A Kettuvallam on Vembanadu Lake
in
Kerala, South India
Fishermen paddle dugout canoes at
Kovalam Beach, Kerala.
Kerala — “Land of Green Magic”
Kerala is one of those places the locals can call “God’s Own Country” and keep a straight face. It is indeed beautiful, India’s version of a trip to Tahiti. With a host of superlatives to their credit — India’s lowest birth rate and highest life expectancy, highest literacy rate, lowest AIDS rate, and so on — Keralans are justly proud.
In these pages we travel by kettuvallam and motor launch on Kayankulam, Vembanadu and Asthamudi Lakes. Along the way, we visit backwater villages, have a fish dinner cooked over an open fire, witness a village procession, and take a look at coir and copra processing. We travel around as well as traditional Chinese dipnet fishing, watch Kathak and Kathakali dance performances, visit a street market, look briefly at Keralan society, stroll around Kochi (formerly known as Cochin), and see other sights of the fabled Malabar Coast. Finally, we relax at Kovalam Beach.
