Happy Vishu!

Today is Vishu, a holiday in Kerala in celebration of the new year according to the traditional calendar here. Last night we celebrated with sparklers, fountains, and homemade fire crackers (only about 1 in 10 worked, but when they went off, boy were they loud!) aboard a houseboat on the backwaters of Kerala.



The backwaters are hundreds of kilometers of interconnected canals, rivers, marshes, and lakes just inland from the coast. Before the automobile era, they were the principle way that people and goods traveled in the region. Today you can still see many homes and hamlets whose only connection to the outside world is by water. But the backwaters have also become a big tourist destination, with hundreds of boats converted from freight haulers into elaborate, comfy houseboats.

Lenka takes the helm

We usually steer away from "tourist" destinations, but this trip was well-worth it. Our boat was clean and spacious and the food that the cook turned out in the tiny galley was pretty incredible. We've been a little burnt from our roadtrip and the intensity of urban India, so slowly cruising the rural backwaters was just perfect.

We spent the night onboard and returned this morning, in time to drive to a beach resort in Cherai for more relaxing. As you can probably tell, we're splurging on much-needed comfort now that our trip is coming to an end! This time we haven't been quite so lucky, as the resort is not nearly as nice as we expected from the price and the photos. But in India, it seems that you have to pay a lot for a little peace and quiet, a luxury in itself.

Vishu at the beach

The day after tomorrow we go to Thrissur for Thrissur Pooram, a huge elephant festival. It's the last big event before we start our journey home. Maybe we'll have time for one more post...

love to all,
Ian, Mark and Lenka