KALPETTA: A carnival dedicated to the Rain Goddess! Yes, tourism entrepreneurs of the district are celebrating the Wayanad monsoon carnival, while their counterparts in the state have taken an offseason rest.Most of the resorts and hoteliers here are busy planning how to cater to their guests, including travel operators and travel writers, who will fly down from various corners to enjoy the event beginning on Friday.The monsoon tourism carnival called 'Splash', launched in 2009 under the auspices of the Wayanad Tourism Organisation (WTO), has become a prominent event in the state's tourism circuit. "Initially, we were scared as our members took the financial burden of organising the nineday carnival upon themselves," says K Raveendran, convener of 'Splash'."But the idea caught the attention of top officials in the Department of Tourism who extended us timely support," he adds."A rain carnival in an agrarian district, 'Splash' has all the paraphernalia that ensures the maximum participation by skilled rural people," he explains. This year, the main event on the WTO menu is a session of mud football which means playing football in the slush. If it rains, the event will be more interesting, says Raveendran."We also organise rural games like 'kambukayattam' (climbing the slippery tree), 'vadamvali' (tug of war), and also life skills like paddy transplantation," WTO officebearer C P Shylesh says.Rafting, rain run, fishing, angling, rowing on countrymade rafts through waterlogged paddy fields and rain trail (experiencing the rain from unique points in the mountains) are some of the interesting items awaiting rain lovers."This year, as many as 200 tour operators, including overseas ones, will participate in the business-to-business meet organised in connection with 'Splash'," he adds.According to the WTO, this is the only regular tourism carnival in the country that is dedicated to the Rain Goddess.
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