We awoke to rain, but the shower passed and the skies cleared as we navigated up the channel. The narrowness of the channel was surprising given the volume of ship traffic in and out of Cochin (aka Kochi), a port that benefited tremendously when a Dubai port management company's bid was rejected by New York Port Authority with the result that the company contracted with, and infused a huge amount of money, into Cochin instead.
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| People taking pictures of us taking pictures of them. |
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| liquid natural gas tanker |
As we did in Managalore, once docked ever passenger had to appear before Indian immigration agents, passport in hand. Landing cards were issued and subsequently checked when we departed and returned to the ship. The pier was patrolled by soldiers with machine guns. Our guide today told us that many of these precautions were the result of the attacks in Mumbai masterminded by a Pakistani who became and American citizen, then changed his name to David Coleman Headley to hide his ethnicity. Ancestry and ethnicity were certainly prominent questions when we applied for our India visas prior to the trip.
Off the ship and on the bus, we departed the marine terminal (located on a large man-made island) passing through another checkpoint. There and throughout the day we saw more of the decorated trucks and buses we recalled from our last trip.
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| A derelict bus full of litter. As in other places in India we have visited, litter was everywhere to the point that it has probably become invisible to the people who live there and certainly evokes no effort to clean it up. |
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| sweeping the walk |
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| an open air laundry - in by 9, out by 5...unless is rains |
We went to St. Francis Church, originally build in 1504 and where the famous Portuguese explorer Vacso da Gama was buried for 14 years before his remains where returned to Portugal. And almost predictably (see Mangalore post) the altar was partially obscured by scaffolding.
Outside the church we ran the usual cordon of souvenir vendors, walking past some attractive homes on route to the beach to see the fishing nets for which Cochin is famous.
Know as Chinese Fishing Nets because of their origin, they are an ingenious system of poles with weights and counterweights used to 'cast' and retrieve fish nets. Unfortunately for the fisherman who derive their livelihood from the fish caught in these nets, since the 2004 earthquake and tsunami in the Indian Ocean, although not directly impacted by the event, the ecosystem of the region changed so much that fishing has been poor. Our guide told us that these days the biggest catch for the fishermen is tourist dollars.
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The fishing boats were interesting because the planks were sewn together using coconut hairs woven into lengths of line. A series of small holes had been drilled in each plank, then a mallet used to drive the needle and line through gradually becoming a crisscross pattern joining the two planks. More coconut rope was used as caulking to seal the seams.
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Walking away from the shoreline we passed under massive trees both in terms of height and spread. We learned that these were Rain Trees, also known as Indian Trees.
We were back on the bus for our next destination - rest rooms - that happened to be located (on the second floor naturally) of a store that provided shopping opportunities. Waiting for the bus to move on, Pam & I wandered down the street a short distance.
We did so cautiously. In India, pedestrians seem to have no rights other than some choice in whether they are mowed down by a bicycle, scooter, car or truck.
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| Note the four red buckets in the lower left of this picture. |
Noting that he regularly guided Jewish groups and was keenly aware that the moniker could cause offense, our guide assured us that the name was simply a descriptor like "Chinatown". Further, the name was a holdover from another time when many Jews resided there, many prosperously. Today, so few Jews resided there that the synagogue was mostly a tourist attraction. The most prominent occupants of Jew Town these days were shops and stalls trying to snare tourists walking to and from the synagogue.
We were not permitted to take pictures within the Paradesi Synagogue. It was quite impressive, including a 400-year-old tile floor and wonderful chandeliers. We were allowed to photograph this inscription and plaque. The plaque stated that the inscription originally belonged to a Cochin synagogue build in 1344 AD.
Back on the bus yet again, this time to rendezvous with a boat that would take us on a harbor tour.
The harbor was big with considerable open waters between shores. In addition, a heavy haze hung over it. And the boat maintained a distinctly leisurely pace. There some interesting things to see, but by the end of it we were a bit past ready to disembark.
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| Chinese Fishing Nets |
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| local fishing boat |
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| Rain Tree reaching out over the water |
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We passed fishermen in small woven boats that looked like oversized baskets taking a break in the shade of the tree.
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| Cochin Port Authority headquarters |
Our tour was generally interesting, with ample or too much time for shopping depending on whether you ask Pam or me. In fairness to the tour provider, some of the shopping time was filler because we were supposed to visit the Dutch Palace, but it was closed today.
In the evening we departed Cochin after dark. In doing so, we departed India headed for Myanmar, also known as Burma. We will have three days at sea before arriving in Yangon (formerly Rangoon) mid-afternoon on March 08.
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