2016 Indian Travels – Kerala
Cycling
13th – 28th November
Day 14
To Kerala
Up early and we have a smooth transfer to Kolkata airport. A large Air India plane takes us to Delhi where we have to collect our luggage, go through immigration and book onto the Jet Airlines flight to Trivandrum. The checking of tickets and boarding cards just to get into the airport let along on the plane is amazing. The two hours that was allotted was tight! The pick up at Trivandrum goes well and we are soon travelling south to our hotel in Kovalam by 7.30pm.
Our hotel, the Soma Palmshore Beach Resort Hotel, and our room where we can hear the waves breaking on the beach below, is a real plus after the hotel in Calcutta. The temperatures are in the low thirties with humidity to go with it. Welcome to Kerala.
We have a snack and experience our first pineapple ghat (fresh pineapple dotted with spices) in the restaurant before wandering down to beach and along the strip where we have numerous invitations to eat.
At the far end of the strip overlooking the Arabian Sea we find a cafe that sells a cafetierre of freshly ground coffee. We succumb to a freshly ground coffee before going back to a humid night in our spacious room in the hotel.
Day 15
We awake to cloudy sultry skies.
Under a grey sky the palm tree lined beach fails to make any real impact but the canoe-like fishing boat and the men rowing these large boats out at sea give it a tropical charm.
We spend time there ascertaining the swim-ability of the sea, watching the fishermen, enormous butterflies and a large heron like bird.
After showering we walk to Lighthouse Beach and have breakfast, a bowl of fresh fruit being a real treat. Families are splashing about in the sea and there is hope of sunshine in the air. We find a necklace for Kelly’s 40th and an ATM to get some money for a
lump sum for tips and to place a deposit on the necklace.
Encouraged by the many families in the water we go for a swim in the Arabian Sea! It isn’t wonderful, warm, clammy and very salty! Back in the hotel we shower and notice that rain has begun to fall and fall and fall! Perhaps the Monsoon season is not over!
We have lunch in the hotel restaurant watching the rain and then relax in our room as the heavy rain continues all afternoon.
In the evening we meet up with those of the group who have arrived and Vishnu our Explore guide does his introduction. There are only eight of the fourteen fellow cyclists as six others are delayed in travelling because of’ a man with a gun’ at Gatwick Airport.
Vishnu takes us out for a meal together in a ‘safe’ international restaurant on the front at Kovalam where individual bills are established from the start. After the meal we go back to the jewellers to collect Kelly’s necklace. Unfortunately Graham cuts his big toe badly on the uneven ground, lots of blood, but with wet wipes we stop it enough to get back to the hotel where he bandages it.
Day 16
It is clearer with a breeze as we walk down to the hotel beach and then have breakfast. We meet the rest of the group when we gather at 8.45am to be given our bikes and try them out. We also meet our mechanic Krishnor.
First we cycle south to a busy fishing village where crowds of women are bartering for the newly caught fish barely off the boats. We then wander around the stalls where they are selling them.
Back on our bikes we cycle up the busy hill amidst, tuk-tuks, coaches, lorries, buses etc.
One really has to concentrate especially as there are eighteen of us in a line. We cycle on to a beach to the north which seems a popular resort before cycling back up the hill where we stop for a welcome drink of juice out of a coconut.
Lunch is on a balcony on the front looking out over the beach watching Black Kites and Brahminy Kites diving down over the fish that are being unloaded from the boats.
After eating we wander along the coast to Hawa Beach, to the north, passing some sort of a sales promotion where lots of women are getting sacks of free food and carrying it up and down the road.
It is sublime chaos with scooters, bikes, coaches, tuk-tuks and vans stopping anywhere on the road to be loaded up, causing a jam hardly passable even on foot.
On the beach we spend a delightful afternoon watching families rolling in the sea, having such fun, it was delightful. We are an attraction in our own right being asked to pose with people to have their photos taken !
We all eat out that evening which with eighteen people is a lot! We sneak off for a coffee before returning to the hotel.
Day 17
We wander on the beach before breakfast the Keralan sun up for the first time.
Our bus takes us to the outskirts of Trivandrum where we cycle north either on the coast or parallel to the coast. The road is straight and flat but riddled with potholes. Interestingly between the lagoon and the sea many of the women are drying fish outside their houses.
We pass through busy settlements where there is a continual buzz and so many different activities taking place. It is so interesting yet one’s attention cannot wander too much as there are not only bumps and pot holes but also numerous tuk-tuks, motor bikes, lorries etc all honking their horns, not to mention the live stock ambling around!
Tonight we are staying in a lovely Hotel Deshaden at Varkalam cliffs where we climb down to the beach and swim in the churning warm sea. In the evening we walk back to the cliffs and have a meal overlooking the sea.
Day 18
It is sunny and hot.
We are cycling away from the hotel by 8.45am and as we ride north we meet streets full of children going to school in their different uniforms.
Waiting for a train at a level crossing is a unique experience as people on either side crowd against the gates so when they open everyone is heading towards each other!
We soon turn off the busy road and cycle along the track beside the coast passing temples and fishermen before ending up in Kollam where we meet our bus.
We drive out of Kollam a large busy town and have lunch in a small hotel on the beach. A Thali served on a silver tray, lots of little metal bowls filled with small amounts of curry, pickles, and sweet dishes. Rice is then placed in the centre of the tray and pompadoms and chapattis all provided at a cost 100r (£1). A real finger feast we are to have again before the trip is out.
Our next hotel, the Regant Palace Lake Hotel, a pretentious, all show hotel!! It is memorable for the continuous preaching and music that is playng loudly from the building next door until late into the evening.
We dump our luggage in our rooms change and go by boat out to an island where the hotel has its swimming pool. Here we swim in the pool and sunbathe!
Returning to the hotel we go by bus to the south of the town and walk out along the harbour wall.
The sun slowly sets catching the lovely warm colours of the water, houses and palm trees.
Dinner in the hotel is hilarious not only for the ineptitude of the establishment but Jim’s stylish 70th birthday celebration.
Day 19
It is sunny and hot after raining overnight.
The bus takes us from the hotel to the coast from where we cycle north following the coast for 45km. At the midpoint we are meant to take our bikes on a ferry boat unfortunately the ferry is not running and the replacement boat was not big enough so there has to be a trip for us and a trip for our bikes.
The cycle ride is a repeat of the previous day but still fascinating, men making coir ropes and baskets, fish being landed, general household chores taking place outside and again lots of children going to school.
We go in the bus to the Snake Temple which once through the crowds is tranquil with numerous small statues of different snakes plus some bigger monuments.
The bus takes us on to where we will catch the boat after lunch in a shack beside the river. Fried fish served with coconut rice, curry sauce and various pickles on a banana leaf with a small banana and dried banana to finish. It is lovely and even better eaten with fingers.
We spend three hours on a boat exploring the backwaters, observing wildlife and everywhere watching people going about their daily life. The tourist houseboats do at times dominate the scene. These are enormous wicker clad beasts with a front lounging area, a bathroom and several bedrooms. The occupants are a mix but were predominantly white European, hiring them out for a day or two.
Eventually at dusk we reach the home stay, our room in the house is basic, clean and with the plus of ensuite .
Day 20
Today is sunny, very hot and then a storm in the afternoon.
We walk out before breakfast and see people starting their day the Keralan way.
A delicious breakfast of potatoes curry, rice pancakes and fresh pineapple jam.
We go off cycling along waterways and across vast areas of paddy fields, through small towns and very busy main roads. We stop to have snacks in a busy local café and some fresh coconut milk by the side of the road.
Back at the Home Stay lunch coconut rice, cucumber in yogurt, carrots and coconuts, finely grated cabbage and tandoori type fish is back at the home stay and in the afternoon we rest and watch a much needed noisy storm move through.
Late afternoon and a local guide take us around the area finishing off with a canoe ride on the water in the dusk.
Back at the home stay egg curry, chapattis and little bananas. Mrs Matthews, the owner’s ife puts saris on the women. The method is elaborate with folds and tucks. They all look quite elegant.
Day 21
Today is sunny and hot
We say our goodbyes at the home stay and ride on the bus for about an hour to the foothills of the Western Ghat Mountains. Here we cycle on shady undulating roads to our next home stay, stopping at a cafe for, ice creams, Danish pastries and Clementine’s.
Our next home stay is a large run down colonial rubber plantation house with nine bedrooms. When we arrive there is no water and only minimal electricity.
We find our rooms, have lunch and swim in the river. The muddy water and muddy bank are not enticing but back in the home stay water is running and the electricity is back on.
Most of the group are game and swim, but the currant is strong so it is difficult getting up stream but fun.
A cup of tea and we are on the bus and drive through Erattupetta climbing to an interesting view point on the lower hills of the mountains. There are large smooth surfaces of rock and good views all around. The setting sun is behind a cloud but the colours light up the rest of the sky. Other families are around but it is relaxed and peaceful sitting watching the changing colours in the sky.
Returning to the Homestay we sit around drinking beer and chatting. The lady of the house and Vish give us a demonstration of how to make vermicelli and eventually we eat supper. Unfortunately the owners husband is very ill so she is distracted but wanted the group to come as it had been planned.
Day 22
It is cloudy and in the morning and less humid.
The bus takes us east into the hills to a rubber plantation where we swim in some lovely rock pools.
We cycle from here down the valley to an Old Palace and Temple where we see an interesting little plant that withers away when you touch it called ‘Touch Me Not’.
On our way down to the Palace we pass a church where everyone is leaving the service with such drumming and brass band playing that we stop to watch.
After a tasty lunch we relax before we go on a walk around the grounds of the homestay.
Day 23
Sun, cloud and then rain
We leave the Homestay and travel up over the mountains where there are fantastic views of the different ranges, which look open and accessible.
We stop at a pass for a view.
Once over the top and we are soon on our bikes again cycling through rolling hills and tea plantations.
The ride is lovely through undulating green countryside, occasionally passing a few workers picking tea or women carrying washing or pots and pans on their heads.
We stop in the town of Elappara before climbing up over some more hills to Kuttikkanam where we have lunch.
Back on the bus we twist and turn through the hills to the Connemara Tea Factory/plantation.
Here a guide gives us a talk of the plantation and shows us a PowerPoint presentation of how tea is processed before we visit the factory. The workers are not working due to a strike.
It is interesting to compare this and the factory in Darjeeling we visited. The main one seems to be the degree of sorting that happens to the tea, also how much more money the workers are paid compare to those in the north. The guide is difficult to understand and the group is tired. It is interesting to talk to a family of Anglo Indians who came from Milton Keynes and how they felt about returning.
We continue on to Thekkedy where we book into our hotel the Grand Hotel Thekkedy. Here the treat is hot water and Wi-fi the foyer.
The meal in the evening is fun, the restaurant does not have a license for alcohol so we have tea pots of beer and bottles wrapped in newspaper. The tandoori is a welcome change of food.
Day 24
It is cloudy but gets sunnier and warmer as the day progressed
We are up to the Periya National Park by 7.00am wearing long trousers, light cagouls and walking boots which seemed novel after two weeks without them. We walk to the beginning of a guided trail and are given some sock like gaiters to protect us from leeches, which, as we are putting them on seem to materialise all around!
In three groups we cross the lake on a bamboo raft with guides who take us around the forest pointing out various trees, birds etc. I think our big hits were Malabar Giant Tree Squirrel and Blue Whistling Thrush, Rack-Tailed Drongo, Parakeets, Langur monkeys, a large spider, forest fowl, Teepie, termites, beautiful fungi, and wedges stuck into a very tall tree for local people climb up and collect honey.
We return to the hotel for a late breakfast and then are back on the bus to cycle to a viewpoint where we overlook the plains of Tamil Nadu.
At the same place there are elephants giving rides that we look at.
From here we cycle downhill to a Spice Farm where a guide showed us round adding to and consolidating our knowledge (see spices page).
Returning to the hotel with two hours to spend, we find a much needed not very good coffee and then enjoy wandering over the border into a far scruffier and chaotic Tamil Nadu. Once back in Kumily we wanderthrough the main streets looking in the shops and soaking up the atmosphere.
After a brief spice shop shop we all go to a martial arts performance at the Mundra Kalari Centre in Thekkady which was excellent.
There is a mixed Indian. European and American audience sitting around a sandy pit, where candles and lamps are lit and various weapons laid.
Five men perform various routines which demonstrate their agility, they use different props including knives, swords, shields, short and long poles with and without ribbons. At one point they involve members of the audience who kneeling down to extend the length of somersault which is carried out over them.
The finale is jumping and diving through burning hoops and using lighted canes to dance around. A brilliant show.
We go on to yet another different restaurant in the trees at the end of the town near the jungle for yet another wonderful meal.
Day 25
Sunny
We leave the hotel and travel west into the hills. We stop to get on our bikes but a ‘real’ coffee shop delayed our start! We then ride downhill for twenty kilometres.
There are spectacular long distant views but you constantly have to brake (Graham at one point found his brakes are not working) and keep a wary eye on traffic, it is not as relaxing as expected or as satisfying.
Back on the bus we stop for lunch and phone Sarah to wish her happy birthday.
The road is twisty and traffic gets heavier as we approach Kochi. It is 4pm before we arrive at the Hotel Fort Queen
At 5.00pm we go to the Kerala cultural arts centre and look at an exhibition of the art of local folk craft and a dance show.
The actual show is interesting, the intricacies of facial and hand movements are highlighted and it included the usual complicated Indian myth. Four of us stay on to watch the younger performers dance and do some martial arts.
We then join the rest of the group outside in a waterfront restaurant under the light of a full moon and have an over spiced meal but in good company.
Day 26
Sunny and very hot
For our last cycle ride we have a guide who takes us to various places in the old city of Kochin. We start by a visit to Dhobi Khana the town’s manual laundry.
An amazing place with about 20 cubicles one for each laundry person with a stone trough for soaking, a stone for beating the washing and then the floor area is used to rinse. There is a huge area with clothes drying with double lines so pegs do not have to be used. The other structure is a huge half open covered area for drying clothes when wet in the monsoons, which also contains four giant spinners if things would not dry. There are also ironing benches here where the irons are filled with the husks of coconuts which are lit to heat them.
We pass by a field where people are queuing up to take the practical part of their driving test, which involves being able to go forward and backwards in an ‘H’ shape. They are waiting in the shade of a large rain tree iconic of Kochi.
We cycle to Fort Kochi a former Dutch trading fort at the northern end of the peninsular where the original colonial part of Kochi was established. From here we can look out to sea and see fishermen wading into the water with their nets with the main waterway into Kochi and the lagoons behind.
We visit the church of St Thomas the oldest in Kochi where Vasco de Garma was originally buried. The area is seething with traders who all want to sell their wares.
Back on our bikes to a government tourist shop where we have a cup of tea and a look around. Graham is fascinated by the singing bowls, so after experimenting we bought one. The Jewish quarter is interesting and we visit the synagogue which was beautiful with hand painted blue and white Chinese tiles on the floor and Italian and Belgium chandeliers. Sadly there are only five practicing Jews still connected with the synagogue and its future is uncertain.
We had left the bikes next to a former Dutch Palace given to the people of Kochi by the Dutch as reparation for the damage they caused to temples in the city. It is a ‘proper’ museum with Royal sedan chairs and amazing Ramayana paintings on the walls and a dining room with a wooden ceiling with glass balls which would have reflected the candles on the table.
Once back at the hotel we present Kishore and the driver of the bike van with their tips and bid them and our bikes a fond farewell.
We have a relaxing buffet lunch at the hotel with Graham, Rosemary, Keith and Ruth.
Our last outing is a frenetic drive through rush hour traffic to the modern City, Ernakulum where we catch a boat which takes us to the north of the peninsular for a sunset cruise. The highlight is the sun setting through the Chinese fishing nets superb!
Janet is not feeling well so just Graham joins the others for a farewell meal and meet up in the hotel foyer afterwards for a final goodbye.
Day 27
Sunny and very hot.
Strange being on our own but, oddly liberated, we walk to find some fabric.
On the way we come across the Basilica Santa Cruz which is a lovely quite ornate church with a large courtyard and a school attached.
Over the road is a fabric-come-craft shop where we manage to find some plain cotton fabric and buy some bags for Christmas presents without too much pressure from the man and women serving there. We then look at the hangings and decide to buy one for each family. As good and no doubt bountiful customers we are invited to have tea and chatted with the staff, delightful.
We revisit the Fort and fish market area we visited the previous day which today is quieter with less hassle. We make our way over canals to the Jain temple which is interesting as its various altars are being used for worship. This leads us to Jew Street which is again much quieter as the synagogue is celebrating the sabbath and the Dutch Palace is closed.
By now it is hot so it is great to find the Ginger restaurant overlooking the water. We both have ginger sodas and share a fish curry. It is a relief to have shade and a breeze.
Walking back to the hotel it is hot but we still have the room so with both fan and air conditioning on we recover and pack ready for the taxi which takes us to the Airport.
A slide show of the holiday
World Wide Webbs 