I was just two weeks into Bangalore with a huge to do list as I was trying to settle down into my new flat when a colleague of mine informed me about the photography club in office and an imminent weekend trip to watch the snake boat race at Alleppey in Kerala. “Would you be interested?” , “of course”- pat came the reply, putting flat in order can wait:D!!. A few email exchanges and a short break out session later the itinerary was fixed. We left Friday evening for Alleppey in a tempo traveller with especially inadequate leg space (the only close proxy I could think of are DTDC buses plying between Sarai Kale Khan,Delhi and Bharatpur). A mostly sleepless night (interspersed with a Munnabhai show and attempts to watch a Tam movie) later, we reached Alleppey at around 8 a.m in the morning and headed towards the Punnamada boat jetty. A boat from the resort where we had booked ourselves picked us up from the jetty. As we made our way to the resort through the water channel, I got my first glimpses of the incredibly beautiful backwaters.A short boat trip later, we got off on a small island where a giant thatched hut like structure greeted us. The resort was a collection of bamboo cottages connected by an overhead walkway with an unrestricted view of the seemingly endless water and ricefields. The bamboo structure and the big open spaces blend seamlessly with the environment outside lending a natural aura to it (more inside info on the resort later;).
We quickly freshened up , had breakfast and headed out for the boat race with a couple of other photographers (part of a workshop in progress at the resort , some of whom had camera equipment we kept leching at throughout). Although the race started late in the afternoon , we arrived early to get our preferred slot. Gradually, people started trickling in. The colours, sounds and sights of an entire town out to watch the boat race was quite enthralling. A long wait later , the race started. It was exciting to see the boats battle against each other to photo finish while the rowers rowed in complete harmony. The race also had its share of overenthusiastic and slightly inebriated cheerleaders who entertained the crowds with their antics in the water. Unfortunately for them , they also had to face the baton with the Kerala police on the prowl . The cop boat also had a mascot somewhat resembling a Zebra which kept waving to the crowds as the boat panned the stretch of the race picking up rowdy cheerleaders;).
As the entertaining and fun filled race got over , we headed back to our resort around sunset. Evening was spent on the open terrace in the resort over drinks and discussing plans for forthcoming trips.We decided to spend the first half of the next day doing a tour of the nearby villages followed by a quick trip to Kochi before we headed back to Bangalore.
Next morning, we checked out of the resort after breakfast and started on our tour of the backwaters. For those of you who still have not been to the backwaters, just GO!!:) It’s absolute bliss just sitting on the roof of the boat with the vast expanse of water and lush greenery all around.In case you love to eat anything with fins or which swims, there are options galore. Stop by one of the local shops on the banks to savour some of the local fish served with tapioca (you may end up overpaying though as a tourist:)).
After the tour , we came back to the Punnamada boat jetty and headed towards Kochi. An hour and a half later we arrived in Kochi just in time for lunch. We stopped at the Grand hotel for a taste of Kerala cuisine. And some lunch we had!! We ended up spending 2 hours over a huge gorgeous spread of squids, prawns, fish – you name it and we ate it:)! Post lunch, we decided to do a quick tour of the Jew town and then to the beach to click the Chinese fishing nets at sunset. The clouds played spoilsport , we did get some shots nevertheless. As the sun set on the Arabian sea, we headed back to Bangalore.
A brief stint with the backwaters, a fun filled and colourful boat race smattered with some sumptuous food in truly God’s own country – thats what I call a weekend well spent!
[Inside info on the resort (Bamboostix): Very backpacker styled (except for the price;) with bunker beds and rooms right on the waterfront. Carry your own towels and toiletries ( in case you want a smoke or a drink , carry them as well since there is nothing that you get here). All in all – great location , bad food , overpriced for the entire proposition]
