God's Own Country

Except for my brief trip to Mumbai, I had not yet had the opportunity to venture out of northern, Hindi-speaking India, or "Hindia", as I like to call it. So rather than returning to Delhi after the Fulbright conference in Goa, it was time to venture down further south to see what the rest of this crazy sub-continent is all about.

Exiting the cool dimness of the night train from Goa to Ernakulam in the southern state of Kerala, we stepped into a steamy world of palm trees, flooded rice fields, and European colonial influences. My painfully acquired Hindi was of no use in this part of the country - Malayalam ( മലയാളം ) is the linuga franca in Kerala.

South India is, on average, wealthier and better educated than much of north India.  Kerala is a prime example, with the highest literacy rate in India (94.6%) and some of the lowest levels of corruption. Like Goa, Kerala has a certain European flare due to centuries of occupation by the Portuguese, Dutch, and finally the British. Kerala and West Bengal are unique in India in having elected communist governments.

Kerala's most famous attraction is the backwaters, an intricate network of brackish lakes connected by rivers and man-made canals extending almost half the length of the state. The area is rich in animal life, especially birds and aquatic beasties like giant prawns and mud skippers. Renting a houseboat that rather resembled a giant water beetle, we spent a wonderful 24 hours cruising the backwaters, stopping occasionally to birdwatch, eat fresh fruit, and swim.  The backwaters are a place where the Kerala department of tourism's motto "God's Own Country" seems like a pretty apt description.

Houseboat on the Kerala backwaters

Our second stop in Kerala was Kochi, or Fort Cochin to you British imperialists out there.  Located on the northern tip of an island just offshore, Kochi is an adorable tourist paradise of street side cafes and brightly painted alleys, Christian churches and Chinese fishing nets. It's also a good place to see a bit of Kathakali, a form of classical Indian dance involving lots of makeup and stylized movement. A full performance can take 7-8 hours. We, being shallow tourists with short attention spans, went to the 1.5 hour abbreviated version.

Kathakali dancers preparing for a performance

Huge cantilever fishing nets installed along the shoreline

Kerala - the land of the lungi and dhoti (colored or white cloths men wear around their waists in lieu of trousers)