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Kumarakom in Kerala is a world that revolves around water. From resorts along the Vembanad lake to staying in houseboats, from a canal cruise to relaxing massages, this is a world that transports you to the slow lane
According to Hindu mythology, the warrior sage Parshurama threw his battle-axe in the ocean and as a result the lush land of Kerala in southern India was reclaimed from the waters. A sojourn in Kerala revolves around water — a labyrinth of idyllic lakes, backwaters, rivers, lagoons and estuaries. The backwaters are a 1500-km network of lagoons, estuaries and deltas of 44 rivers and canals. The best place to experience life on the backwaters is on the shimmering Vembanad lake, a large stretch of brackish backwaters, fed by several rivers. You can sit on the waterfront, watching the ever-changing spectacle of passing boats, canoes, water scooters and the traditional kettuvallams. The pearly greys of the skies morph seamlessly into the metallic glint of the lake. The mornings here begin with the traditional Kerala breakfast — a platter of appam and puttu. One can take a village canal cruise, gliding through waterways fringed by tall coconut palms standing like regal sentinels. One wonders, "How many shades of green can be there?" The meandering canals offer vignettes of everyday life in rural Kerala. These glide past rustic homes, small temples and lush fields. Sun-dappled canals teem with life — women can be seen pounding their clothes on rocks — the old-fashioned way, farmers sowing rice in their fields, girls washing their long, luxurious tresses, and schoolchildren in uniforms carrying satchels walking to school. The lake is an ornithologist’s delight — there is a bird sanctuary at the other side of the lake but you can choose to be content with this languid, do-nothing lifestyle.
Cormorants dart into the waters for their haul of fish, kingfishers with their outrageous crimson and cobalt hues flap by, snake-like Indian darters and herons swoop gracefully overhead. On all sides is a landscape of emerald, water-drenched paddy fields. The land surrounding the waters is below the sea-level and seasoned local farmers have reclaimed the backwaters by a network of bunds (just like the dykes of the polder regions in the Netherlands). In Malayalam, this region is called Kuttanad, the ‘land of the short people’ referring to the farmers, who work in knee-deep water! There are rows after rows of white stucco houses with sloping red tiled roofs. Around the time of the Onam Festival, one can see the famous Chundam Vallang (the snakeboats with high sterns) with synchronised rowing, which seems to be straight out of the Olympics! Local villages have trophies for the boat races arranged neatly on the front porch of a home, and people lining up in the shores to cheer up their favourite teams! We stop at an island with a toddy shop painted a gaudy green. Toddy known as "kallu" locally is the palm sap that is collected in pots hung on top of palm trees. Once fermented, it turns into a witch’s brew! One can pick up some of this witch’s brew, along with fresh fried karimeen (fish) and konju (tiger prawns).
Kettuvellams were originally cargo ships that used to carry spices and rice harvested from the lagoons to the mainland. The houseboat has a verandah-like living room, kitchen, bathrooms and a bedroom with latticed canework, wickers loungers and Kerala murals on the walls. The soporific breeze, with only the sounds of film songs from distant radios soon lulls us into a slumber on a sun lounger and catapults one instantly into the slow lane. Lunch served on board is simple but tasty Kerala fare — fresh karimeen with spices, rice, Kerala parotas, sambar, thoran with freshly grated coconut, the quintessential avial and a dessert of deep-fried bananas. Tourists and locals can be seen sailing in barges and kettuvellams (one can see two-storeyed ones with air-conditioning, balconies even a swimming pool!) There is a church painted a vivid orange, half-hidden behind the palm trees, soon followed by the sight of a mosque. At all times, the multi-cultural nature of Kerala is obvious. One can see floating islands of purple water-hyacinth. This can be a menace as these can get entangled in the motor of the boat and make it difficult to maneuver. Come evening, one can head to a luxury resort for a change of scene-golf carts which can whisk you around for a guided tour. Here one can find pool villas, with a private outdoor rain shower. The luxurious spa is opulent with rooms opening into greenery and a smorgasbord of treatments. Kerala has a rich tradition of ayurvedic massage. One can go in for an abhyangam — where warm medicated oil is drizzled over the body as one lies on a sloping wooden bed, and massaged with traditional techniques. After a warm shower, one can literally feel the lightness of body and mind! At the waterfront, one can watch the molten quicksilver waters of the lagoon studded with lilies and a burnt orange sunset with snakebirds wheeling overhead. The emails can wait till one gets back home.
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An
interesting excursion here is the Bay Water Museum of Driftwood in
Kumarakom. It’s an eclectic collection of driftwood collected from
the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and restored and exhibited by a
retired teacher. Quirky shapes and figures of birds, animals, and
human beings, including the one that looks like the leader, Netaji
Subhas Chandra Bose keep one entertained. We spend an entire day on a kettuvellam
(literally a boat of knots, where the houseboat is held together
with coir knots and not a single nail). The houseboat is made of jack
wood coated with fish-oil and a special black resin made from boiling
cashew kernels.