I left Alleppey around noon and was unable to make a trip to Varkela as I had originally planned. The bus ride would have taken 3.5 hrs and I did not want to be rushed to make it back to Ernakulam for my evening train ride to Madras. So, I opted to hop on the bus back to Ernakulam to make my way to Ft. Kochin.
On the bus I sat next to a very pleasant local lady by the name of Rienna (like Sienna). She was very informative about all of the small towns we passed through. She pointed out all of the famous churches, temples and manufacturing plants. She also told me of things I should see while in Ft. Kochin. At one point she tapped me on the arm and said "look to the left". I looked and saw several market shops set far off the road, in front of the shops were large yards about the size of two football fields. She said that every year in December, elephants are brought in from all over Kerala and are washed in the yards. She said the area is crowded with hundreds of elephants and the streets are shut down from traffic. Unfortunately this isn't the season and I would have to come back in December to enjoy that experience. She gave me more information about the shops and coasts in Ernakulam. So I decided to jump off the bus where she did and explore the town a little bit. Ernakulam is basically a smaller version of Bangalore, so I walked to the coast, took a few pics and jumped on another bus to Ft. Kochin.
I realized within the first 10 minutes of being here that Ft. Kochin is a prime tourist area for Europeans and Indians. The quaint little streets are lined with cottages and shops that show off the towns Dutch and Portuguese heritage. The beach is lined with rocks, Chinese fishing nets, small row boats and fish markets. The area is very pedestrian friendly and the rickshaw drivers practically beg for business. Sunset is, predicatably, at 6:30 and I lingered around the coast until I could take some pictures.
After a few pics and a little shopping. I went to the hotel to clean up and find some food. I opted to eat in a cafe just adjacent from my hotel. The cafe was run by a very charismatic, drunk local who was very apologetic when my drink to not make it to me in a timely manner. After an hour had passed and I still had not received my food, I heard him go into the kitchen and yell, loudly, at the workers. I ordered another soda and when I did not receive that for a while, again he yelled at the workers. After over an hour and half I made friends with a traveller from Brooklyn. He joined me for dinner and I asked them to bring another plate. This took some time and prompted more yelling and some dishes being broken in the kitchen. After each of these incidences, the charismatic drunk would always return with a pleasant smile and apologies. The irony of it all is the name of the restaurant is Cafe Calm!
During dinner, I found out that my new friend is a photojournalist working on his own private documentary of the Indian cultures. He works in television and film and took 2 months off to travel through India and add to his private portfolio. He wanted to take a picture of me outside, but while he was digging for his equipment I felt the sting of fire ants on my feet and had to rush off to rinse them. He is the first tourist I have actually had a real conversation with since arriving to India (aside from the U.K. family). I wish him well.
This morning I woke up and decided to venture onto the streets. I stopped and saw St. Francis Church where Vincent de Gama died and was buried for 14 yrs until his body was moved to Lisbon. After that, I ventured onto the beach area, where I did a little bit of chinese fishing with the nets. Basically I just pulled on a roped and yelled some rhythm with the fishermen. My next stop is Pondicherry and I think it may be very similar to this area.
Until next time
~Lisa
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