Blogs from Alleppey, Kerala, India, Asia
April 18th 2012
Well I'm a bit later writing about this, but I have been having a good time! Alleppey is a busy little tourist centre with loads of places to stay and take houseboats from. Still travelling with Louisa, we also met up with a friend I made in Jaisalmer, a kyrgys (from kyrgyzstan) girl called Aijan. She got there several hours before us (we had 2 long hard-chaired hot bus journeys totalling 6 1/2 hours) and found us the most beautiful place ever to stay. It was right on the lake at the front and backed on to the rice paddys. Sunrise over the water and sunset over the fields and coconut trees. Beautiful. From Alleppey I did a canoe boat trip on the backwaters and this was great! First we took the ferry out to a ... read more
Inner Peace, tropical Kerala Backwaters & Amma Ashram
Published: April 7th 2012Asia » India » Kerala » Alleppey
February 24th 2012
After stunning Munnar and its sea of tea plantation, time to go back to the Indian coast, white deserted beach and quiet backwaters are on the program before catching up with one of my closest friend Pauline at Amma Ashram. Far from the hustle and bustle of Indian cities, Kerala country side has this special something that makes you feel serene. No rush here or jumping from one tourist spot to another but a slow path travel where one takes the time to enjoy simple day to day life taking place all around, the colors & scents of the spices, the smile and waving of people met along the way & the every second peace. On the map, most of the small towns seem to be near from each other but somehow I had this feeling ... read more
Not so quiet cruising – Allepey and the Kerala backwaters
Published: February 21st 2012Asia » India » Kerala » Alleppey
February 21st 2012
The relatively late morning departure (08.45am) for our drive to Allepey from Cochin was short by our usual standards at just over 3 hours, so short that I almost felt like we had in some way cheated and taken a short cut that we weren’t supposed to. We regularly do 12 hour drives and as such anything under 6 hours now feels like a drive to the supermarket and anything under 3 hours seems like a walk to the shop, it wasn’t so long ago though that the thought of a 6 hour journey would have sent me into a spiral of despair. Over the years from talking to people from other parts of the world about travelling, (especially those in the US and Canada) I have come to realise just how pathetic the British are ... read more
February 6th 2012
Sorry about no blog recently but had a big problem with Travelblog. We are sending this from a public computer so no photos yet - we'll try later. We have found the Arabian Sea - miles long coconut fringed beaches - with only us in the sea. Bliss. Arrived at our final chosen destination yesterday - Marari Beach. Despite the disapointment of our plans being changed, the hotel management not only offered us upgraded pool rooms but also free dinner with wine. We feel amply compensated. Gala night tonight - the last sunset on a fabulous trip discovering India.... read more
February 6th 2012
just to let you know that for some reason Travelblog has not been sending out e-mails so just click on NEXT ENTRY OR PREVIOUS ENTRY to see what you have missed.... read more
February 5th 2012
ALLEPPEY IS A SMALL TOWN in the southern state of Kerala that is the entryway to the sprawling ‘backwaters’, or lagoons that run parallel to the Arabian Sea. Brilliant green moss and vines run rampant through the town and the air is heavy with the hum of those most evil of bugs, mosquitoes. Swamp filled canals crisscross through the town leading out to larger, navigable waterways. In an interesting contrast, the western side of Alleppey is lined not by marshes and swamps, but by a golden stretch of sand which slopes downward into the shining Arabian Sea. This strip of beach has a Coney Island type of feel with Indian families dressed in their glittering saris strolling up and down the beach and kids gobbling down cotton candy and ice cream.Vendors sell balloons, bright red and ... read more
February 4th 2012
Here we are sat on our personal houseboat, a glass of white wine in hand, watching the sun go down. Sorry you won’t be reading this as we have no wifi – hopefully we will have tomorrow. The day started in Kochi and then an hour and a half drive to Punnamada Resort on Lake Alleppey. Our houseboat has two ensuite bedrooms, a salon/dining room where we will be dining tonight, a galley kitchen and joy of joy a chef innit. Safety is ensured by captain and his bos’n…… Cap’n Jack…..aaarrr Once aboard we were greeted with a traditional welcome – a lighted lamp – and a guided tour of our home for the next day. We set sail henceforth and shortly after were served a feast of Indian fare. Again not hot hot, but highly ... read more
February 4th 2012
We retreated from the chilly hills of the Western Ghats to the warmth of the coast at a spot called Marari Beach, where we are storing up the warmth before we come home to the wintery conditions in the UK. We have spent the last few days of our holiday resting, reading and relaxing and I will leave the photographs to set the scene.... read more
February 4th 2012
We left our overnight mooring at 8 o’clock and after a splendid breakfast of fresh pineapple, apple, grapefruit, muscat grapes, guava, banana, watermelon, pancakes with honey, French toast, chocolate muffins and coffee, we cut across the width of the lake. It’s huge. The first fishermen we came across were those catching small mussels – they use a pole with a rake and box on the end and scrape the lake bed to work them free. These canoes usually held one man, occasionally two, and were ‘powered’ by a long pole. Next we came across fishermen catching ‘black fish’. These canoes hold five or six men, each with a paddle (occasionally one with a long pole) and to fish, first they sighted the black fish in the water and then caught it using traditional method. A far ... read more
January 26th 2012
Here's Lynne telling you all about our overnight boat cruise on the backwaters. By lunchtime each day the riceboats are ready to go: fresh linen on the beds, supplies stowed and passengers on board. A riceboat is a houseboat used traditionally to transport rice from the paddy fields that flank the waterways. Now many boats are built for tourist cruises but they still have to opeate alongside all the people who live and work on the banks of the lake and its backwaters. Our first houseboat cruise in 2010 was memorable and so we decided to do another one on this trip. The lake was busier this time and is quite obviously becoming a bigger tourist attraction. But the picturesque crafts still have old fashioned charm, making their way through the carpets of water hyancinths like ... read more
