Karala

Working our way up the western tip of Indian coast in the state of famous Kerala, we step into the tropical heat and humidity of….

VARKALA

Four nights to unwind, swim and veg in South Beach are away from the more touristy north Beach.

The young lads working here made our lives easy – coffee at our patio in a.m. Breakfast followed. Watched Kingfisher and a variety of birds bathing in our “tank” (seems a British term used here for pond.)

South Beach, the quiet one, 5 minute walk from our place.

Views up towards North beach

ALEPPY

The big attraction here is as gateway to the back waters. Tourists come for houseboat cruises but the best way to explore is by one person paddle canoes .

Top: houseboats on main rivers; below, our sister boat (ours held only four passanger)

King of the passing houseboats; traditional, household canoes

Daily life activities still carry on in the small canals.

Day trip included lunch at our guide’s home, walk thru rice paddy’s to public ferry.

FORT KOCHI

Moving north by train once again (down graded to class B car to get a seat) …. We took tuktuk to Ernakulan ferry and over to Fort Kochi/Cochun.

The city is has a long trading history and reflects tropical Malabar coast with hints of its Portuguese, Dutch, and English colonial past.

Lived the feel of this place – a town within a city of 3 million.

Took in a Kathakali show near our Goodkarma homestay then dined at Fusion Bay:

Kathakali is a very old story-telling play form of art with painstakingly carefully applied make-up and masks.

Our homestay arranged a tuktuk driver, Saji, for the next day who was terrific; as well as taking in key sites he whisked us to various venues of an international activist art exhibit.

Fort Kochi is a spice mecca. (think history/explorers).

Cinnamen drying; organic ginger in bulk; making of incense.

Home to many faiths:

Synagogue, Hindu burial temple, Jaine temple entrance, church. Seem to all coexist harmoniously in though s part of the country.

As a spice and tea port, there are many wonderful – some functioning/ some derelict – old warehouses.

Many of the large art installations showed wonderfully in warehouses.

Exhibits include fine art paintings. Some examples:

Missed the artist, below, being so fascinated with trying to get to the pictures meanings.

Top: traditional religious ritual still practiced by westernized Hindu. Bottom: Mumbai rush hour

Top: ‘Black Painter’ – Subhakar Tadi: Gandhi juxtaposed beside mirage of a fighter.

Middle: Prabhakar Pachpute – charcoal drawings, this one regarding farmers plight.

Bottom: K. R. Sunil The Seafarers of Malabar. Photos and often heartbreaking stories of so many seamen.

Prashant S. Patil: Memories. Use of shadow. Idea of observer entering into the art – and I did.

Tower House, colonial archetecture, dinner on patio at Fort House, and us with our excellent driver/guide, Saji.