Kochi (1-2 MAR)

Helping haul in the catch in the local fishing nets.

The characters prepare their make up for the Kathakali Dance

A row of fishing nets which were introduced by the Chinese

Kochi is India's largest port city. However, the smaller, old Fort Kochi area is the most popular for tourists and has a history of influence from abroad. It was home to a large Jewish population for a time and still has an old synagogue, though the Jewish population has dwindled.

The Portuguese controlled the port for a time and built up the Fort area to include a palace for the local rulers. The palace was later renamed the Dutch Palace, when they took control of the area from the Portuguese. The banks are lined with fishing nets that were introduced by the Chinese. 

According to our guide, the area was considered one of the top 50 places to visit by national geographic, and the synagogue is a world heritage site. However, my initial impression was that the whole place was over rated, poorly maintained and more of run down city than tourist attraction.

On our second day, Ross and I rented bikes and pedaled around the narrow streets, and I began to see a little more of the charm hidden under a layer of dirt and debris. Many of the old buildings were quite nice, but were so run down and dirty the you could easily overlook their charm and architectural merit.

 During the outing we also helped the fishermen pull in one of the Chinese fishing nets, but had little fish to show for our efforts. In classic Indian style, they had invited us to help, we did their job, and then they asked us for a donation to supplement their incomes since the fishing season has been poor.

Also while we were in town we attended a Kathakali dance, which is a traditional folk dance that was used to tell the stories about Hindu gods. It was an interesting performance and the cast and host seemed a little crazy. However, this is understandable because they have been doing performances every night for over 20 years. And, I believe the MC has been hosting the dance and explaining the make-up application, hand and facial movements, and religious stories behind the performance for 40 years!  That is about ten times longer than I have held any single job.  I can only hope he loves what he does.