Rising Spirit: May 2008

You have to visit once in life time yaar.

Kerala: Kochi and Munnar

Although I had many good friends from Kerala in college and at work, this was my first time to Kerala. I have been holding on to these for a year now, and time to put them up.

We did the standard route: Munnar, Thekady (Periyar), Houseboat, Kumarakom, Kovalam and back. All in all we spent about 10 days, and yes, Kerala is blessed. We arrived in Cochin on Sunday morning, and even as you land, you can see from the window the lush green islands. The Kochi airport has a laid back atmosphere in keeping with international tourist destination (sun & sand) norms. It is a nice cozy airport. We spent a day in Kochi, took in the Jewish town, the churches, the Chinese nets and the beach.

Kochi (and Thiruvanthapuram too) have fortunately escaped being big cities so far. It has a small to medium town ambience, but on the way to our hotel from the airport, I could see huge rubbish dumps stinking to heavens on the road side. Every couple of kilometers or so, you will find these dumps. But the calming influence of the town compensates for that. Upon reaching the hotel, we asked our driver the location of Sankaracharya’s birth place. He then coolly informed us that it was nearer to the airport, and that we do not have time for that now. Very well then, I says, let us look at the churches and synagogues. A few photographs from Kochi followed by Munnar below.

The Ancient Synagogue of Kochi

This sign reminded me of Woody Allen in Annie Hall: “Did you hear that? He said Jewite!”

So, we are not the only ones!

The Elephant below came to the Dutch Palace nearby for a pooja.

The Dutch (Mattancherry) palace was really a Travancore Rajah Palace (gifted to him by the Portugese) but the Dutch helped him renovate the palace. The palace has many interesting murals (some of them fast decaying) depicting Ramayana and also some Puranic stuff. These murals can be found in almost all Kerala palaces and made from vegetable and stone dyes. The multi-colored hues make them rich and those in tact can really be appreciated. There is a distinct style to the art as one can see how humans, demons, animals and their actions are represented. No photos are allowed, therefore none.

There is a temple in one corner of the palace, and this elephant came by. Elephants in Kerala are like Humans in Mumbai. Throw a stone, and you will hit one. There are plenty of them generally gallivanting around town, occasionally attending a pooja or a festival.

The Famed Chinese Nets

Evidently, Admiral Zhang’s crew introduced them to the Malabar coast while taking Kathakali and Kaliyaripattu from the coast which eventually became The Chinese Opera and Shaolin. I have not seen these nets in China (but then I have been to only a few places there) but they are still used here. The ones on Kochi Beach are for the tourists. I do not think the fishermen there are serious.

The system is just one of pulleys and levers. The Net is immersed in Water using stones and ropes as counterweights and drivers. When you raise it back again, fish that are there at the lower ends of the net will not have the time to escape. The net should go in like a basket and come out like one. But the guys here left several loose ends. I have seen a more serious usage of the nets in Alleppey.

Tiger Fish He Told me

A Temple Festival

We caught this one as we passed the temple. I forgot the Goddess’ name. Apparently, the Idol is taken out of the temple for only eight days in a year during which the festival is celebrated (see the photo below). It looked like an interesting temple but could not go in because both of us were in jeans.

Kerala temples seem to have a strict dress code but I have seen them allowing non-Hindus also into the temples. I was to eventually get into the dhoti in Thiruvanthapuram. The reports we heard about Ayyappa and more recently Yesudas hopefully are isolated incidents.

Sunset at Kochi Beach (No Beach eh?)

Then we went on to Munnar, a four-hour drive from Kochi if you are relaxed enough to stop on the way to take in the scenery once in a while, stop to look at some of the houses and then wonder if you will ever be able to own one like that in Hyderabad (and burn with jealousy) and so on. It was not just the cities but even the rural areas seem to have benefited a lot from the gulf money in terms of houses. Contrary to folklore, majority of the houses are in good taste but you do see the occasional Ochre, Pink and Green.

Munnar is a hill station, located in the lower Sahyadris with a beautiful climate. The place settled in the eighteenth-nineteenth centuries by British scouts. Prior to that, tribals used to live there but I understand there are very few left now. The British were the ones who thought of the Tea Plantation idea. From Munnar to Thekady all that you see are Tea plantations and some Cardamom and spice plantations. Most the resorts are located away from the town and in the hills. The town offers budget accommodations. Some of the hotels in the town are quite okay but not pricey.
Munnar is a place to relax, laze about, then get your ass up, do some hiking and get back to laze about. The place is cool and beautiful enough to exert yourself.
There is Eravikulam National Park (which they claim is the cleanest park in India) nearby but there is no wildlife there but for the Tahr (mountain goat) which routinely ignores you. The wardens claim that there are Cheetahs and Tigers and Elephants deep inside the forest beyond the point of Tourism. I wonder! If you go to Munnar, you will go to this park but the main attraction is not the Park but on the way as the photos show below.

Munnar Tea Plantations

The higher the altitude of the plantation, the better the taste! Eucalyptus trees are planted in the tea plantations, and we were wondering why! Although tea does not need standing water, Eucalyptus is known for draining a lot from the ground. We were told that tea trees (it is not a plant, just like He is not a Dog, He is a Wolf!) are not harmed by that, and the main reason is to use these trees as firewood for leaf-drying later in the tea factory.

Eravikulam Park is situated about 12-15 Km from Munnar, and is a nice place to go to. We can see Rajamalai, the highest peak in South India as we approach the park which is situated at about 1700 m altitude. It is a nice place to walk and watch mountain goats chew the leaves. As I said, the main attraction is on the way. You have to go to a central point, leave your vehicle there and take the park bus. If I remember right, it costs about 20 or 30 rupees per head for citizens.

Phantom Head

Men, Do Look for Ms. Palmer in her swimsuit in any of the several waterfalls dotting the route. Women, Whack his head! That’s about the best you can do.

This is not the Rajamalai Peak. I could not find out its name, so I called it Phantom Head. One more noticeable thing is that this is the only hill which is completely barren. Pure Rock. And in a Green place like this.

Mountains Goats Doing What They Do Best: Getting Bored with Life

If you are still scrolling, here are some photos from Mattupatti Lake and on the way to Periyar. The place is a must, and you will understand why Munnar claims to be the Switzerland of India. Mattupatti is an hour's drive from Munnar town, and if you want, you can walk half of the way. Time is the factor in most such vacations. We did spend some time trekking here because we took an extra day. If you do go there, plan on spending at least half a day. There is another lake about five kilometres from Mattupetti Lake, and that is also beautiful. There is an arched dam on that lake (I forget the name) , and I believe it was the first such dam in India. The place has a restaurant too. In between the two lakes, there is an Echo Point where you can do the usual silly things and giggle.