Day 58 to 65 (Mar 28 - April 4 ) Kerala : Photos 21 to 33

Blog by Bronia

From Goa and the beaches our journey continued south through the tiny province of Karnataka and into the province of Kerala.

Kerala is famous for its 'backwaters' - a series of lakes, canals, rivers and lagoons divided by narrow strips of land, paddy fields, coconut groves and villages built on dykes. For visitors the popular thing to do here is to hire a houseboat or hop on one of the many ferries and wind along the waterways at a snails pace watching village life pass you by.

Here again, due to it's coastal location, it's history is steeped in european colonialism with Dutch, English and Portuguese homes everywhere as well as Muslim and Jewish influences as it was a key centre of ivory and spice trade for at least 3000 years. The Portuguese explorer, Vasco da Gama, arrived here in 1498 and that was the start of European trade.

To get to Kerala we took two trains, the first being a local train with rush-hour commuters sitting on hardback benches with multiple fans blowing to cool the un-airconditionned carriage. We were the only tourists on this train and therefore an object of much

Full Text Entry: Day 58 to 65 (Mar 28 - April 4 ) Kerala

Hey B. Just wanted to let you know that I visited Kerala when I was about 12 years old. We visited my Grandad (my dad's side) there. I don't remember it much but I do remember my Grandad taking me to the beach and showing me how to repair fishing nets. Hope you are having a wonderful time. Looking forward to reading more about your travels and seeing your photos. love, nonie

Yep...........definitely still green!!!! ;o) Fantastic photos too!!! L&R

Salut les voyageurs, je prends connaisance de votre blog. C'est vraiment sympa. Les photos donnent envie de repartir en voyage desuite. Nous sommes bien arrivés et le travail a repris. C'est la vie. C'est pas grave je penserai souvent à vous pour me sentir encore en vacances...c'est magique. Je vous souhaite plein de bonheur pour la suite de votre voyage. A très vite Peyo

Hey B. Just wanted to let you know that I visited Kerala when I was about 12 years old. We visited my Grandad (my dad's side) there. I don't remember it much but I do remember my Grandad taking me to the beach and showing me how to repair fishing nets. Hope you are having a wonderful time. Looking forward to reading more about your travels and seeing your photos. love, nonie

Yep...........definitely still green!!!! ;o) Fantastic photos too!!! L&R

Salut les voyageurs, je prends connaisance de votre blog. C'est vraiment sympa. Les photos donnent envie de repartir en voyage desuite. Nous sommes bien arrivés et le travail a repris. C'est la vie. C'est pas grave je penserai souvent à vous pour me sentir encore en vacances...c'est magique. Je vous souhaite plein de bonheur pour la suite de votre voyage. A très vite Peyo