Southern India

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10/20/07
Well it was a long, long, long trip. Starting at my house at 10 am on Thurs 10/18/07 and arriving in Cochin, India at 1:00 am. Saturday 10/20/07. Of course I lost a day due to time differences, but it was still a very long flight, layover in Singapore and flight from SP to Cochin.

The flight from SP to Kochi was a bit bumpy and the plane was full to the gills. I was a bit uncomfortable and found it hard to relax and rest, even though the type of plane I was on had good seats. It’s just hard to sit next to someone for several hours without touching or bumping them and not feel uncomfortable.

I arrived at Customs at the Cochin Airport at about 1:00 a.m. Indian time. Customs was easy and there was basically no security inspection. They just let you walk out of the airport after checking your passport at customs and they didn't even look at your bag.

I changed U.S. dollars for rupees while I was waiting for the baggage and that was easy too. There were three exchange counters and all of them were available and the men staffing them were all waving me towards them. So I went and checked the exchange rate at each and chose the nicer clerk between the two with the best rate. I went to the prepaid taxi service and purchased a ride to Kochi Grand Hotel for $480 rp or $10 USD. I got a receipt and a man, who I assume to be the handler, met me and led me outside to a taxi driver named John.

I gave the driver the receipt (which could have been a mistake) and followed him to the taxi. He loaded my bag in the trunk and then we were on our way to the hotel. The taxi was a white Ambassador sedan with real springs in the seat and nice upholstery The Hindustan Ambassador is a model of car manufactured by Hindustan Motors of India. It has been in production since 1957 and is based on the Morris Oxford model first made by the Morris Motor Company at Cowley, Oxford in the United Kingdom.

On the way, the driver stopped and got fuel and turned in the receipt I had given him to get his share of money for the fare. This could have been a bad situation for me as the instructions from the tour company said to hold onto the receipt and wait to give it to the driver upon arrival at my destination. Once I figured out what the driver was doing, I realized that the driver could have turned in the receipt, got his money, and then drop me anywhere. Thank goodness he was honest or I could have been in a real pickle!

The good news is that I got to the hotel and was all good. The taxi ride from the airport took about 45 minutes on a rather bumpy road. While riding into Ernakulum, I noticed that there is a pecking order and horn communication on the roads. It goes motorcycle, auto-rickshaw, slow car, fast car, truck, and bus. The drivers beep each other to move over so they can pass. It seems to be a good system although at times it felt a bit chaotic and the driver did not pay attention to the stop lights or highway signs. I looked for a seatbelt when I got in the taxi, but did not find one. The road from the airport had many potholes and was rather rough going. The driver would be cruising along, not too fast, probably 45 mph and then all of a sudden slam on the brakes and swerve around a pothole and then speed up again. The bridge approaches and exits are also in very bad shape and extremely bumpy and sometimes I wondered if the bridges were going stay together while we were driving over them. My driver, John, was a short Indian man wearing a dhoti (solid colored cloth wrapped around the waist like a skirt) and a short sleeve button up light cotton shirt. He was very nice and very welcoming. It is common to see men here wearing dhoti’s and they also wear slacks. The women wear salwar kameez or sari’s. I have only seen a couple of women in western dress.


My hotel room at the Kochi Grand Hotel in Ernakulum is nice and basic, The power switch for the hotel rooms isn’t automatic and when I first went up to the room I couldn't figure out how to turn the lights on. I flipped all the switches, but nothing worked. So I went back down to the lobby at 2 a.m. and asked the hotel clerk how to make the lights work. He directed me to put the key card on my room key in the slot by the light switches just inside my room. So, I went back to my room and gave it a try and it worked!

So every time you enter the hotel room you put your key card into the slot and it turns the power in your room on and when you leave and take your key, it turns the power off. I thought this was an ingenious way to save energy and also keep guests from misplacing their key.

Once I got settled a bit, I showered and rested. I haven't experienced much jet lag yet. I’ve had a bit of fatigue and a headache, but that's all.

After I rested, I got up in the morning and headed down to the hotel restaurant for the continental breakfast which is included in the hotel price. It is a nice breakfast.

The hotel has WiFi, but you have to have a computer in order to use it. The hotel clerk said that because it was Sunday, the closest internet shop that would be open was down the street a few blocks. So I got directions and was on my way to find the Internet shop.

Walking around this part of town seems to be relatively safe. People look at me, but nothing more. The stories I read about Indian men before my trip have not come true yet. They aren't rude. They don't try to pinch me. They don't harass me in any way. They just looked at me and if I look at them back and smile they smile back and I go on my merry way. No groping, no touching, no grabbing. Indian men are everywhere and I rarely see Indian women alone. The men smile and look at me, but it doesn’t feel creepy. I think they are just curious.

I found my way to a very dark and grubby Internet shop. It was a dark dingy hole in the wall place. I shot off a quick note to family and friends and then was on my way to explore my new surroundings. ** Oh! Hmmmm, I am experiencing my first power cut in India. The lights just went off. . . . Oh well, where was I? I walked the streets and looked around for a place where I could buy some lightweight pants, shirt, or salwar kameez. Unfortunately it was Sunday and not many shops were open, but I enjoyed walking anyway. **Oh, that didn't last long, the power is on again.

As I was wandering around, the cycle rickshaw drivers would pull up along the sidewalk and ask if I wanted a ride, but I said no. They seemed to take the hint and went on their way, looking for another fare. I walk several blocks each way from my hotel and found a store selling shirts and other clothes. After much looking, I bought a shirt for 195 rp and or about 4 USD. I went to another shop in the same group of shops, but they did not have my size, so I went to another shop.

My shopping experience was interesting as the salespeople really want to sell something but because I am on large size in both top and bottom they have hard time finding things that fit me. Finally, in one shop I spotted some long house-type dresses that had the type of design and material I was looking for. I asked if they had shirts that were similar to the dresses, but they said no, but they could make the dresses into shirts. I was so pleased to find out they could alter them for me. I asked what the additional charge would be and they said it was included in the price. After looking at many designs and colors, I chose three dresses to have made into long shirts.

After I picked out the dresses, the salesman wanted me to keep trying on different clothes and keep looking at things He kept showing me cloth and other clothes after I had decided on the shirts and I thought he was never going to stop, even after I gently tried to tell him that I was done shopping several times. Finally I made it very clear to him that I was going to leave, without purchasing the shirts, if he did not let me just wait for the alterations to be made. He finally got the hint and let me just sit and wait, so I was able to write in my journal some.

After waiting for a bit, it was tea time. The salesmen were very kind and offered me a sweet ball of fried coconut flour and a flat biscuit that looked like a skinny malformed bagel. The bagel thing had some savory spices that I am not familiar with - it was a bit spicy for me. They also offered me some water. I sat in the shop and journaled for a while, visited with the staff and other customers, but felt like I was in the way when other customers came in and the salesmen wanted to spread out cloth to show.

After a while the main salesman took me upstairs to consult with the tailors. It was great to be able to explain to the tailors what I had in mind for the shirts. It was a new and very rewarding experience. I had the extra dress material made into squares to use for bandannas, handkerchiefs, or table napkins later.

While I waited for alterations to be made, I was able to spend some time with the tailors. The guy’s name was Prashob and the lady was Shamir. Prashob and Shamir used very old electric sewing machines to do the work and were very good at sewing and very quick. Shamir was the owner of the shop and I was impressed with her as she was smart and very nice I'm glad that she owned the shop. From what I had read before I had the impression that India was a male dominated society and that they own everything, but I am finding that that is not true at least in southern India.

After shopping, I hung out in my room and then took a nap. I woke up too late for dinner in a restaurant as it was dark outside and I did not feel it was safe to go wandering the streets of a strange city, alone, after dark. The hotel restaurant was also closed, but I was able to order room service. What a treat! My first ever room service. I ordered eggs, toast, pineapple and a chocolate milkshake that turned out to be chocolate milk. I slept well using my earplugs - the key to good nights sleep for sure.

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Photos

Shameera
The tailor/owner of the shop where I had my shirts made.

India's Garbage Service
Notice that the workers are in uniforms but have bare feet and hands and are picking up the garbage with baskets and their hands. Ick!!

Garbage Pickup Closer Look
I am not sure if there are specific places to put the garbage for pick up or not. It seemed like there were just piles here and there- You can see a green garbage bin, but it is way too small for the amount of trash that is around.

KFC Delivery Anyone?
Fast food by motorcycle - the only way to get anywhere quickly in any Indian city.

Typical Kochi/Ernakulum Traffic
Note all the morotcycles and how packed the red buses are.

House, Scooter, BIke
A nicer house with a vintage scooter parked in front and a guy hauling his propane tank on a bike.