As I dive into my 200th review, I am going to write about my favourite city. As I am writing this review after visiting Hyderabad, I am feeling a bit confused, but to write about Cochin, I don’t need to use my brain as it comes from the heart.
I am afraid that this may be a longer review than I expected to be - this time I am going to reply to all the comments right in the comments section, so please don’t forget to comment and rate. Another thing is that this time, I am forced to write into the comments section, sorry about that.....
COCHIN! COCHIN!
If you are visiting Kerala, Cochin is the place you will never want to miss. May be the most commercially important city in Kerala and one of the largest ports in India is also called ’’the Queen of the Arabian sea’’ due to its significance in foreign trade. It has become one of the most visited tourist centres, especially in Kerala.
Cochin is a mixture of different cultures and different people. It got a very good climatic conditions throughout the year which makes it a good place to visit at any time. There are large number of buses that connect the different parts of Cochin. So the journey will not be a problem even with some occasional traffic blocks.
A PRESENT AND FUTURE MASTERPIECE
As the metro trains are to be introduced in the city soon, the traffic is expected to be smoother. The commercial sector of the city is far more mre developed that one would expect. There may not be anything you cannot expect to get from the city of Cochin, also known as Ernakulam.
The city is better to be explored on foot or on two wheelers because of the heavy traffic. But the other side of the city, Mattanjeri and Fort Kochi are much calm and quiet and may be very interesting to go through and look around.
I always loved to visit this city right from when I was a small kid as I wanted game CDs and books very badly during those days and Cochin was the only place nearby to get them. Now even with Aluva being a somewhat developed place I still love to go to Cochin as there may no better commercial place than Cochin in Kerala so far.
Cochin, also called Kochi is connected well to other places very well. As it is a sea port, there is no question about the water access. The air port is situated some kilometres away from the city and is situated at Nedumbassery which is less than ten kilometres drive from Aluva which is about 16 kilometres away from the city.
The railways are very well done in the city. Ernakulam South may be the station where most people comes and goes in Kerala. The accomodation too is not going to be any problem as there are large number of hotels there. Taj Residency, The Avenue Regent, The Renaissance etc are some of te famous Hotels there.
MAJOR ATTRACTIONS
Bolgatty Palace
I put this one in the list first because when I was a kid I went to this place and enjoyed it very much, but never went near it again. It is a long time since I went there and I hope that it is of the same shape now. This is a Dutch palace which is situated on the Bolgatty island.
I don’t know any history, but you can reach there by boat. There is a hotel inside the palace and the island is full of exotic views and the best thing is that the tsunami didn’t strike there. I was relieved to hear that it didn’t hit any important areas in Cochin.
Chinese Fishing Nets
These fishing nets are said to be seen only here in Cochin as long as te whole India is concerned. It is believed that the traders from China during the reign of some king (whose name always confuses me) introduced these nets here.
You may not find it very interesting if you see them every day, but as you after seeing this for the first time live, it is going to be an interesting experience. There are really well-made ones.
Dutch Palace
The palace is said to have built in the 16th or 17th century. It is also said that the coronation of many kings of the state of Cochin were held here. The place has a fine collection of paintings as well as early cultures prevailing there.
This palace is said to be built by the Portuguese before it came under the Dutch. This really is a good place to spend the time on. It is situated in Mattanjery away from the heavy traffic.
Jewish Synagogue
Even after this one being a very interesting place, I visited it only in the last few months. Me and my friend while wandering through Fort Kochi for a change just stopped by this place, mainly due to a Malayalam movie called ’’Soothradharan’’ in which the Jewish street is shown.
The street as well as the historical synagogue are quite different areas to visit. The oldest synagogue in India was said to be built in 1568. This really is an example of the varied culture of Cochin.
Fort Kochi Beach
This is not the largest of beaches you will ever see, but it is quite a different one. You can see the fishing nets, you can see some Dutch-Portuguese style big bunglaws (Me and my friend were imagining ourselves staying there) on the sides and the cool breeze to get the body temperature down.
Do make a try at the evenings during the sunset. It will be calm and quiet, no doubt about that. Even with the presence of so many other beaches, this one got it’s own significance.
Tripunithara Hill Palace
This is another one of the earliest places I visited, the place is almost like a museum these days and got some very interesting features inside. There will be some other museums also, so do look out for them as you go.
The kings of early Cochin did do dome marvellous work in the development of Cochin for sure. You need to travel twelve kilometres from Cochin to reach here. This is one of those few places I liked at first sight.
St. Francis Church
It is the oldest church built by any European in India. On his third visit to Kerala, Vasco da Gama, the Portugese trader who is said to be the first one to reach here from the place was buried in the St. Francis Church as he died due to illness.
Later his remains were taken back to Portugal. But that exact place where he was buried has been marked inside the church. It is built in a beautiful eye catching manner.
Santa Cruz Basilica
This is another one of those old churches built in Fort Cochin and it has got some old scriptures and paintings. It’s old looks are really great and attractive which may be the reason why people didn’t agree to painting this place.
In the centre of the old city of Fort Cochin, the Basilica looks far more than astonishing. There are large number of temples and churches, most of them historically important in Cochin as expected.
St.Antony’s Church
It is said to be the church causing traffic blocks on the Ernakulam-Aluva route because of the large number of people coming there especially on Tuesdays. It is situated at at Kaloor on the edge of Cochin city.
It is not going to be nice journey through the place on Tuesdays, due to the heavy traffic. I have never been able to park my car near the place. This has become so famous that when you go to Kaloor, every one asks whether you are going here.
CONTINUED IN THE COMMENTS SECTION.....