Well, this place is not called the ‘spice belt’ without reason. There are spice shops around every corner. And dozens of different fragrances entice you as you walk by. And of course, the shop vendors try their best to attract your attention and get you inside. It was fitting therefore to begin the morning with a visit to a spice plantation, during which we were given all the inside details on how various spices like cardamon, black and white pepper, cinamon etc. are grown and prepared. We spent about an hour, wandering around the plantation looking at various spice plants. Our guide Benni (who’s even written a small tourist booklet) seemed to know his stuff, so I know my spices much better now! In the afternoon, we took a pleasant ride around Periyar lake (all other times being booked). It was pretty hot on the upper deck of the boat, but there was a wind blowing which made the noon sun a little bearable. Unfortunately, no tiger or wild elephant sightings for us. If you’re …

Hail the Lord. No mobile network, but a decent Internet connection here in the little town of Kumily, Thekkady. Much better than the painfully slow connection at Alleppey. And we got charged at Rs 75 an hour! Enjoyed the drive from Alleppey to Thekkady yesterday. It was an extremely scenic and pleasant route as the car began its ascent and the weather got cooler. The coconut trees gave way to other trees, which I couldn’t identify. Thought of asking the driver but his vocabulary was limited. We made him play Kal Ho Na Ho in the car, and he seemed a little miffed, since he didn’t understand any Hindi (and very little English too). The place we checked into (Hotel Ambadi) is pretty nice with neat cottages (actually they’re ground floor rooms) that overlook a small garden. The place is quite well maintained, and recommended for medium budget accomodation. Can’t say about the food yet, since we couldn’t have any dinner. I was still recovering from the day’s lunch and Steph couldn’t eat anything because …

We’re off to Thekkady after lunch. Had a good stay in Alleppey. The cottage afforded a nice view of the lake. Did quite a few things. Some walking around and a bit of sightseeing. Allapuzha beach is a pretty stretch of white sand and waves. We roamed around for a bit. Except for some idiotic young guys passing idiotic comments, it was pleasant. Walked through a village (with unpronounceable name) about 15 kms from here yesterday morning and then through the main town (there was a strike, so it was less populated). There’s a little outhouse with a thatched roof just outside the cottage, perched on the water on wooden stilts. It’s nice to sit there and just look out into the water. Have loads of stuff to write but I’ll keep it for later. Steph spent some time furiously typing last night before dinner but I’m being lazy, enjoying the atmosphere and soaking in the peace and quiet. Chatting with the other people staying here. Being woken by the birds early morning. Eating big …

Landed in Kerala after a 28 hour journey, which was quite pleasant, but we were rather glad when we reached Alleppey station. There was a delay of about 1/2 hour, so that wasn’t too bad. Settled into our rather cute room on the Vembanad lake front resort that where we are spending two days. We have to steal connection time, when the admin guys here are not printing receipts! So, posts won’t be too long or frequent right now. The backwaters looks green, peaceful and nice so far. Sometimes, the only sounds you can hear are the birds (there seems to be quite a few crows) and the passing motorboats…

Am off to Pune tomorrow to spend a day with friends. On Monday, Stephanie and I are taking off to Kerala for a week. We’ll be going to Alleppey first. After spending the first two days there, we’ll decide where to go next. There are a few sights we hope to catch – like the Periyar wildlife sanctuary. Kumarakom. Spice Village. Thekkady. We might not be able to go towards the South (Trivandrum) or North (Wyanad) as we will run out of time. So, we’ve decided to concentrate around the central part of Kerala. If you’ve been to this part of the country recently and have any suggestions/ tips/ places to see to share with us, do leave us your comments. Next week, we discover if Kerala is truly God’s own country!