we got of the boat and headed for Cochin again
and since we had half a day before our flight back to the north
we had to do some sight seeing
it's still exotic to see elephants on the streets
this was a temple elephant who had blessed the people at s special puja the night before
he had so many chains around him..hmmm....really don't like
but he was a HUGE male..
spices spices ....all neatly displayed...
all these chinese fishing nets...all along the waters..
lime for the nimbu pani...fresh lime soda...salt or sweet or mixed...
yummy yummy
we met our guide at the market ...I wanted to see the fish and meat market
so no typical sightseeing for us to start with
red spinach, fresh tamarind, three kinds of tapioca and banana flower are just some of the fun things I looked at...
the squid men..
see the old scales...here called weighing machines....
so many different kinds of fish...some expected and some very unexpected..like
these baby sharks....they also had sting rays!
it was a busy market..
I'm not going to show you the meat market....I saw some things that I have never seen before
and hope I never will again....
so we headed for the Dhobi Khana...laundry place...only one still existing in Cochin...
45 family members run it..called dhobi wallah's...
electrical irons
but also coconut fueled irons...once the coconut is hot it can be used for 4 hours of ironing !
I guess and hope it's better for the environment with coconuts..
so cool that they twist the ropes instead of using washing pins
the oldest member , 85 year and still working even though blind on one eye...
now we headed for Jew Town...goes way back in time...in 1524 the jews who came to Cochin
after fleeing from attacking muslims got protection from the Maharadja...
in the 1930-40 the congregation was a big as 2000 members but almost all emigrated to Israel..
wonder where she belonged before..
Jew town is famous for it's antique stores..
beautiful alleys and you find signs all over that you are in Jew Town
just look at the window...
the Paradesi synagogue was built in 1568 by descendants of Spanish, Dutch and other European jews.....
the clock towers was added in 1760
then we headed for St Frances church..the oldest church in India..
built by the Fransiscan friars who accompanied the Portugese settlers in 1500
1663 it came under the control of the Dutch who turned into a protestant church
Vasco da Gama the first european navigator to India was laid to rest here in 1524 but his remains where moved home to Portugal in 1538
old times fans...hand driven
on the outside of the church you find the ropes that they pulled to keep the church goers cool..
cool construction...
our trip was over and we headed home
but we both really enjoyed every minute in Kerala
it's a place we want to come back to for sure
hope you have enjoyed and maybe someone got some inspiration and want to travel here
I booked everything through:
http://www.monkfoot.com
have a look at all their travel arrangements !!
traveling in India can be tricky so I strongly recommend that you book everything in advance
home stays- hotels, car with driver and house boat etc
they can help you with everything
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