Kerala: Kochi and Varkala

Kochi: Fort Cochin and the Keralan Backwaters
10/13/09 to 10/16/09

Kerala is a state on the southwestern tip of India known for its diverse colonial past and slow-paced present. Another effortless flight from Calcutta to Kochi (formally Cochin) saved me about three days travel by train to get there...well worth the hundred dollar price tag. Kochi is made up of a "gaggle of islands" (to quote the guide book) the most attractive of which is Fort Cochin (Actually part of a small peninsula, but you get the idea). With influences from the Chinese, Portuguese, Dutch and, of course, British the old island was a classy- if at times crumbling-collection old world churches and Portuguese buildings with their clay tiled rooftops. Along the northern banks of the island Chinese fishing nets appeared ready to snag the next bounty, though their use now has been largely supplanted by more modern fishing techniques. Next to them, small outboard-powered fishing boats would stroll in at sunset for the nightly fish auction where prawns, squid, tuna and lobster were auctioned off by a vibrant auctioneer to a seemingly disinterested clientele. Supposedly, I could've joined the action and taken my winning bid to a local restaurant to have my meal prepared, but it seemed too much of a hassle.


Being the uber-laid back place that it was, the inhabitants were by far the most friendly people I'd met in India. Furthermore, staying in an old Portuguese house (or at least styled that way), my hotel room the most "luxurious" I'd had. The owners even gave me an informative 30 minute orientation of the island upon my check-in...western-style service at its best!

The biggest attraction in Kerala is boating the backwaters that stretch over 50km from Kochi to Alleppey. There are over 900 km of natural and man-made canals snaking trough the brackish backwaters which are used by local villagers for transporting the the many spices, nuts, fruits and bevy of coconut products produced in the area. One can rent a houseboat to cruise the backwaters for days on end-sleeping under the palm-lined banks and dining on freshly caught fish-but at $100 per night, this was a bit outside my budget. The other option is the one day excursion which most tourists opt for...which I did despite my growing dislike of "tours"( I really despise "tours" but sometimes they are the only way to access these types of remote sites). We started our journey traversing the narrow man-made canals to a small village where rope made from coconut husk fibers were being produced. There were also a variety of spice trees: black pepper, allspice, nutmeg and cinnamon that the locals harvest and transport to market via the waterways. After a mid-day lunch -served on banana leaves-we headed to the largest lake in Kerala where we drifted silently for the next few hours. The boat was man-powered: one man on bow/stern with long bamboo sticks who would push us along from the canal bottom. We traveled at a lazy speed of maybe 2 ft/second...it was intensely relaxing, so much so that I drifted off after lunch and woke up just in time for our disembarkment.

(Pictures: top-Chinese fishing nets. Middle-Our boat navigating the canals. Bottom-shipment of spices)



Varkala: Arabian Sea
10/16/09 to 10/21/09
Not sure where to go next but enjoying Kerala's easy-going atmosphere, I decided on the small beach village of Varkala, some 4 hours south by train. Fortunately, the dramatic cliffs running along the beach (seen pictured) haven't allowed for too much development to spoil the atmosphere (no rickshaws, no horns, no touts, and just a few shops), which meant my days consisted of waking up, going to the beach and staring off into the Arabian Sea for 7-8 hours. I rented a bamboo hut for 300Rps ($6) per night which was a lazy 40 second stumble up from the beach. At night I would eat fresh seafood and have a beer at the Rock n' Roll bar with my drinking buddy, Benny-a guy from Switzerland I'd met before in Fort Kochi. Varkala will certainly not be the last of my beach-side stops, but what a great place to drift off into to la-la land. It was also good to finally get to use my swimsuit. Now all of my clothes are officially dirty and stinky: the modus operandi of a backpacker.

Calcutta: Remnants of the Raj

10/11/09 to 10/13/09

The plan was to go south...and not 4 days via train south, but by air south. That's what one bad experience on a train from Agra to Varanasi can do to you. My options for airports were Delhi and Calcutta (now Kolkata) and since Calcutta was only 14 hours away as apposed to 18, well...there I was. Let me start by saying that I have no pictures or great experiences to share for the simple fact that after 1.5 months of travelling, food poisoning finally caught up to me. It was inevitable. Furthermore, my two 1.5 days there were only meant to be a connection point for my flight to Kochi in the south. I didn't stray too far from my hotel as a result but what I did see wasn't too bad. At least better than what I had heard. Calcutta is the second largest city in India and previously the home and center of operations for Britain's East India Co. The wide boulevards, ample sidewalks and architecture evident of a city spawned by1st world ambition. Noticeably absent were the auto rickshaws. Apparently they are only allowed to travel set routes, leaving them basically irrelevant. I was, however, introduced to the man-powered rickshaw of old and the yellow painted (and ever-present) cab, a la New York. Whether it be a lack of touristic sights or a jaded view of foreigners by the Bengalis, Calcutta seemed to be disinterested in tourist activity...at least that was my very limited take. On to Kochi.....

Varanasi: The Sacred Ganges

10/07/09 to 10/10/09

Without ever experiencing a place first hand it's natural to develop a snap-shot in your mind of what daily life might look like there. Few places turn out to be exactly what you imagine; not necessarily disappointingly so...just different. Varanasi has proved to be the exception to the rule...at least in my version of it. This was the stereotypical image of India that I had imagined. What reminded me most of my pre-conceived notion was the colors: the sarees, boats, buildings, people, face paint, and the sunset bouncing off the Ganges. Varanasi, situated on the Ganges River is said to be one of the oldest continually inhabited cities in the world, dating to more than 1000 BC. Though not the only city on the Ganges, the city of Shiva is by far the most holy. Hindus from across the country journey here to bathe and pray in the many ghats along the muddy waters [A ghat is basically a set of stairs leading down to the river] of which there are over 80. Some serve as burning ghats where the recently deceased are cremated. Hindus believe that by dying in Varanasi and/or being cremated along the Ganges one is relieved of the cycle of reincarnation. As a result, there are many hospices where Hindus from around the country come to spend their final days. Anyone can watch the cremations, which continue uninterrupted for 24 hours...so I was told. Women typically don't attend the cremation and the men overseeing the burning display little emotion. In fact, there are so many random people there that it's hard to tell who's family, and who's a bystander-like myself. The bodies are tightly bound in what appeared to be a gold metallic paper and then bathed in the Ganges before being placed on the wood for cremation. It takes 3 hours for a body to burn completely and over 2000kg of wood is used in the process (not sure on the Kg, as I might have misunderstood my informant's English). It is common law that pictures not be taken of the process out of respect for the deceased and family members. The main ghat, Dasaswamedh - pictured above, is the most active for bathing/praying and plays host to the nightly ganga aarti ceremony. I'm not exactly sure what the purpose of the ceremony is but it's safe to assume that it somehow pays homage to the mother Ganges and Brahman (God). It began with some poor singing followed by the twirling of sandalwood incense and burning cow shit in what looked like a genie's lamp. The performers are pilgrims (seen in orange below) or priests-in-training that have come to perform the ceremony along the banks of the Ganges. Looking out at night one can also see the release of dozens if not 100's of tiny lotus flower boats carrying lighted votive candles thought to bring good Karma to one's family. The old city near the main ghat is a maze of narrow lanes not passable by motorized vehicles (theoretically) and crowded with hotels, silk shops other tourist bait. I chose to stay away from the hustle of the old city, instead resting at the southern-most ghat: Assi Ghat. My clean, comfortable room and quiet surroundings definitely made the 30 minute daily walk to the old city and main ghats worthwhile. The tourist thing to do is rent a boat before sunrise and float along the Ganges as the masses make their way down the ghats to bathe, pray and pay homage to the rising sun. At only 100Rps, and despite my early morning moodiness, it was well worth the trip to have an all-encompassing perspective as my previous viewings had been only land-based.

Of course there's two sides to every coin as not only is Varanasi the holy city for Hindus but it is the capital of touts for tourists. I really enjoyed Varanasi. I could have loved it but for the constant hounding by shop owners, rickshaw drivers, boat drivers, post-card selling kids, and drug dealers. They were the most persistent and conniving that I'd experienced in India and there was no avoiding them. It's a shame that such a colorful, holy, culturally rich and diverse place has to be tainted by this kind of activity...hopefully my memory of it will not be. Still, Varanasi proved to be well worth the stop and a great representation of Hindu culture.

Morning prayers

Agra: The Taj Mahal

10/04/09 to 10/06/09

Thankfully, my flight from Srinagar to Delhi was effortless. News now of 7 LeT terrorists on the run in Kashmir and a bombing foiled in Srinagar probably means I got out of there just in time. Not wanting to stay in Delhi too long - though it would be my last visit in the foreseeable future- but needing to stock up on some provisions, I booked my hotel in Delhi for the night as my train would leave to Agra the following morning. At just over a month, my short stay in India has already turned me into a veteran in the arena of tourist-vendor relations. I remember first arriving in Delhi and politely sustaining conversations with "friendly" Indians, only to find they had nothing more than monetary motivations. Now I can see them approaching a mile away and shake them off before a word is uttered. Juliana also taught be the value in a hard bargain. Before our meeting, I would happily pay 500-700 Rps ($10-14) for a room without question. I now rarely pay more than 350 Rps ($7) for a comparably equipped room. I digress...

Prior to arriving, I had heard from many travellers that Agra was a one day stop and it wouldn't take long to figure out why. Taj Ganj, the tourist area surrounding the Taj Mahal, is a crumbling, trash laden, and frequently powerless (literally...no electricity) mess. It's especially surprising considering this is the site of an international icon and India's most popular tourist attraction. I guess I had become somewhat spoiled by the north's noticeably cleaner streets, scenic surroundings and slower pace.

To avoid the hassle of constantly going to each individual train station to book each leg of the journey from Delhi-Agra-Varanasi to Calcutta (Kolkata), I reserved my spot for all 3 trains in Delhi. The plan would've been perfect but for the sudden arrival of poor weather. It had rained the day I arrived in Agra and my train to Varanasi would leave the next night, meaning the rain would need to clear up the next morning for me to visit the Taj. Granted, one can visit at any time, but I had this idyllic vision of how my visit to the Taj would be and it didn't include rain (or overcast skies for that matter). I woke promptly at 5am to get to the grounds for sunrise only to find that it was pouring rain outside my hotel. With a groggy head and a mere $5 dollar loss to change, I re-scheduled my train for the following day in hopes of better weather. Then back to sleep.

Fortunately, and despite the lacklustre of Taj Ganj (the aforementioned neighborhood surrounding the Taj), my hotel's rooftop restaurant had an intrusive view of the palace...seen in the top picture. It almost felt illegal to be so close without having to pay the hefty tourist entry fee. Despite all the pictures I'd seen, my first glimpse of the Taj in person was nothing short of stunning. Sometimes in lengthy travel like this, I get discouraged by (ultimately irrelevant) nuances of travel and somewhat jaded by all the temples, forts, monuments etc. All it takes is the first-hand sight of an Angkor Wat, Machu Picchu or Taj Mahal, however, to reinvigorate one's interest. At the same time, I've seen structures much older and equally adorned here in India and I have to think that part of my awe was influenced by the fact that I was star-struck. Not to take away from the Taj...it is a well preserved, perfectly planned, intricately decorated monolith, but its world-wide fame can't be denied.

I woke early again the next day only to find more overcast skies and a light drizzle. Oh Well. I took the requisite portrait from within the grounds of my tired mug with the Taj in the background, but it wouldn't be until later that afternoon when the sun finally peeked through the clouds at sunset that I was able to get a decent picture...yet only from afar. At 750 Rps ( $16), the entry fee is by far the most expensive in India and does not allow for repeat visits. I could have purchased another ticket in hopes of getting that perfect picture but 750 rps is almost 3 nights worth of hotel rooms. I know a quality experience is much more valuable than a picture, but this was definitely one instance where I wished to have both.

It was great to see the Taj up close but its value in relation to the whole of my trip amounts to only one of many a growing number of great experiences/sights in India.