.

Which means that if you are bored of the cemetery, the ruins and whatever else, you can simply take a hike into Erra Matti Dibbalu and (bless the thought) be lost for ever from civilization.

After all, I keep trying the same, almost every year or so, whenever I have to go to Vizag.