came across

never make a promise when ur happy and never speak when ur angry.

If at first you don't succeed, remove all evidence you ever tried

aranmula

previously before i started off the trip to kerala, my friend and i decided on making it to any one of the boat races tat were happening durin the onam season and luckily we could fit in the boat race at aranmula in our itenary,

but once in kerala learned that there were many other boat races happenin too, but this one was massive and was to be inagurated by the vice president of india.


how did we get there??. we took a train from our base kollam to chengannur, since it was onam season the unreserved boogies were jam packed, but managed to land there and take a bus to the aranmula boat race site, we could see police personel posted all along the road until the race site, we arrived at the site, hours before the inaguration of the race, would suggest all to get soon to the sites because u can get a first hand experience of how they gear up for the race, and get closer view of the boats. we were to witness the snake boat race which carried 100's of oaresmen and a group of ssingers who sang along to provide a sync for their paddlin. once the race was declared started, we could see the flock of boats sailin thru the backwaters in rows of 4, there were totally 34 boats takin part in the race, it was a packed show with people throngin both shores with the constant jarrin of the loudspeaker announcements in malayalam. u could spot everyone and anyone, from saree clad ladies to a dhoti clad foreigner. business was doin full swing, quenchin our thirsts with 2 rupee lemonades and even white towels were sold to shelter ourselves from the sun, we carried a umbrella though. so the race started after a half an hour gap, but it was not as we had expected coz it was in turns of four at a time, also the winner was decided on an overall performance which included the boat decorations, songs they sung, de team spirit and various other factors. we weren there until the end of the race, coz we had to leave in time to our next destination 'kumarakoam'


the boat race site is walkabl distance from the aranmula bus stop and also aranmula is famous for its mirrors which is a traditional metal craft of this place which would cost you anywhere between 300 to 3000. so u can get urself one in case. also there are various other boat races happening all over kerala durin the entire year. so do check out the kerala tourism website which holds a detailed calender of all the races, so that u can accomadate a race in ur itenary.

http://keralatourism.org/index.jsp?resource=events&boatrace=true

pictures taken before the race started coz tats when u get a closer view
1,3,4. various views of the snake boats
2. visitin the temple before boardin the boats

venice of the east

though i haven seen the venice of the west, indeed was drenched by the abundant water in the venice of the east, landed here from kumarakoam.. a 5 rupee ferry trip across the vembanand lake wud land u at muhamma, from where u can board a bus to allepy. arrived jus in time to catch the sunset at the waveless allepy beach which had a very ancient pier runnin into the sea the sand was white and clean.


the next day took a local ferry from the jetty in the town to nedumudy which again cost a 5 rupee, on the way could have a boat view experience of how people lived their mornings on the edge of the backwaters, so it was indeed a long journey thru the bacwaters of the very picturisque kuttanad region, also came across many a house boats with newly weds and phirangi log. the ferry stopped here there and everywhere,
its crew comprised the driver who was seated above us at the steering, a conductor, a gear specialist with numerous meters in fronta him though he was more immersed in the morning edition of the local newspaper. kerala is more literate than any other state in the country which also rolls out a good number of malayalam news dailies, so you can find a lot of local people debating over various issues over a cup of tea at the equally numerous tea shops.
finally we arrived at nedumudy, from where again we took a bus back to allepy to board yet another bus to ambalapuzha, where rested the karumadi kuttan(a half buddha statue) on the way we witnessed a presentation of the various fights of kalaripayattu.
after checkin out the statue we returned back to allepy to take a government organised backwater trip for 50 rupees at 4.30 to watch the sunset admist the very green fields of kuttanad, indeed it was a sight spectacular, sadly had no batteries on my cam to capture those moments, addin to the picture were rain drops which ushered in to make it all the more perfect...

thus we arrived back at the jetty again

there are various ferry trips operated from the allepy boat jetty to various places in kuttand, also there is this 3hour trip to kottayam which operates regulary thru the day from 7.30 in the morning to 5.30 in the evening,


the ride truly is worth it for a ticket fare of jus rs 10. u get to see some of the most amazing locales and various local activities all the way thru. also this is the only place in the world where u can find cultivation being done 1.5 to 2 meters below the sea level which is actually the 'rice bowl of kerala', the very picturisque kuttanad



photos:
1,7,8. views on the ferry trip to nedumudy wit the green paddy fields
2. sunset in allepy beach, pier visibl
3. the gear handler wit his mornin paper
4. the half buddha statue
5. one of the fights of kalaripayattu
6. fisherman with his net

(above) a school along the backwater, view from the ferry

varkala

varkala!!!
one hellava place!!
was at varkala as part of my 2 week trip in kerala! actually arrived here from yet another beach destination "kovalam". was already awe inspired by the charm of kovalam to be completely shadowed by the cliffs of varkala.
arrived really late in the evening on the eve of onam( the single most celebrated festival of malayalees) actually arrived at the beach part of varkala but had to walk towards the cliff to find some accomadation, so by the time we were walkin by the edge of the cliff the sun had set and we were only spared the noises of the waves hitting the rocks beneath us, but wat we could see was a strech of black mixed blue palette covered by a layer of moon's faint white. we were already liking the place a lot, so checked into a hotel which was indeed damn cheap for the luxury it offered, rs 400 for 3 nights in a newly built lodge wit spic clean bathroom( cant help mentionin it), with the only regret of havin missed the sunset, we ended up in wat i suppose is the obvious destination in varkala for some cheap and quality food, at funky art cafe. next day i had to leave to trivandrum owin to pre commitements, wat i realised then was it indeed was hot and dry to walk in the path along the entire lenght of the cliff, aatleast for us indians. but i was bac to miss the sunset again on onam day. but i caught up with it all the next day when i took a walk down the cliff all the way down north, it was damn beautiful. would suggest all to walk down until the mosque for also u will discover two beaches enroute.. then walked back to the cliff just in time to catch de glimpse of the orangy sunset tat lasted for quite a minute but leavin behind various shades of red and orange at which i gazed until black would mix in them all

during my entire stay here the only thing that disturbed me was the constant exploitation of the cliff space by various commercial establishments and fancy lodging spaces that are very fastly sprouting up which woud gradually turn it into a concrete jungle.

my train journeeesss

a train journey!!! always look forward to one, especially when i'm travelling alone, but with a reserved ticket! so the ordeals before you can start off the much expected journey would be just to book the tickets if youu are doin it at the counters, but u can also book them online, but i would prefer going to the reservation counters and whil away some time( thats when i have no work to do, mostly during my college days and these journies are durin my college days) , then when de d day arrives, i always arrive on time at the station, i get this unfound energy in me which i would actually want on most of my lazy days with lotta things to do, but would not surface then, but this day when i need to catch my train after all. i will arrive at my alloted seat and just as i take my seat, bingo!! the train moves, this is how it has always been. feels lik the train has been wwaiting for me all the whil to embark the start of its journey.any delay in me catchin a bus or wastin time to realise to catch an auto in the rain will make me miss my train. but it has never happened tat way til date.
also before hand i would have borrowed myself a book to read and some junk food with watever little money i have to spare after all that i would have wasted to get to the station on time... and thus time would while away starting at the numerous new faces from different corners of india, i usually dont pick up a conversation with my fellow passengers unless they initiate one and if at al it happened it usually is at the end of the journey. so i read the newly found book which would have taken ages to read or even pick it if i was on stable land and as i realise that i'm nearin my destination, would finally rise from my seat, have a face wash and go stand at the door and start singin loud against the strong wind blowing against the compartments, also this is when the engine driver realises that the train is runnin late and thus the train would be movin at greater speeds than the usual pace. thus would arrive at the station to get a prepaid auto and pay the fare only after reaching home from my mom. those were indeed the best days of my life