Every good photograph has a main subject, that draws the attention of the audience and communicates a story. And this week, the challenge for the weekly photo challenge is “One” i.e. to share a pic that focusses on one thing. And I decided that what better pic for this topic than a colorful and dramatic kathakali dancer in all his finery.
A Kathakali dancer, Kochi, Kerala
This week’s weekly photo challenge is one of my favorite topics for photographic composition i.e. Horizon. Per its definition a horizon is the line or the boundary that separates the earth and sky. However I have always liked to interpret it as my “Ultimate Destination” for my travel journey. It is my “Hope” and “Inspiration” as it’s that point that keeps me wanting to undertake newer travel paths in the hope of reaching that end or that point someday and with each mile or trip I expand my horizon, both in terms of perspective and places.
So today I am sharing a few pics from my latest trip to Kerala with my own new found “Horizons” –
A gorgeous sunset over Fort Kochi, Kochi
This week’s weekly photo challenge is “Sea” and the emotions that the “Sea” invokes in each one of us. And, I couldn’t have asked for a better topic as amongst all the natural sights, this is my favorite. I was born and live in Mumbai, a city by the Arabian Sea and was lucky to live in a sea facing house (till very recently too). Hence some of my earliest memories are of the sights and sounds of the sea; and its various moods and colors have been an important part of my growing up years. Hence it’s no surprise that some of my best holidays and pictures have been by the sea and I am sharing some of the same with you today –
1. I love the gentleness of the sea but more than that I love its crazy angry look during the monsoons, when the tall waves literally come crashing down on the shores and rocks.
The wild monsoon sea in Mumbai
Kovalam, meaning a grove of coconut trees, is a small fishing beach village near the capital city of Trivandrum in the state of Kerala. True to its name, it offers an endless sight of coconut trees, long stretches of beaches and the wide expanse of the open Arabian Sea. I have traveled to Kovalam before on a day trip before but earlier this year, I had an opportunity to spend a weekend here and managed to capture some of its beautiful sights that day trip visitors miss through my camera lens. Sharing some of them with you below.
Kovalam has 3 beautiful crescent-shaped beaches separated by rocky cliffs, where each beach is serene, shallow and projects a sense of calmness all around. Hence these are ideal for swimming, sun bathing and snorkeling.
The long expanse of the Kovalam beach
A little bit of luxury doesn’t hurt anyone and every traveler, even a budget one such as myself, deserves a bit of luxury travel sometimes. Early this year I got my chance when we had our office offsite in Kerala and that too in one of the best luxury properties there i.e. The Leela Kovalam.
We flew into Cochin from Mumbai and then took the hotel coach for the short 20 – 30 minute ride to the property. Upon our arrival, we were welcomed in the traditional manner with tikkas (vermillion bindis), seashell necklaces and fresh coconut juices. Since our rooms were not ready and lunch was, the staff invited us to have lunch and then relax around the hotel till they could get the rooms arranged for all of us. So we had a sumptuous lunch and generally walked around the property to get a feel of it.
Views from the lobby
I had been to Kerala and done the complete touristy trail, but somehow some corners are still left. Hence I was super excited when earlier this year I found myself in Kovalam, Kerala for a quick 2 day office offsite. Since we had some free time on the first day, we all went for a half a day backwater cruise to Poovar. Now, Poovar is a small coastal fishing village situated at southern tip of Trivandrum, and is still a relatively unknown and unspoilt island. It is particularly known for its serene backwaters, pristine golden beaches, beautiful estuaries and some resorts. It is just in Poovar that you see a river, a lake, the sea and the gold sand beaches all converging in an estuary. While I have traveled extensively within Kerala, I found this boat ride to be a completely different and a fantastic experience. I am sharing the same with you today through a photo essay.
Our boats for the journey
We started a trip with a short ride from Kovalam to Poovar (about 17 kms) and reached the boat station. From here we boarded our boat (in groups of 6) and set out for the journey.
It’s only mid – April but the peak summer heat has already descended upon Mumbai, making it quite an unbearable city. The temperatures have started touching upwards of 30 degrees Centigrade and we still have 2.5 more months of such summer to get through.
Hence its no surprise that I am at present sitting in office and dreaming of a holiday that includes a nice long dip in the cool waters of a beautiful beach. Since I can’t be on a beach at present (my friends from Mumbai please don’t even bother talking about beaches here in Mumbai) I am posting about other beaches.
Whenever you travel to Kerala or any other tea plantation, an activity that you must try to do is – pluck tea leaves from a tea bush. Please don’t be fooled, it’s definitely not as easy as it seems.
For starters this activity begins very early in the morning, when the overnight dew is still present. If you wake up early enough, you will see numerous women walking along the hills with the baskets on their head to start this daily task (and these baskets are definitely not light in weight). They carry on this activity on a difficult hilly terrain, and at times even battling against cold, mist, rainfall and so on.
Kerala has some very unusual and beautiful things to see, do and eat. However amongst all of these, there are loads of other smaller unsual sights that go quite un-noticed. I have one such small sight in the pic below.
We were served this unusually cut pineapple on a house boat in Alleppey; and while I have seen pineapples served in numerous ways, I have never seen anything like this. But the best part of this beautiful presentation was that you can just pick up the pieces and directly eat. 🙂
In continuation of my earlier post – Kerala Solved http://wp.me/p29z7S-4h , I am now writing on my personal experiences and recommendations for the region 5 – Trivandrum – Kanyakumari, Kovalam, Poovar, Varkala, Ponmudi.
Alleppey to Trivandrum was the last leg of our journey on this holiday and we decided to take a train for the same, but if you want you can drive down as well (the travel time is about 2 – 3 hours).
Trivandrum is the capital city of Kerala and the feel of this place is like that of any other city. When we reached Trivandrum, we had been in Kerala for 5 – 6 days already and had gotten used to the beautiful lush green landscapes. Trivandrum, in a way, kind of prepared us for our return back home. 😦
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