Cruising Down Kerala…On a Houseboat…Sipping on Lassi & Juice

When I was inquiring about potential weekend trips in India, Kerala was one of the most talked about destinations.  Similar to Goa, Kerala is located on the west coast of India, although Kerala is further south.  Kochi, the main airport of Kerala is merely an hour away from Bangalore, making it a perfect weekend destination.  After our directionless trip to Goa, I learned my valuable lesson and did a good amount of research prior to landing in Kerala.  I also reached out to a friend who runs an amazing travel concierge service, and her associate put together a fun filled itinerary for us.

Kerala is popular tourist destination filled with spectacular attractions, generally divided into three sections, beaches, backwaters, as well as mountains that contain waterfalls, wild forests, coffee and tea plantations.  Tourists usually spend one to two weeks here due to the wide array of sights in the region.  Unfortunately, we only had a weekend to spare.  Since we spent two days on the beach in Goa, I’ve decided to check out the backwaters of Kerala.  I was a bit hesitant to spend the night on a houseboat, as I was worried about the lack of nighttime activities and the amount of mosquitos we might encounter once the boat is docked for the night.  Curiosity won over and we decided to book a houseboat, and it was the best experience we have had in India thus far.

We landed in Kochi airport and drove over two hours to get to Alleppey, where the houseboat is docked.  Looking at the boathouse from the outside, I was a little apprehensive, and was concerned about the facilities on board.  I soon realized that my fears were unfounded as the boat is very well appointed, and perfect size for a couple.  The front of the boat was covered with cushion to lounge and relax during the cruise, which was followed by a comfortable dining area and lounge chairs.  The middle of the boat contained an air conditioned bedroom with a king size bed and a full bathroom with shower.  While the back of the boat had a fully functional kitchen.  Did I mention that the boat came with three crew members?  Two of the crew members took turn driving the boat, while the chef cooked in the kitchen.

The boat took off for the backwaters as soon as we boarded.  Per local law, the boat had to be docked by 5:30pm.  Once we settled in, the chef brought out what he termed to be a “traditional Kerala lunch”, which included fried fish, vegetable curry, pumpkins and green beans.  I honestly did not expect much in terms of food since it was all part of the houseboat package, but it was a delicious meal, made all the better with the gentle breeze from the open water.

After lunch, we took full advantage of the comfortable cushion on the front of the boat and settled in to admire the view.   Kerala backwaters are an interconnected network of lakes, rivers and canals.  It is essentially a large waterway that is crucial to the local trade and transportation.  Tourism has become an integral part of the local economy in recent years due to the increased popularity of houseboats.  I read that number of tourists have increased by five folds in the past five years, while the rates of the houseboats have also tripled in recent years.  During peak season, the canal can be congested with large houseboats.  Fortunately we were here during the off season, although for a short stretch, we could still see quite a number of boats passing us by.

It was cloudy for most of the day, as such, we did not get to see a proper sunset.  But we were still able to get a glimpse of the sun setting through the clouds.  Moreover, we were fortunate enough not to get rained on while we were cruising down the water, so that we could properly enjoy the view on the front of the boat.

As per the local law, the boat docked at a canal for the night, and we left the boat to briefly explore the canal.

Just as we started to settle in for dinner, a huge thunderstorm rolled in.  It was quite an experience eating dinner by the candlelight with loud thunders, bolts of lightning, as well as heavy gusts of wind that rocked the boat back and forth.  I didn’t enjoy the cracks of thunder, but I found the rocking motion of the boat quite soothing, and kind of hoped that the storm will last until bedtime.  With regard to dinner, it was quite a feast with tiger prawns, fish curry, pepper chicken and lentils.  During the afternoon river cruise, the chef asked us if we wanted to have prawns for dinner, as the boat could stop at a local seafood vendor for us to buy the prawns and he will cook them for us.  I read afterwards that this is a typical “arrangement” between the boat operators and local vendors, as the vendors would upcharge the tourists three to four times of the normal price.  We did opt to buy the prawns and at the time I thought the prawns were quite pricey, but they were the best thing at dinner.  I guess I should chalk it up as part of the experience.  Most touristy places hike up prices, moreover, the crew never pressured us to purchase the prawns, it was simply an option that we could’ve easily said no to.

Since it was raining outside and we were docked on a quiet canal, the only thing to do after dinner was to retire to bed.  The crew provided turn down service by setting up the mosquito netting around the bed, and it was effective as I did not get bit once during the night.  The water pressure for the shower was surprisingly good, and the air conditioning was a welcome amenity as the air became quite humid after the rain.  I had a good night sleep with the gentle rocking of the boat.

We woke up bright and early next morning as the crew prepared the boat for the cruise back.  I enjoyed my morning coffee with the breathtaking view of the open water.  We had a full day of sightseeing ahead of us, therefore we left earlier than other houseboats.  The only other boats on the water were small fisherman boats.  There were a number of Chinese Fishing Nets along the water, and were an interesting sight to behold.  The fishing nets were introduced by a Chinese explorer more than 500 years ago (hence the name), and still in use to this day.  They are huge contraptions that hold a large net at the end, the fishermen will lower the net into the water, and pull it up periodically, whatever sea creatures are caught on the net are pulled in.  The net is so heavy that it requires 5-6 people to pull it up at once.

I was sad to see the houseboat docked back on shore, I wish we could’ve stayed on the water for another day.  We proceeded to drive back to Kochi and started our day of sightseeing at the town of Fort Kochi.  Our tour guide met us there and gave us a brief overview of the city.  Kochi was the center of Indian spice trade for a very long time, as such, a number of different religions have landed here.  Kochi has the largest population of Christians in India, while Judaism reached Kerala in the times of King Solomon.  In fact, Kochi has the oldest synagogue in the commonwealth.  There is area in Kochi called Jew Town where the Jewish community (called Cochin Jews) was granted sanctuary from the persecution of the Portuguese in the 16th century.  The Paradesi Synagogue was built here and the neighborhood was built around it.  Since then, according to our tour guide, nearly all of the members of the community have settled elsewhere, mostly to Israel and US.  There are only 4 members left in Jew Town at this moment, even though the Paradesi Synagogue is still in use, the houses formerly occupied by the Cochin Jews have morphed into stores geared toward tourists visiting the synagogue.  The history of Kochi is extremely fascinating, we also walked down Princess Street, which is full of European style houses.

It is not surprising that we ended the trip with a meal, as we tend to do in all trips.  We finished the tour with a lunch in Kashi Art Cafe.  We opted for a lighter fare of mango salad and vegetable lasagne.  However, our tour guide suggested that we try the chocolate cake this restaurant is famous for, and it did not disappoint, the gooey chocolate goodness was the perfect way to end this trip.