PATIENCE AND PERSEVERANCE: Training to be a professional kathakali dancer can take up to 10 years.
THE staggeringly beautiful Backwaters of India’s Kerala State is one of the destinations featured in the book — 1,000 places to see before you die.
Kerala has a very well-developed connected system of lakes, lagoons, canals and rivers known as Backwaters, a name that sounds rather unappealing to such scenic places.
The lake is actually fresh river water that comes down from the rivers and then flows into the ocean. Thus the name – Backwaters.
SPICY: Varieties of exotic Keralan spices that could keep any larder well stocked for months.
A houseboat cruise on Vembanadu Lake of Allepey Backwaters in Kerala, 62km south of Kochi, is a divine experience of a journey laced with mesmeric scenic beauty.
The boats are built in the style of traditional fishing boats but they have all the modern conveniences – air-cond, toilets, showers and beds.
A typical houseboat consists of a captain, a chef and an engine driver.
Yes, you can have a scrumptious meal on board and chilled beer, hot coffee or juices – who can resist that?
PANTOMIME: A native classical dancer doing his make-up backstage.
As I sat comfortably by the window after a scrumptious meal with a camera on my lap and a mug of coffee in my hand while the others were taking a good nap, I remembered the book — God of small things by Arundhati Roy who grew up in one of the small villages in Kerala along the Backwaters.
The fiction is an emotional account of the tragic story of a 17-year old girl Rahel and her brother Estha and their divorced mother Ammu, set in the darker side of India’s history of caste system but with vivid description of the peaceful tropical paradise of the Backwaters.
The writer’s short crisp sentences enchant its readers in a special way.
At a press interview, she said: “A lot of the atmosphere in God of small things is based on my experiences of what it was like to grow up in Kerala.”
I believe the sublime beauty and tranquil surroundings at the Backwaters, where she was born and raised, had given Arundhati an inspiration to write down her thoughts.
I would strongly recommend reading this book, which won the prestigious Booker Prize in London in 1997, before visiting Kochi, or if you are spending a night on the boathouse, have that exquisite piece of literature in your bag and read it by the sleepy Backwaters.
SNAPPING THE SIGHTS: A tourist with camera at the ready during a tour of Kochi.
You would probably laugh and weep with the characters of the book while drifting past the unspoilt beauty of countless swaying coconut palms, paddy fields, lush green vegetation, small villages, schools and brightly coloured churches on the banks of the lake.
It is even a sight just to watch many other holiday-makers, Nature lovers and honeymooners cruising through the waters, made green by the reflections of the greenery from the bank.
Cruising along the river, I could see the daily routines of 60,000 villagers come alive. Children going home from school along the riverbank, small passengers-filled motor boats plying across the river and fishermen waiting patiently in small boats to land their catch.
INSPIRING: A mesmeric sight during a river cruise along the Backwaters.
Traditionally, the Backwaters are used by local people for transport, fishing and agriculture.
An annual snakeboat race is held along the Backwaters that provides a great source of entertainment for both locals and tourists alike, Shine Aroor, our tourist guide, told us while we passed by a snakeboat moored by the bank.
Kathakali cultural dance
Talking about Kerala without mentioning kathakali will leave the story of Kochi incomplete. We watched a performance of this native classical dance form and also captured the backstage make-up.
Kathakali (literally story-play) is a traditional dance drama with elaborate make-up and costumes, involving dancing with detailed facial expressions and gestures to underline the dance, vocal and instrumental accompaniment.
KOCHI’S PERFORMING ARTS : The Kathakali is a traditional dance drama with elaborate make-up and costumes, involving dancing with detailed facial expressions and gestures to underline the dance, vocal and instrumental accompaniment.
The dances are pantomimes, telling a story through exaggerated mimics and gestures rooted in the Hindu mythology.
The performers’ wordless communication and play is very engaging from beginning to end.
Shine told me it is a great honour to be a kathakali performer and training to be a professional kathakali dancer can take up to 10 years.
Shop till you drop
Show Kochi off at your next party do by wearing a Kerala kasuvu sari? Yes, a member of the tour group told me excitedly she picked up one sari for RM25 only. Another had saris and shirts for all the members of the family.
For me, it is the rich spices I bought for 200 rupees that could keep my larder well stocked for many months.
Yes, spices to cook biryani chicken with – which is very out of this world — and there is none in Malaysia that tastes as aromatic and fragrant as that cooked with Kochi spices.
A tea lover will have no problem with brewing creamy masala tea with slight hints of ginger and cinnamon the Indian way if you get the spices from Kochi.
There are many other picks such as painted mats, curtains woven from bamboo and handcrafted elephants to bring home as souvenirs.
RIVER CROSSING: The way of life.
Ayurvedic massage
Ayurveda, a 4,000-year-old holistic treatment, is said to be good for rheumatism, insomnia, depression and even flu. After a consultation, practitioners will recommend a course of all-natural therapy, usually spreading over several days.
In a single massage — with the herbs and coconut and medicinal oils working into every pore of your body — it disengages your mind, relaxes your muscles and softens your skin — or at the very least, refreshes your spirit.
There are four medical colleges in Kochi, offering a 4-year traditional medicine course on Ayurvedic massage.
INSPIRING: A mesmeric sight during a river cruise along the Backwaters.
God’s own country
A beautiful port, steeped in history; great exotic varieties of Keralan spices; wonderful mix of churches, synagogues, temples and mosques; lush green palm-fringed landscape; colourful saris in shops and wonderful foods all vouch for Kochi’s diversity and uniqueness.
Shine (the tourist guide) told me Kerala prides itself with having the highest literacy rate of 94 per cent – even the working elephants are bilingual as they respond to commands in Hindi as well as the local Malayalam.
They call themselves God’s own country – it’s difficult to challenge that appellation.