Kochi Things to Do

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is really a misnomer in that this is a religous museum, mainly the Catholic variety which is common in Kerala. Painstakingly gathered and curated by my friend Densal on behalf of the Bishop of cochin, one sees various artifacts of church architecture of kerala and also a bit of history of christianity, one of the oldest branches of that religion in the world.
It is housed in the compound of the Bishops Residence right in the heart of Fort Cochin and is well worth a visit.

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when you arrive at the Jew Street, if you take a right turn you would end up at the synagogue of the Paradesi Jews ( meaning foreigners in indian languages). This is of course the top tourist attraction in fort cochin and mattanchery. if you take a left turn you would come to the erstwhile quarters of the so called "Black Jews" of Cochin and their abandoned synagogue. The Black jews so called because of their darker skin colour, thorugh centuries of miscegenation in India, left en masse when the state of Israel was founded after praying for two thousand years for the return..la shanah ha ba ah yerushalayim..
Their descendants have done well in israel, one of them rising to the top position in the flower growers association and they are fully integrated into the Israeli Life and it is hard to think of them as form Hodu or India when you meet them.
I will write elsewhere about the history of the Black Jews of Cochin

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Malayali is a person who speaks or comes from a family that speaks Malayalam as their principal language. Roughly divided into equal thirds of Moslems, Hindus and Christians, the speakers of this language has evolved a distinct personality: early contact with outsiders, no proscribed prohibition of foreign travel, an adventurous soul, intellectual curiosity, high literacy rate ( supposed to be higher than USA!), freedom of choice in expression in press and political opinion (the first freely elected communist government in the world) and a plethora of writers in the vernacular as well as in English plus a widespread diaspora, mainly in Malaysia, Singapore, UK and USA and Canada and a majority population in almost all Gulf States (indentured workers).
I am currently reading an extremely interesting account of the Indian mindset, of pluralism and diversity, undefinable religious sentimentality by one Malayali, eventhough born in London and currently living in New York: Dr Sashi Tharoor, until recently undersecretary at the UN and a leading candidate for the UN director General.
He explains to me the right reasons why he is proud to be a Malayali and an Indian which to him is synonymous and condemns the bombastic nonsensical pride of some indians in the achievement sof some individual indians abroad, Tharoor is being an indinvidual indian , by being himself, to me that is the only way to be an Indian
His Book is called India. eventhough published and slightly dated, 1997, he has revised it, I am reading the English version which he revised in 2000 and the French version I bought today has a 2007 introduction by him ( I saw him on French TV, he is extremely fluent in French)
I am enjoying this book tremendously and highly recommend it. In India it is sold for Rs 295 (about 4 Euros), his French translation is sold in France for 25 Euros.

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The streets of Cochin are relativley easy to navigate, and to be honest it isn't a huge place either so you shouldn't get lost.
There are plenty of small shops on the narrow streets to keep you entertained. Some of the streets here had very European characteristics, others very Indian and then we walked into Jew Town.

Small shops, traditional trades like lace makers were abundant here, and at the end of a small street was the synagogue - pretty amazing I thought.

This was an interesting place to visit and a must see if only to see the leftovers from the Dutch colonial days!
There was a small fee to get into Mantancherry palace, it was not much and to see inside was pretty cool. I don't remember being allowed to take any photos inside though.
The grounds were pretty and the most memorable thing about here for me was a man outside trying to sell me 200 Marlboro Ciggies for a few hundred Rupees and not taking no for an answer!!!

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As you walk around Kochi and get to know this South Indian city, you will discover it's blasts from the past quite often.
Kochi was once colonised by the Portugeuse and here you will notice a number of things that are living day evidence of this.
Street names are one, along with the Med influences of the small cafes, but the main amazing thing here (especially as you are still in India) are the magnificent churches here, they are so well looked after, so easy to access and such a sight to behold!

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A walk through the small town of Kochi, also known as Cochin in South india will soon bring you to the waterfront and the square.
One of the main attractions here are the "Chinese fishing nets". Not only are these net and bamboo structures incredible, but the atmosphere and way of life down here is superb!
The fisherman will catch the fish for you, you then choose one of many people to cook it for you in the square. Plastic tables and chairs are available for use once you have chosen your chef!

Ernukulam has such a different feeling to Fort Cochin. It is more like what you will find in other typical Indian cities.
Altough it does not have as many historical sights, the hussle and bustle makes it an experience in itself.
There are also some great restaurants and shops.