Set amidst luscious palms with a magnificent view of Cochin harbour is the glorious Vivanta by Taj Malabar. The heritage wing awaited us and in true Kerala fashion – without any fuss – we were shown to our room. Soon enough all the senior hotel members arrived- all to say hello to my father, a frequent visitor and suddenly after my Dad made the introductions- Aditya and I were also welcomed , in true Taj fashion , as family!

The rooms are modern, spacious and comfortable. The Heritage rooms with their gorgeous view of the bay and the balcony’s are easily the best rooms in the hotel! We quickly freshened up and headed to Pepper, the all day restaurant for lunch! The buffet was wonderful. I am not a fan of buffets, but this buffet had not only a wide selection but the taste of the different cuisines was also authentic- a refreshing change from buffets which often either have a limited selection , or only focus on one type of cuisine.

What I loved about this hotel was also their tea service which happened every evening where tea, cakes and some snacks were offered to all their guests on the lawn while you could watch the sun set in the bay. This is complimentary and from tasty, strong south Indian coffee, to coconut water, green tea and even the cappuccino – they give you your choice of beverage and always have some tasty snacks. after a long day of sightseeing this was always a high point in the evening!

And then ofcourse there is the Jiva Spa. With it’s traditional Ayurvedic massages and services- this Jiva Spa looked after the wellness of the guest completely. A session was not just limited to an hour. The session consisted of a consultation with an Ayurvedic doctor, treatments, massages and a follow up. It is not surprising therefore that people from across the world come here for 10 and 15 days for weight loss and wellness Ayurvedic programs at the Jiva Spa.

With an eternity pool that almost dissolves in to the bay and in the midst of the swaying palm trees and silence of nature- it’s easy to get lost in the magnificence of Kerala, the beautiful serenity, the meditative calm and the glorious beauty of God’s own country.

It was good to be home.

Best Time To Travel-: Winter… else Kerala does get very hot during the summer… December , Jan and Feb are ideal unless of course you are like my husband and love watching the glorious Kerala monsoon in June and July where the trees come alive…. (but you can do little else!)

Cost-:$200 onwards. But remember HERITAGE ROOMS- and you MUST TRY THE JIVA SPA!

Nostalgia :
Nostalgia Creations is a leading Wedding and Fashion Photographer based in COCHIN, KERALA but travels anywhere to capture weddings, Fashion and other events. The photojournalistic quality of his wedding and Fashion photographs, makes each photograph precious and memorable for years to come. Be it wedding photography, Fashion portfolios, portraits, stage shows or entertainment-based events, our candid wedding photography on your marriage, always gets you an insight from an inner circle. We assure you, Each of our photograph has a story to tell.

PLEASE NOTE MY CONTACTS :
Nostalgia Photography
nostalgiacreation.com
http://www.nostalgiacreation.com/
Contacts : 09400683582
Email : info@nostalgiacreation.com

08:00. After having chai and savor doughnut at street stall, finally met yoga teacher here and go to his studio for morning lesson.

Cute studio and his dog sleeps during entire lesson.

He is the most spiritual yoga teacher whom I met during this yoga trip. During 2 hours lesson, we did just 3 asana. Rest of time is his spiritual lecture. This Mar is last month for him to teach yoga. He is going to Himalaya for a while and after that, he will be in silence meditation. Never listen and never talk. Super serious.

After lesson, back to guest house for shower. Miss breaky time but wonderful owner prepare the breakfast with chai only for me. So kind.

11:45. Cross the harbor again to go to the last Biennale venue in main island.

12:20. Local restaurant which guest house owner recommend. South Indian veg thali with banana leaf plate!!! Great. So crowded with local mid to upper class people. Only Rs100. 2 bucks.

The waiter ask me “hot or cold water?” Hot means this pink drink. This is Ayurvedic herbal infusion tea. I had this drink with meal in Ashram too.

I find out when you finish the meal ( thali is as much as you want meal. The waiters keep giving you food on plate), you hold the leaf as finish sign.

13:20. Last venue. Really beautiful maintained old hall. I enjoy the art pieces here a lot.

This is my fav local artist painting.

I do not like the art piece itself particularly but I like this concept about Indian history to accept all the religion. I feel “acceptance” is big keyword to understand why India is like this now.

This is why I love India. The container boxes of art pieces are just left in the floor of the venue. They do not seek perfection but know what is important.

Walk around Main Street in town. So many huge jewelry shops. Usually Big outdoor fashion Ad is jewelry or sally.

Sun is so strong outside. Escape to chain coffee shop. With AC and almost ten times more expensive than local tea shop, here is middle class young people’s place.

People are exposed to globalization. I think this Proactive Rs3000 is soo expensive even though for middle class people.

16:00. After going back to Fort Cohin by ferry, check Australian artist painting on the wall. This is interesting concept and place to display.

17:00. Stop in Fort Cochin institute arty cafe. Their Ayurvedic syrup soda is fantastic.

20:00. Last night dinner in Cochin should be fish curry. This Trip Adviser good review restaurant’s taste is good. But not sure this is really local flavor. Bit taste too Caucasian flavor.

m

Since I do not have any pictures referring to this song I took the liberty and turned the headline into “…when children’s eyes are smiling…” to match the 2 photographs which I love.

And you? What do you think?

Have a good start of yet another week.

From me to you

Carina

On my first day of exploring, I headed over on to Fort Kochi. What first struck me was the amount of street art and graffiti visible from the moment I arrived. As it turned out, this was no coincidence. Cochin was playing host to India's first ever Biennale. With a Canadian couple, I decided to check out some of the exhibitions. When planning my trip, I hadn't factored in visiting a modern art exhibition whilst in India, but it was still very enjoyable (I'm no Brian Sewell, so won't attempt any kind of analysis of the work I saw!). What I discovered was that Kerala and Cochin in particular has a tradition of promoting local, modern artists, resulting in this Biennale which was hosting not just Indian artists, but a global array of work.

People are always keen to talk about India's economic development and modernisation, so it was good to see (as a sometime creative) that there is also modernisation within the cultural sector, and the majority of Indians walking round the exhibitions suggested that young indians are embracing this (if sometimes a bit too literally – never have I seen artwork in a gallery setting touched so often!)

The rest of Fort Kochi is a relaxed maze of little streets with little shops, homestays and cafes. The atmosphere was serenely laid back in comparison to a lot of the tourist hotspots I've ventured into. Whether this stays the same as more and more foreign tourists discover Kerala (up until about 10 years ago, the tourism was almost completely domestic), but I hope so. Wandering along the coastline and watching the locals using their enormous Chinese finishing nets and chatting to waiters in quiet street side cafes, I felt like a welcome addition to something that was already ticking along fine. This is in contrast to other places where I've felt like, in crude terms, like a walking $/£/€. While i can completely understand why this is the case (some of the coastal regions for instance completely shut down and disappear in the low season as it is the sole income source), it was refreshing to come to somewhere that you could relax in while and yet still see a way of life existing around and without you.

As I didn't know how long I would be staying in Cochin before heading further south, I had decided to stay on the 'mainland'. This meant that to access the main area of interest in Cochin, Fort Kochi, I would have to take a passenger ferry which departed every 10 minutes or so from the end of my road. In the end, this turned out to be something of a bonus. The views from the boat as it journeyed between the different peninsulas were fantastic and the breeze was a welcome bit of relief – Kerala is HOT! My favourite part of the ferry trips though, was the people watching. The ferry is the only efficient way of getting between the different parts of the city, so is used by everyone: tourists, school children, families and, as I learnt, commuters.

Ernakulam is the bustling, urbanised part of Kochin, Fort Kochi and the other islands are the peaceful, picturesque tourist centres. Unsurprisingly then, many Indians work on the islands but live on the cheaper mainland. On one journey back home I met Asif, a 23 year old from Delhi who had moved to Cochin when he was a teenager and sold hand-made musical instruments. After chatting all the way back on the boat, we went for a beer together. After exchanging stories about our lives, we both couldn't help but laugh at how different our lives were. What was striking about Asif's “choices” and how his life had turned out was how much, like so many people in India and around the world, he was almost entirely a victim or product of circumstances.\

I've had numerous conversations back in the UK about what I refer to as the global postcode lottery (ie where you are born having an almost irreversible impact on everything from your standard of living and prospects to your religion and music taste). It's one thing to experience feelings of compassion and injustice by looking at slums or even just the homeless population of your own country. It's quite another to meet and talk to someone properly about quite how removed their life is to yours. What was most humbling of all, was how upbeat and positive Asif was about his life. His young family had recently secured a permanent place to live (having previously slept on the streets), he had dreams of one day owning his instrument shop so as to ensure he could afford to send his children to school. At this stage, I'm sure I'm supposed to talk about how it made me think about how fortunate I am (and you are!) and so on, but that's not what I want this blog, or even my point to be about. It was merely a pleasure to meet Asif, to share stories as two guys in our 20s who were enjoying our lives and thinking about what we would do in the future.

Form Cochin, I headed south to Kollam and organised a trip into the celebrated Keralan backwaters. Due to budget and time constraints, I opted for a half day trip in a traditional long boat, rather than a cruise in one of the houseboats (maybe another time, when i'm not travelling solo!) This turned out to be a good choice. The weather is oppressively hot in the back waters and, with an average speed of about 3mph (the boat was powered by a man with a stick), there was no breeze to cool you down. On the flip side, the smaller boat allowed me access to the more remote areas of the back waters, being able to cruise through active towns that live and live off the waters. In a few short hours, I encountered a man diving and collecting mussels by hand, saw shrimp farms and a variety of herbs and spices and other vegetation – who knew pineapples grew like that!

The trip was soundtracked by the local Adhan. Due to location, there was no minaret for this to be done from, but the industrious locals had improvised and hung speakers from tall palm trees. It lent the entire experience a cinematic quality. Overall, it was one of favourite experiences thus far. I found the level of self sufficiency and collaboration demonstrated by these communities really inspiring, and to see it this close, without having to arrive as part of a busload of tourists made it all the more rewarding.

From Kollam, I was due to head north to Alleppey. However, one of my companions on the boat trip informed me that, having now been on a boat, there may not be that much for me to do in Alleppey unless I wanted to do it again. More importantly, he became the 3rd person in a week to tell me about Varkala, a beach resort in the south of Kerala. While sat waiting for my bus to Alleppey to depart, I decided that I wanted to give Indian beaches another proper chance (after Goa), so hopped off the bus and onto another one heading south to Varkala.

Posted with Blogsy

somewhere in Nottinghill Gate, London

little light in a darkish corner

Whilst I will be in my kitchen cooking for next weeks postings I leave you with just a few visual little treats (and yes, we both miss the Season in the UK).

close to home

A charming little church-yard off Kensington High Street, London

Tuscan window boxes

Have a peaceful, happy and relaxing week-end.

From me to you

Carina

Ceylon Frogmouth or Sri-lankan Frogmouths are found in the western ghats of South India and Sri Lanka. They are nocturnal birds and are found in forest habitats. Frogmouths generally roost on the branches in the forest, their habitat is dense tropical forest, these birds resemble dried leaves making them extremely difficult to locate.

This picture was shot at Tattekad (Kotthamangalam forest area), 80 kms from Cochin, India. I found it extremely challenging to photograph these birds mainly because of the low light condition and the birds look like dried leaves! A tripod or a monopod comes handy to photograph frogmouths or one should have a wide open aperture (low aperture lens). This was shot handheld at 1/25 shutter speed and f5.6 with a 1600 ISO.

Joan Nathan’s Cochin Coriander-Cumin Chicken for Passover, adapted from Queenie Hallegua and Ofera Elias – cooked and styled by Andrew Scrivani NYTCREDIT: Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times

We are always pleased to see Raxa Collective’s hometown in the news, but especially when the coverage focuses on cultural history in the part of town where we are developing a new property.  Fort Cochin’s harbor area, including Bazaar Road where Spice Harbor (a waterfront hotel opening later this year, more on which in a future post) is located and where the spice trade is centered, completes the domestic route of the Malabar Coast’s spice trade. Spices are grown throughout the Western Ghats, they make their way down to sea level for transport in the coastal backwaters, and a large percentage end up on Bazaar Road where merchants, traders, godown (warehouse) keepers and others prepare them for shipment.  This has been the way of the spices for millennia, though Fort Cochin’s harbor has played its role in the spice route only in recent centuries.

The New York Times writer Joan Nathan describes a culinary-religious heritage motivation for her visit here (minutes from our office location):

KOCHI, India — Dreaming of spices described in the Book of Kings, I came to this southern port city built in the 14th century to learn about its longstanding but tiny Jewish presence and its food, which some believe dates back to the time of the Bible.

Allan Gerson. A spice shop in the Jew Town section of Kochi, India, formerly Cochin. In the old days, spices were harvested in December and January, then dried in the sun for two or three days, roasted and ground.

I left with a better understanding of the people and their history, as well as a chicken dish for Passover, after eating first in the home of Queenie Hallegua, 78, who lives in Kochi’s Jew Town, in what used to be the center of the pepper auction run by Jewish merchants, and then the next day in the home of another accomplished cook.

Mrs. Hallegua, whose great-grandfather came as a peddler from Iraq and whose grandfather Samuel Koder, a merchant, is credited by the family with bringing electricity and the ferries to Kochi, lives on Synagogue Lane in a building decorated with ancient Indian signs.

Though there are fewer than 10 Jews in her neighborhood now, Mrs. Hallegua remembers what it was like growing up when several thousand lived in the area. Over a glass of her pungent Passover wine, made from boiled raisins blended with water and then strained through a cloth, she told me about how she carefully sifts her grains and spices to clean them in preparation for Passover cooking.

“Pesach work began in January, when we bought rice, cleaned and washed it, pounding some into rice flour,” Mrs. Hallegua said. “We also cleaned chiles, coriander, cinnamon, pepper, ginger and cardamom, and set some aside for Passover.”

Most spices were harvested in December and January, then dried in the sun for two or three days, roasted and ground. Mrs. Hallegua showed me her separate Passover kitchen, outfitted with a large stone mortar and pestle used to grind spices and a flat granite stone for grinding coconut, chiles and coriander.

Read the rest of the story here.

Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times. The author’s Cochin coriander-cumin chicken for Passover.

07:15. Morning tea and light snack costs Rs10.

07:20. Find dreaming home.

Hotel for yoga class is closed and call teacher’s mobile. Sounds he is sleeping and book tomorrow class.

Today is Day2 for Biennale. Visit several venues and site in other old parts of town.

First visit pop up gallery in small building. This is not curated by Biennale but part of the program show Indian artist local exhibition. Interesting to see young local new artists here. After seeing some local artists painting, I find out there are lots of dark paintings in color wise and theme wise.

Video art. You stand on Asian style toilet to see the art. Interesting.

The view of Jew Town from the gallery rooftop.

This site is old jetty with non Indian artist. Great outdoor scripture.

Bazaar road to go to next venue. This street used to, and still, in the center of spice trade. When you walk here, you can smell different aromas with dust. Really nice. Last time when I waked here, I was smoking and could not smell these beautiful spices. Stop smoking for money, health and enjoy the beauty of the smell in our life.

Cochin is harbor city. Every harbor city has a navy base. These boys are jogging on the road. Indian military is one of few organizations who do not have strong discrimination to hire lower caste people.

Next venue has a exhibition for Berma freedom flight by Berman artists. Some are very strong and some are poetic and beautiful.

This Indian artist is different from others. Bit erotic, dreamy and funny illustration.

One of main venue in this Biennnale. Pepper House. The name tells.

This artists is from COFA based in Sydney and Paris. This video art location is my area. Opposite of Marlboro hotel in King St.

15:00. Cake time in cafe of venue. Quite long time since I had non Indian style tea time. This cost pretty much.

16:10. After going back to guest house and have shower, cross the harbor by ferry to main island for sunset cruise. 20 minutes journey costs Ra 2.5. Only 5c.

So surprising to see many water front lux apartments are built now since last time when we visited. Main island is current city center. India keeps developing so dramatically since we came here at first time.

Street fish market near jetty.

17:45. I realize I got wrong cruise boat. I was thinking of taking state government tourist office one but cause it is same price (5bucks), I got a private company one and I’m only one non Indian tourist.

Which mean I had very interesting sunset cruise experience. We think sunset cruise is romantic and sentimental with bubble or gin tonic. But here in India, it is more likely party boat without alcohols but with samosa and chai.

I can see Biennale art piece from the boat in main venue.

We have karaoke show, teen boys dance performance show, disco time, trivia time and relax (sit) time with “My heat will go on” Euro trash remix.

20:00. After 2 hours crazy Indian party boat, I am heading for dinner. Grand Hotel in city. Last time when we visited here in 5 years ago, it was not grand. Faded glory. But today it is very elegant renovated and maybe the poshest hotel in town side for upper local people.

I am in totally wrong dress code, smelly T shirt, Stussy shorts, dirty VANS and tote bag after hot sunset cruise. Every other guest wear beautiful Sally or proper shirts and tie.

I was strictly vegetarian after Day 2 in India but want to eat nice fish curry. This kingfish curry is amazing!

21:15. Catch auto riksha to jetty to Fort Cochin. Last ferry back to town.

I wonder why in India, there are mostly men and only few female on public transport? Cause they do not work outside and stay at home? Maybe. India rate of women power in workplace is still very low. They are actually wasting so much talent by old values against lower caste and female.

10:45. Take half a hour by auto riksha till ferry station to cross to Fort Cochin. It costs only 4c.

Men and female is separated on the boat. Ticker windows, too. First time to see that kind of services in public transport here.

I can see gorgeous hotel where we stayed at first time when we visited Cochin in nearly 10 years ago.

Take auto riksha again to go to guest house. It is absolutely too hot and humid to walk with heavy backpack.

Guest house is located on residential area. 2km from main touristic places. Amazingly cute decoration and owner family and staffs are super friendly and helpful. One problem is too much mosquito cause they have beautiful rush garden. Wake up every 2 hours at every night to get cream on mossy bites… Rs 800 (AUD16) per night. I feel bit expensive considering the location but still nice services can make it up.

This is the reason to come to Cochin again. First Biennale in India. Exciting!!!!

13:00. Stop in famous gallery art cafe. I think last time when we were in Cochin, we stopped this place. On same street, there are some nice graphite.

13:30. Biennale time. Today I visit main venue, Aspinwall House. Ex British exporting company building.

Many painting, some visual art, not much big scripture. Mostly local or Indian artists and some non Indian artists too. No international big name maybe not enough budget?

I can not find any curation theme for this Biennale but it looks obviously most of arts are taking about india or Cochin itself. For me, that is bit too direct artistic expression and no twist to tell more universal human emotions or social issue etc. One very uniqueness in this Biennale is some artist use spices as art which you can enjoy by smelling art. Like this.

It is bit sad to say but the best thing in this Biennale is the venue and the fact as here is in India. Most venues are old colonial era’s warehouse or building. And in India, these are fading and old glory. Nothing can remain by proper maintenance. These building are on the process to fall down by slow time speed. These venue reminds me of Cockatoo island for Sydney Biennale. But here in India, these buildings are absolutely just not looked after and dying.

Also I imagine this is the only Biennale where you can see many people wear traditional clothes in daily life. Also % of art lovers or hipstar is very low. Mostly just ordinarily people. That scene with contemporary art is also very unique.

Also I think here is only one Biennale venue where trash are just left behind and not cleaned. I’m in India. I quite like this attitude.

Move to next venue in town. It has wonderfully cinnamon smell on this art.

Get ice cream on the way to see outdoor art on beachside. The security old guy says “oh that ice cream is bad. You will have bad stomach later”. I had street ice cream quite a lot (only 20c), but never have trouble on my stomach at all.

17:00. On my way going back to guest house. Such a nice and ordinarily residential area. Peaceful feelings. Find this reading room. Sometimes I see people actually read newspaper here.

19:30. Dinner time. First time to eat Indian wrap. Very nice. Also first time to east this dessert. Apricot and cinnamon. Tastes like jam.

Before dinner, I found favorite Indian fabric brand shop Anokhi. Get 3 kurtan with different pattern fabric. Impossible to get this cloth in Australia. But this is best summer cloth in Sydney at home or neighborhood (at least in Newtown, I can go for grocery shopping with this cloth).

God is everywhere in India. In Kerala, lots of Jesus with Indian decoration on the corner of the town. Looks like 24 hours open.

Joseph Davies, 25
Copywriter at Kinetic Singapore

Interviewed by Melissa Chia

[In the second part of our three-series conversation with Joseph Davies, he shares with us his experience backpacking in India for five weeks. In this article, Joseph talks about his favourite region in India. If you missed the first article, catch up here.]

“I knew that it was not going to be easy to get around and I knew that there was going to be a certain level of surprise because India is a society that is not as structured…”

Having been to India previously in secondary school, did you still experience any culture shock when you revisited the country?

I was quite aware of what to expect, but at the same time it was a new experience.

What were you expecting then?

I knew that it was not going to be easy to get around and I knew that there was going to be a certain level of surprise because India is a society that is not as structured. The processes in India are not like Singapore, where everything is smooth. There might be a bit of corruption here and there.

Did you already experience all these during your trip with your father?

Yes.

Having been to India before, did your parents have much to say about you deciding to go to India for your graduation trip?

They were quite supportive, especially my father. He thinks that India is a good place to travel and learn about people, in general.

How did you fund your travel?

I funded the trip through my savings, and my dad matched my budget dollar-to-dollar. I think I came up with about $700 and he passed me another $700.

You spent $1400 for a five-week trip in India?

Yes, including accommodation.

Did you do any preparation for the trip?

I went with my friends to buy travelling gears, like backpacks and some other essentials. And of course, we did a lot of research.

Having been to many regions in India, which is your favourite region?

My favourite is this place called Rajasthan, which is a desert state. It is like something out of Aladdin.

What did you like about Rajasthan?

I like that there were a lot of things you will not see or dream of, like camels in the desert and the sunset. I took a camel tour by myself. I rode a camel for four days in a desert with only a guide and a cook and it was quite a good experience.

How does the camel tour work?

The camel tour group consists of three camels, so I can either ride on one of the camel or they can pull me along in a caravan.

Were there any interesting experiences in the other parts of India?

I remember thinking that Kochi was a lot like Malacca because it had a lot of Catholic influences. The only place that I have been to that was like that was Malacca and I thought that this (Kochi) was a good place to ease into to prevent the culture shock.

So is Kochi very different from the other parts of India?

Yes. In fact, Kochi has the highest literacy rate in India so it was a very good area to ease into the culture because you would not have that much of a culture shock.

Was it easy to get around Kochi?

Yes, because the people there could speak English. The people are well-educated.

Did you get to interact with the locals?

Yes, a lot. Everyday.

What can you tell us about India and her people?

I think they are one of the friendliest people you will ever meet because they are genuinely helpful, talkative and curious. I think a lot of people would agree that Indians are very curious in a very innocent way. When you share about your homeland and other stories they will ask to find out more. I think they are very good conversationalists.

Do they usually initiate conversations?

Yes, they will come up to you and sometimes even when you do not feel like talking you will still talk to them because they are very enthusiastic and friendly.

How similar are the cultures of Singapore and India?

[It is] Very different. I think Indians tend to be more in tune with life and living, enjoying the little things so to speak. Maybe Singaporeans are more focused on career and money. Even though I saw a lot of poor people in India, they seem a lot happier than a lot of Singaporeans.

Do you foresee any difficulties in living in India?

If I were to stay there, I would need some kind of employment maybe and perhaps that will be something that will be lacking for me because of the difference in the work culture. Working in India is a completely different ball game altogether. I might not be able to gel into their industries. I think that Indians have a very unique way of doing business, which a lot of people may find it hard to integrate into.

How so?

The way they do business is very political and they run on a lot of contacts, like families and friends. I think they value that A LOT more than Singaporeans.

So, it is something you have to get used to if you want to work in India?

Yes, yes. And it may be very difficult because I am foreigner.

[Stay tuned to read the last part of our conversation with Joseph as he provides tips on how to get the best out of your time in India.]

©Laura Saffioti

Motherjane decided to do a show in Bangalore and I tagged along with Sam. And I clicked away. Didn’t manage to get a pic of Nithin Vijayanath though.

John Thomas

Clyde Rozario

Clyde Rozario

Deepu Sasidharan

Santosh Chandran

John Thomas

Clyde Rozario

Clyde Rozario

Clyde Rozario

John Thomas

Vivek Thomas

Vivek Thomas

Santosh Chandran

Rahul Samuel

Rahul Samuel

]]> http://passagetodeam.wordpress.com/2013/03/11/day21-kuzhupily-beach/ Sun, 10 Mar 2013 14:38:22 +0000 Nori M http://passagetodeam.wordpress.com/2013/03/11/day21-kuzhupily-beach/ 07:45. After last night storm, beach is still dump. Practice in balcony. Very Ouch when I fall over from head standing.

Today is last day to stay here. Absolute lazy beach day on absolute empty beach all day.

After finish Garcia Marques book, read high grossy travel magazine (Indian Conde Nast Traveller) and find very attractive article about Madhya Predesh State which I’ve never known. Start wondering to travel India bit longer but remember the reasons why I need to come back to Sydney on original schedule, Sydney Dance Company last performance date and James Blake live in Sydney (if we can get tickets tomorrow).

Stay on beach till sun goes down cause I do not remember when was last time to see sunset over horizon.

Local come to the beach in evening after getting cool down. Now beach is getting bit crowded. Family is walking with eating ice cream. Kids play cricket.

While watching sunset, I remember first time when we came to Kerala in almost 9 or 10 years ago, we saw unbelievably amazing sunset in private house boat cruise trip in Aleppy. Sunset always makes people sentimental and this world more beautiful.

19:00. Today is Sunday and host family is away whole day to go to morning and evening mass in church. There is one mid age woman to work for this house and she cooks dinner for me tonight. Her food is also good.

Today is only me as a guest here (hardly see other two long saying guests). Whole house is for me with one servant lady. I feel like bit lonely rich boy.

20:00. Avoiding mosquito in rooftop lounge, back to my room with AC and continue to read CT. Find Sri Lanka article and main picture is the beach where we spent our holiday in 2nd time when we visited that country. Again sweet memory is coming back night.

Tomorrow I will be back to my one of favorite cities in this world.

10:00. Mum cooks beautiful potato& egg curry and parotta breakfast. They steam banana. Dad said cause it is sweeter. The texture is more like sweet potato. Parotta is my request! Here I keep having 2 meals a day which gives me more energy and clear mind.

Most beautiful view kitchen.

Next 2 hours after breakfast, I was just so tired and sleepy maybe I had not eaten egg so long and it took so much energy to digest.

13:30. Go back to beach and stay whole afternoon by reading ” A hundred Year of Solitude”. Spot European couple living in India with sausage dog. I miss my dog. Bit shame to say my dog name in this country. I used to laugh at dog name “Wagyu” of Chinese owner living near the Imperial but in this country, I might be the same.

After afternoon yoga practice on the beach, we had a heavy shower. Back to room and mum starts cooking tonight dinner.

18:30. This is again all for me. Today I got some mum cooking recipe.

20:00. Long staying guest entertains a friend in dinning, I go back to my room and watch SDC ” 2 One Another” in my iPad. Same theme with yoga. All about discovery yourself.

06:50. Morning swim on the beach in front of guest house. Fisher men finish their morning job. Not particularly nice beach but no one is on the beach all the time of day. Hard to please people living in Australia for beach cause we have great beaches anywhere

This is where I stay now. Guest house but more likely homestay with 2 other long stay guests at old parents. Nice host family.

The painting in my room. Last night I thought strange 18 century fake European painting but actually this is Indian woman!

Just local beach village. Plastic shop truck opens the business in next door.

From 08:00-09:30 is morning yoga practice by myself. Practicing on rooftop terrace while mum is cooking breakfast in the kitchen.

10:00. Breakfast time. Homemade dosa and chutney is soo good. Soo tasty to forget to take a picture.

Staying on the beach in daytime is bit too hot. Decide to go to the town by cycle. 7km riding. Amazing beautiful beachside and backwater road.

First I thought this is pebble, but people dry shrimps on the road.

Local home. Bit poor family home. Maybe they are fisher or farmer.

Ambeskar status. I can see few Muslim people, one small masque and fisherman village, Lower caste people live around here and support this one of the greatest politician in modern India politics.

Once I get main road, I have to work with trucks, busses, rikshas, motor bikes and other cycles.

The town itself is nothing special. Just small local town.

I think more than 50 people said Hello to me on the road today. Such a nice local atmosphere. It reminds me of Nepal village homestay in more than 10 years ago, which was 20 minute by cycle or 40 minutes walk to the closet town from village and everyone said Hello to me anywhere. Sweet memory is coming back.

15:00. Once get back to guest house, afternoon yoga practice on the beach. Keeping balance on sand is hard work.

16:45. After yoga and shower, reading a book time in rooftop terrace but still too hot and back to beach till sun goes down. Great sea breeze.

18:30. Mum is cooking tonight dinner and all food is so yummy.

Dad is checking his new Nokia.

18:44. Tonight I’m only guest and all this is for me. Amazing homemade food.

06:30. Very cloudy morning and no chance to see sunrise. Sudden rain and stalls start packing their business.

08:15. Bit early breakfast. I did not like this bit sour white bread in 5 years ago when I tried at first time and give second chance but I do not like it much…. Rs 45 (AUD 90c).

In some restaurant here, mouth fresher comes in bill tray. Practical.

Stop in chai stall again for breaky chai. Anywhere can be portable cafe in this country.

09:45. Time to go to the station. With my backpack. 16kg is bit too much. I have few clothes which I do not wear yet… Silly backpacker.

Hotel outside looks quite glam with nice sea view but inside was OK level. Maybe chose another hotel with sew view in next time here.

10:00. Arrived in station. Realize this station is the far south one in India.

h

You can check your assigned seat number on this sheet.

On train journey time. As staff said yesterday, I get a ticket today but he said only sleeper which is no AC and packed with local. The cost is only 3 bucks. It’ bit too much for 8 hours journey. What he tells me is once I get a train, sit in 2nd AC and pay extra. That works. Comfy train journey with only 12 bucks for 8 hours.

In India, they also have 駅弁( Ekiben. Train lunch box). When the train stops in quite big station, they stop longer than usual. Run to shop in platform cause I have no idea how long the train stops in that station. This lunch box costs 90c.

Beautiful countryside scenery.

Always train door is always opened. You can feel nice breeze.

8 hours journey is passing quick. Enjoy day time long train experience, reading a book, having a nap in flat bed seat with pillow and blanket, watching people around me. The flight from Sydney to Tokyo is same hours but got bored. This train trip is so much fun.

17:35. Cochin is getting close but still people walk on rail. This is contemporary India.

17:50. Catch a riksha to go to beach guest house in Kuzuphilly beach, which is 20km north of Cochin.

18:45. Arrived in guest house but this place is more like homestay. Front faces beach and backside is backwater but arrive after sunset, it is already dark. Will see tomorrow morning. Room is pretty expensive (Rs1500. AUD30) per night but spotless clean with AC (they upgrade my room) and first time in this India trip as the shower space is separated by glass wall in bathroom. Dinner food is wonderful homemade Kerala food with fresh ocean fish (but this is just simple grilled. Boring). Only not great thing so far is food here is not cheap, rather expensive. Dinner cost Rs350 which is more than double I have paid for last few weeks in restaurant. (no where to eat around cause not so close from a local village/town area), which I did not expect. And mosquito. Cause backwater is just there, you can not avoid it.

Two long staying guests are in downstairs with shared kitchen but only one English couple stays tonight and share dinner together at rooftop common dining and lounge space. Maybe tomorrow night is only me and host husband and wife. I ask her to teach me local cooking.

Planning to stay here for 4 nights to enjoy local beach atmosphere. Swim, yoga and read.

HAPPY Thursday!

The sea front is hawker/seller central. You’re yelled at by the fishermen to join them for a paid photo, every restauranteur for the “best seafood”, any empty square meter is filled with a t-shirt salesmen or coconut stall. A guy sitting on the floor shouted “Yes, nice picture” at me, i glanced down to see that he was doing a spirograph. Entrepreneurial indeed. Fort Cochi doesn’t feel very much like India, it feels like some people tried to forget what India is, block it out and create their own environment. It’s certainly somewhere someone could come for some home comfort, if they had money to spend. We ate some very good food here, some great fresh fish and walking in the area is a nice, relaxing experience ( something unusual in India ) as traffic is rarer, the buildings are well kept and there is abundant street art.

So the reviewers and web were correct regarding Kochi, this is the place you come when too much India and its inherent stresses have battered you about the head. Recharge, eat and drink whatever alongside great customer service and cake, lots of cake. This awesome seafood paratha actully tasted better than it looked.

Oh, and there are EPIC trees everywhere. And i love EPIC trees.

Onward to sit of a huge boat on the Kerala Backwaters.