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MANGALURU: Generally, newlyweds plan their honeymoon much in advance, choosing an exotic location to make it memorable. But this couple, who got married in Kerala, has decided to ride northwards along the coast due to their love for the ocean, that too with no fixed timeline or deadline.

 Lokavya Meenakshi Kurup from Kerala, a former employee of National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bengaluru, married Gomathy Shankar, a freelance behavioural and soft skills trainer in Chennai.

Lokavya tells Bangalore Mirror that they got married at an ancient temple in Palakkad in the presence of family members and close relatives and had a reception near the beach on February 6."Although we are not hardcore riders, we have been passionate about bikes and long rides and were thinking about going on this ride since two months," she says.

The big surprise came when Shankar gifted his newlywed wife Lokavya a classic Royal Enfield on their wedding day. He already has a Thunderbird of his own. This was an inspiration for them to take up the journey on two bikes, side by side.

 They reached Thiruvananthapuram on February 14, and started their journey from Kanyakumari the next day and they hope to complete this journey in Rann of Kutch at Dholavira, an archaeological site at Khadirbet in Bhachau Taluka of Kutch District.

 "We understand that it is Bansi Bhatt, 50 years peak summer and driving could be tough; but for us, it is about being together. We are not in a hurry; we are taking breaks and riding slowly, halting at sunset," she says.

 On Sunday, the couple reached the tree house at Varanashi Organic Farms at Adyanadka in Bantwal, about 50 km from Mangaluru.

 This is probably the only destination for which they moved slightly away from the coast, but a destination that they could not afford to miss."It is not that we are riding only on the highways. In fact, we are trying our best to avoid the highways, even if it means riding for longer durations.For instance, Kozhikode to Kumble is about four hours’ ride, but we took about 12 hours. We do not want to miss places during this journey. We are on a complete holiday. We eat a lot and relax. We have no deadlines to meet. Every day, we wake up and plan our day," says Shankar.

 The couple is excited as they were welcomed by Dr Srinath, Lokavya’s brother.He escorted them into Mangaluru on his Harley Davidson. Wherever they have been so far, they have received unusual attention and are in love with every moment of this epic journey.They are heading to Gokarna on Tuesday .