| |
They
are only following the footsteps of legions of travellers from
Roman times that have laid foot on what is now a veritable melting
pot. The Arabs, Dutch, Portuguese, English,
the Phoenicians, the Chinese and even Persian Jews have either
passed through or made Kerala their home, contributing to a
culture - though remaining resolutely proud of its own traditions
and its tolerance - is so much the richer for those intrusions.
Ground zero for that is Kochi or Cochin as it used to be known
before and the microcosm of it all is Fort Kochi, an island
that is reachable by ferry from the mainland. There a Jewish
quarter co-exists alongside age-old palaces of the mainly Hindu
kings and a spice market with predominantly Muslim merchants
illustrating religious and cultural tolerance for any visitor.
Vasco da Gama’s gravestone can be found at St Francis Church,
not forgetting the Chinese fishing nets on the beach that have
not only become Fort Kochi’s landmark but also ubiquitous
on postcards. As a tourist magnet, the synagogue in Mattancherry
built in 1568 has also attracted vendors and touts but nothing
detracts from the calm of the synagogue and the beauty of its
handpainted Chinese tiles, none of which are said to be alike.
Only in Kochi would you find a Dutch palace on Bolghatty that
was since used as a British residence and now keeps its mannered
air as a hotel.
|
|
Walk down the narrow
alleyways of the Spice Road and get an olfactory overlaod from
the cavernous dealing rooms carrying every spice you can possibly
imagine. Once the centre of the black pepper, cardamom and cashew
trade, you can still watch trucks offload their precious wares
at warehouses on every corner.
Nature has showered Kerala with abundant rivers, forests and
greenery, so there’s lots to do if your interests lie in
that area. Hire a houseboat to drift down the waterways of Alleppey
and Asia’s largest man-made lake, the Vembanad lagoon.
Or make the trek for elephant, game or bird watching to nature
reserves such as Thekkady and then rejuvenate in a plantation
bungalow amidst tea plantations in Munnar. All those waterways
also mean that seafood is plentiful – it is one of Kerala’s
largest exports these days – and cheap. Kerala cuisine
which also incorporates all its influences and uses fresh vegetables
and seafood in delicate tasting dishes, is now making headway
in the culinary capitals of the world. In London, for example,
thre restaurant Quilon has made a name for itself among the
city’s foodies.
Surf seekers have always been drawn to the beaches of Kovalam
and the lesser-known Varkala, but Kerala’s beaches are
many and wondrous, and best of all, still untouched. As visitors
to beaches would notice, the coconut tree is
|
|
everywhere and put
to good use: the flesh for cooking, the water to drink and to
ferment, the fibre to make coir and the remaining for handicrafts
or worst case, fuel.
Those looking for a culture fix can also have their fill in
Kerala. As a melting pot with so many cultures, it would also
follow that numerous religions co-exist and one can watch them
celebrate in spectacular ways. While museums and palaces show
a time gone by, temples dot the present landscape as do churches
– Kerala has one of the biggest Christian denominations
in the country – and mosques. The Thrissurpuram festival
is a grandstanding affair with rows of caparisoned elephants
and over a million visitors while many church feasts are reason
for non-stop fireworks.
When all that travel wears you out or if you want to rejuvenate
yourself from stresses at home, head to the many resorts and
health centres offering traditional Ayurveda to put in a blissful
state or cure your ailments.
While it is easy to get to airports in Kochi and the state’s
capital Trivandrum from any other Indian city, there are now
direct flights via the Gulf and South East Asia too. For your
accomodation, there are choices of sprawling resorts, boutique
and heritage hotels and in a recent trend, homestays in heritage
houses for a true taste of hospitality, Kerala style. |
