Kochi (Cochin), India, Day 1

India! Another bucket-list item checked off the list! Fascinating, majestic, hot, sensory-overload, noisy, ancient, big and sprawling, resource-full... a few words that come to mind...

Kochi is in the southern part of India. We took a mostly walking tour which started with St. Francis Church, built in 1503 by the Portuguese, The Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama died in Kochi in 1524 when he was on his third visit to India. His body was originally buried in this church, but after fourteen years his remains were relocated to Lisbon. Today, an empty crypt in the church commemorates the explorer.

Nearby the church, we saw the huge cantilevered Chinese fishing nets that droop toward the beach waters like over-sized hammocks. The Chinese nets, made of teak wood and bamboo poles, work on the principle of balance. Each structure is fixed on the beach and has a cantilever with an attached net that is spread over a large area. Counterweight stones, tied to ropes of different lengths, facilitate the working of the nets. Each fishing net is operated by at least four fishermen. These nets are believed to have been introduced into Kochi by Chinese explorer Zheng He, from the court of the Kubla Khan, between 1350 and 1450 AD.

We also visited Mattencherry Palace, the Jewish synagogue and Jew Town, (home to only 2 Jews now). The synagogue is supported by and visited by Jews from all around the world. We browsed the shops in this quarter. The weather was very hot and humid.

The Mattancherry Palace features Kerala murals depicting portraits and exhibits of the Rajas of Kochi. The palace was built by the Portuguese Empire as a gift to the Kingdom of Cochin to appease the king after they plundered a nearby temple.

In the afternoon, we checked into the Cochin Marriott and immediately paid our retail respects to the adjacent Lulu International Mall, the largest mall in India. Cathy purchased four beautiful Kurtas (one of which Cathy wore to the Taj Mahal).

We returned to the hotel and we both had a 120-minute Aruyveda treatment (body scrub and body/face massage with oil). Awesome.Read more