Days Nine & Ten: House Boats and Spices
Called the ‘Venice of the East,’ the natural beauty of Alappuzha (or Alleppy), can be experienced only by being there. I can merely share the pictures of luxurious and leisurely day we spent in a houseboat cruising through its picture-perfect canals, backwaters, lagoons and the beaches of Arabian Sea.
Watching the houses on the land between the sea and network of rivers flowing into it was the most delightful experience.
Thirty-nine miles south of Alleppy is 39 Kochi—an important spice-trading center. At present whole spices such as cinnamon, cloves, black pepper and cardamom are exported throughout the world. Known as the Queen of the Arabian Sea, some still call it by its Anglicized name, Cochin.
This picture perfect town was the center of Portuguese administration in India until they moved it to Goa in 1530. The Dutch followed by the British later colonized the city.
Backwaters