The Very Chill Fort Kochi

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After our brief time in Alleppey floating down the backwaters of Kerala, we hopped a two hour bus to the city of Kochi, still in the province of Kerala, and stayed in Fort Kochi. Fort Kochi is the oldest port in India, and shares a history of settlement by a variety of invaders, Portuguese, Dutch, and English, all of whom have left their marks in the interesting architecture that still provides so much character today. The narrow, pristine streets, quiet roadways where you really could fearlessly walk or ride a bicycle, and the very laid back vibe of Fort Kochi made you sometimes wonder if you
really were in India. We were sorry we only had a couple of days to spend here.

Because we thought it would be easy to do from this little town, we decided to send home a parcel of extra stuff we no longer wanted to carry. But this is India, and nothing should ever be assumed to be easy. We discovered that all parcels leaving India, once boxed, had to be stitched."Stitched? Parcels? What does this mean?" we asked. This meant having to find a seamstress who would sew a white cotton bag to fit the box, stitch it up completely, then apply hot wax to all the stitches to
ensure that this package could not be tampered with while en route. Once this meticulous process was completed, we were allowed to write our address on the box. ( Add precaution and never ending rules once again to the long list of defining characteristics for this country). So we followed through with the process, and a half day later we had rid ourselves of fifteen pounds of excess cargo we no longer had to haul around. You will not be surprised to know that ten of those fifteen pounds belonged to Bev. Our backpack weight is now 20 kilos for Bev (including the all important guitar) and 15 for Stan. This means that when we trucked up the cliffs of Varkala a while back, Bev was actually carrying fifty five pounds. Superwoman? or Stupidwoman?

Before we hit the road again and left Kerala, we did take in a traditional Keralan Dance performance. We had the opportunity,one hour before the show began, to watch the actors applying their make-up. Then we were introduced to a demonstration of the hand mudras, or signals, the eye movements, and the facial expressions: all of which are used to tell the
story, along with the accompanying singer. There is no spoken word. Then came the actual performance, accompanied by three Keralan drummers. The performance was very interesting as it was totally different than anything we'd ever seen before.

But we have yet much to see and experience in this vast country, and Mumbai is calling us, so we are on the road again.

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Photos

Kerelan Dancer
Watching him get his make-up done was a treat in itself.

Getting Ready for the Performance
This transition from real to character went on for an hour, and the results, as you will note, were quite impressive.

The Singer and Storyteller
His vocals, along with the dancers hand mudras and facial expressions, told the entire story. There was no other dialogue. Intriguing.

Yet Another Dance Shot
Remember - the story is told by the hands and the facial expressions. Check these out.

The Other Major Character
Don't ask for details about the story. It was impressive though.

The Final Scene
The big guy is about to destroy the other guy. Note the facial expressions.

The Chinese Fishing Nets of Kochi
These nets are an ancient design which is still in use, and are apparently unique to this port area.