For an extremely relaxing 20 hours we had our own houseboat to cruise the lagoon, river, & canal backwaters south of Cochin.

It took our driver about 2 hours to drive us to Allepey. Along the way we passed many small villages with short glimpses through the palm trees revealing sandy beaches along the Indian Ocean.

I saw a sign that said “Hot Chips.” I asked our driver what it meant & he said, “banana chips.” I thought it sounded like a great place to get some local junk food, so we stopped. Every thing we sampled tasted good; but, I only picked two kinds.

Once we arrived, a small power boat shuttled us to our private houseboat.

Over the next day, we enjoyed wonderful local meals & time to relax without all the loud, hustle bustle in the city.

A three man crew took care of us.

The view was always interesting.

We made one stop where we saw the oldest church in India which was founded in 427 CE during the Roman Empire.

About 2% of Indians are Christians; but, the % is much higher along the coast in Kerala due to the long European influence. We saw many churches on our drive to & from the houseboat.

It was a wonderful & peaceful way to wake up with a cup of tea.

Great experience.

Our next stop in India was historical, coastal city Cochin on the Arabian Sea (Indian Ocean). It is located in the southern Indian state Kerala.

This port city dates back to Roman times; but, a major change occurred in 1498 when the Portuguese arrived opening a direct sea route between Europe and India to export spices. Unlike Columbus 6 years earlier who thought he sailed to India, the sea route to India was established.

Even today Kerala is known to grow the world’s best cinnamon, cloves, & black pepper.

Today it is a thriving port city inviting cruise ships with many Western tourists. Unlike in previous places we visited, we are unremarkable to the locals, so, alas, our 15 minutes of fame has expired. 🤪🤣

Our hotel is located inside the original Portuguese fort that was later taken over by the Dutch, then the British.

Touring around the old fort, we visited Saint Francis Church which is the oldest European Catholic Church in India.

After seeing the church, we walked to the nearby coastline & saw the Chinese fishing nets that are lowered to catch the fish and raised for collection.

On our first morning, we visited a fish market & saw fishermen bringing in their fresh catch of the day.

An interesting site was the location where both hotels & locals bring their linens & clothes to be washed, dried, & pressed.

With many tourists there is no shortage of shopping in what is called “Jew Town”. It got its name because many Jewish people once lived here; but, now their homes are shops, hotels, & restaurants.

Jew Town also has many spice shops where you can buy the many spices grown in Kerala.

Not far from our hotel, I enjoyed shopping for a new summer dress & walked out with three for $20 each.

Besides finding clothes at a bargain price, you can also have alterations done quickly for a small amount. A skirt I bought a few weeks ago was too long. In 10 minutes it was altered & ready to go for only $3.50.

One highlight in Cochin was the Great K V Kathakali Theater where we enjoyed two performances.

The first was the traditional Kathakali Dance. The word “Kathakali” is derived from the Sanskrit words “Katha” which means “story” & “kali” which means “to play or perform”.

We arrived early enough to see the three main actors who were all men putting on their makeup.

At the beginning, one actor along with an explanation by an English interpreter showed the audience the variety of feelings she (played by a man) was able to portray with her facial expressions.

Every quiver of the lips, flicker of the eyes, & facial expression has great significance so they call this performing “eye dancing.

After the demonstration & explanatory comments, they put on a short play based on Indian lore involving lust, love, deception, & anger with a bit of violence thrown in. Just like your typical Hollywood blockbuster. 😂

The second performance we saw was a small classical Indian dance performance.

Here are a few more sights & memories from Cochin.