India May 2011 - Allepey

Allepey is proclaimed as the "Venice of the East". Based in northern Kerala, one of the southern most states in India is basically a small fishing town with a large tourist population. Kerala is / was one of the only communist run states in India, thus seeing the hammer and sickle flown high was a common sight. Venice of the East because of the back-water areas, that have made this part of India famous. And it was for the back-waters that we had come.


The Driver Freddy had arranged from Kochi, took us to his suggested guest-house. It was a relatively new house; sparse but adequate. The place was owned by friends of the people that Fred had stayed with in Kochi. A young guy greeted us and with a mischievous eye convinced us to stay. While we were trustful of this guy as Fred had known his friends, somehow he gave an uneasy feel. They were there to make their living and in the end they did a good job to host us for the three days and two nights we were there. In fact almost our entire Kerala experience was hosted by these guys. Not long after we dropped our stuff off at the house, we were on our way to their newly opened restaurant. With the food leaving a lot to be desired (again, adequate) we soon headed back to get ourselves settled and get to know Allepey.

Allepey as mentioned is one of the main towns set on the Kerala backwaters, an estuary and delta where 49 rivers converge and meet the sea. It is a shallow (now mainly man-made for irrigation purposes) network of canals, flood plains and open lakes. Into the town, punch two access canals, one to the north and one to the south. The southern canal as we found out is primarily unused while the northern canal, near where we were based was where the main activity was. All sorts of boats plyed their trade here. From canoes, to punts, to small tourist boats, to large boats and ferries. Even the odd ski-boat took people for exclusive rides - allbeit slowly to avoid erosion of the banks. One of the main attraction is the Kerala Houseboat. Not allowed in the canals, they were moored at the marina a short walk to the outskirts of the town. We thought an afternoon wander to stretch the legs would be a good idea. I set us off on a course, incorrectly, towards the north to find the marina. In the end we walked past the boats yards where the government ferries were getting much needed maintenance work. We walked past a small side canal chocked with weed. Funnily we saw a few house-boats here and commented on how run down they looked and which stupid tourists would go on a ride with one. Later we were to be lured by our perpetual Allepey hosts to these very houseboats!! Our wander continued up to the northern canal and then back through the city. On the way I bought a number of India sweets. These sickly balls of sugary dough, some made of almond flour and others of fruit were to my taste delicious with the flaky texture, but I couldn't convince Fred or Sarah of the delight! Cutting back through the town, there was the usual organised chaos, the street stalls selling all things from flower necklaces to luggage and clothes. Same same. One difference was the two or three protests in the street. More bark, than bite, these relatively small groups of people were chanting and carrying the communist flag trying to attract attention to their cause. In the end, no one seemed to take interest so neither did we.

On the northern canal on our back way we were constantly acosted to hire their houseboat. It seemed in the off-season there was a lot of pressure to get tourists on the boat. Knowing we wanted to experience a house-boat trip, we asked around. The prices varied dramatically which in itself was interesting. We ended up running into our host, who probably had seen us coming. He put on his best selling hat and began to offer us his brother's (actually cousin - but they all call each other brother) boat. He took us up to another of their hostels and gave us the big sale. Photos, prices, times and haggling ensued until finally we had booked in ourselves a trip. Our only fault, was rule number 1 - to check out the houseboat before agreeing! But whatever. Feeling pleased we had arranged our adventure, after a shower, we set off for dinner in town (at the Blue Moon or whatever it was called!). Actually wandering to the restaurant I felt it was the moment when I had finally come to terms with the traffic and movement of India. It was as though I could block out all the noise and madness around and become part of the rhythm of the traffic. It was a calming experience that summarises in many ways the Indian experience.

Back at the hotel, we met up with Mira and Greg, a couple travelling India. They had been out on the scooter all day checking out various parts of the surrounding mountains and beaches. The Cousin had also dropped by to organise bringing us some beers. As we had a balcony area to sit on, it was a perfect evening to have a beer and enjoy the humid evening. As alcohol is strictly government regulated, our host took off to get everything organised. After what seemed like an age, he returned with a bundle of Kingfishers for the boys and a bottle of rum and a bottle of orange juice for the girls. Like many times before we got to know Mira and Greg's story (a Slovenian meeting a New Zealander, marrying, living in London and then deciding to move closer to her home town and about to settle in Prague). Our host was quite an entertainer also and in his very dry manner was able to keep us in hysterics most notably with his impersonations of trains, dogs and other strange objects. Interesting the only time he got somewhat offended by our impositions on him for entertainment was when we wanted to take a photo and he insisted on checking that there was no evidence of him drinking alcohol. Although his eyes showed a general tendancy to drink, he didn't want to be recorded for it.

This hosts' (the cousin) story was actually quite interesting. We heard that he had started as a poor villager before moving to Kochi and beginning his 'empire' by selling plastic bags. Overtime he sold more and more until one day he was also selling them in Allepey. One chance meeting he was able to secure the opportunity to sell pay-tv to people in the neighbourhood / suburb we were in. This brought a boost to his income that then allowed him to rent boats and houses to rent onto to tourists like us. In his early fourties, together with his younger cousin he had been able to build up a few small businesses for a better life for himself.

Fred stayed up late with the cousin, Mira and Greg (and another Chinese girl - who didn't say much). Mira seemed to have a knack for being a hard bargainer getting pretty much exactly what she wanted. We had earlier agreed that it would be cool if they joined us on the houseboat we had booked, making it a touring party of five. Mira convinced the cousin late into the evening after he had had a few beers to allow them on board for only a small extra amount.

In the morning, while the others were sleeping I got my walking boots on (eg my flip flops!) and set out to find the marina. The morning sun seemed to be at it's hottest all morning. Without shelter, and maybe because i'd come from the cool breeze of the fan above the bed, it really hit me. Having no water was also silly. Anyway, I found the marina where all the house-boats were moored. There was a large carpark where all the cars parked. House-boat trips are mainly a 22 hour affair. You leave at 11am and return at 9am. I was there a little earlier and there was not much activity. At the end of the road was a sign "Tourist Police" hinting that there was likely a lot of haggling that got many people into trouble. At this stage there was none, rather I took off to the left of the carpark and soon found myself in the ship yards. The houseboats vary in size from one bedroom + kitchen + deck outfits to huge multi-story airconditioned floating hotels. Most have a wooden hull with a timber framed upper construction probably made of teak. I was able to see some of the construction techniques of the hull making. Many of the planks were 'sewn' together with twine and then tarred for waterproofness. The timber was often very waterlogged meaning they probably expanded together and sealed by jamming together. The upper construction was usually a timber frame, some steel, covered with clear plastic and then covered again with reed matting and tied down with twine. The basic 'rice paddy' boats had a certain charm about them. There was a quite a trade in building and repairing the boats. I saw quite a number of damaged boats and a lot of rotten timber leaving me somewhat concerned about their seaworthiness! The mechanics of the engines and air-conditioning were in the category the Australians would call "bush-mechanics", a very primitive but practical form of mechanics. Air-conditioning units were tied, with string, to their position and steering chains tied into place with wire. Indian's are famous engineers! As I walked back many of the boats were coming in from their overnight stays. What looked like relatively wealthy Indians disembarked in their morning best, while the crew carried numerous suitcases for each of those on board. Sometimes only couples occupied the huge multi bedroom boats. Probably as a sign of class, this was all part of the boating performance. I was haggled quite often whether I was looking for a boat. I did look out for our hosts but wasn't able to see them.

I got back to our guest house, only to find the team just getting up. Our hosts had planned to pick us up around 10. Our team was ready and piled into the tuk-tuk. I took the scooter for fun to save the squeeze. Expecting to head around to the marina where I had been earlier that morning was a false expectation. We actually headed to the small canal, where, only the day before, we looked in quiet hope that we wouldn't get one of those house-boats. But indeed it was the case that the small, pokey, run-down boat was booked for us. It's not really karma but just a lesson learnt either to be non-judgemental or "check before booking"! So at around 11, we were loaded and ready. There were 5 freshly punctured coconuts ready for us and we were looking forward to pushing off and getting underway. There had been a commotion at the back of the boat between the cook, our captain and the owner. They were fixing something at the bottom rear of the boat. Then all of a sudden one came running to the front with a broken part and asked another to head off to find a spare. Not the most confidence building move a host could make. Half an hour later he returned with a bundle of hose clamps and it seemed as though we were underway. This was just part 1 of the hilarity. We finally pushed off and manoeuved our way into the small channel. Looking ahead it really didn't seem as though our allbeit small boat was even going to fit through the even smaller gap in the canal. A large government ferry had been parked in front of the ship (aka boat grave yard) and was blocking the way. Nonetheless our courageous captain pushed on. The fact that the width of the canal was narrower than the width of the boat was really no obstacle. He simple plowed full throttle into the gap, with some wriggling and man power - 15 minutes later we popped out the other side and floated on. It was simply a minor detail that the side window was damaged and there were deep scratches on the side pontoons. It really was hilarious. At one point a government official was standing on the boat watching. After politely asking if he could help, he said he was on lunch break and could help in a few hours. He watched on.

Once underway our launch quickly puttered out into the main lake among the other big boats. We all took our seats evenly on each side of the boat to not upset the balance. The boat was about 10-12m long. At the back was a small kitchen (plus cook!), along one side was a corridor connecting the front deck to the kitchen and then in the middle one room just big enough for a double bed and a very small ensuite bathroom. The front deck area was the place to be. With a small balcony up high about the captain we could observe the surroundings, sit in the cool breeze and drink our coconut. The cook wasn't there for show, he was busily preparing lunch for us. We cruised along many canals - alongside which, small farm houses were perched. The canals and lake areas are only around 3m deep. The side of the canals were stone / concrete indicating that they were man-made. There were a number of heights of canal and in the lower levels, at least when we were there, they were dry and rice and other grains were being grown. All sorts of boats were out in the canals. Again people were paddling long canoes, some were carrying supplies and also the huge number (1,500) of houseboats that float the tourists around. For lunch we parked near a banana platation and settled into a superb feed of fish wrapped and fried in banana leaves, various curries, rice and the memorable coconut salad. It really was superb and for that alone worth the money. The tour of the canals continued after lunch, I had a dip while being dragged along by the boat in very, surprisingly, warm water. But other than that it was simply a chance to take a heap of photos, listen to the water trickle past and enjoy the scenery. We were able to venture down some smaller canals where the bigger boats couldn't go. Along the way we got a insightful glimpse into the ways of the waterway. As dusk began to close in, women were cleaning their curry cooking pots in the canals, women were slapping their washing for cleaning, kids were swimming as were their fathers. The canals are both a source of life and their drains. There were no signs of pollution but I do question whether all the water plants growing in the middle of some canals are normal or as a result of the extra nutrients. I do hope they are there to help clean the river system from all the extra inputs it gets from all the people cleaning their cooking and clothing in each of the many rivers that feed the backwaters.

Near the end of our day's travelling, from the bank we saw kids running to follow the boat. Soon they were shouting "PENS", "PENS, "PENS"! They were asking for us to throw pens and anything else we had over to them. We threw two pens to the two boys and a girl. There was a huge squabble over them. We later learnt that it wasn't because they wanted to sell pens back to tourists like they do in Europe, rather they wanted to save themselves the money from buying pens for school. A worthy attitude/cause - considering the state of Kerala has the highest literacy in India.

At an opening between the houses, we saw kids playing cricket. Once the boat had moored and we said no to the guy trying to sell a canoe trip, we made our way back to the cricket field. Greg was keen for a game of cricket being a full-blooded New Zealander! It was great to hang with the kids. They were very ambitious and pretty handy at the game. At one point, there was a wayward ball and the ball was lost. The kids were distraught as they didn't have a spare. Getting pushy with us they insisted we pay for a new one at 50 rupees! In the end we found a broken tennis ball and continued having a hit. They challenged us to a game. The winner was to get 5 rupees. They asked for 50 (cheeky!) but we didn't want to start a tourist attraction if the kids thought they could make money here harassing tourists for a game! The game went on 3 on 3, with 6 overs to play. We started, (badly!) and in the end got away to a good innings. The kids were all over us. Home ground advantage clearly! They narrowly one getting the 5 rupees from us. Almost the best money we had spent to have such a great time hanging with the locals. Mira and Sarah in the meantime had wandered off to explore more of the land alongside the canals.

We had moored at the end of a canal to the entrance to a large lake. The fresh water was uncannily warm but still refreshing. Together with a cold beer, swimming was the perfect end to the day. The cook had once again cooked up a storm - amazingly considering the size and clutter of his tiny kitchen. We settled into the evening with our beers and were treated to an evening show by Mother Nature. A large lightning storm had been brewing overhead and we were able to sit up on our balcony with a cold Tubourg beer and watch some great lightning bolts punch across the sky. It was a great evening to simply sit and watch the skies. After another nighttime swim we all found a spot on the front deck to sleep. The air inside the tiny room was stuffy and thick with mosquitoes already. We all lathered in Brum and other anti-mosquitoe products and fell asleep.

Again before the others had woken, I went for a little walk along the canal in the morning. Similar to the dusk the night before there was a hive of activity with families waking up, kids going to school, men paddling their wives around on canoes and many boats making their way to wherever they needed to go. The government boats were working hard. These boats really were a piece of work. The captain sat at the top steering. He controlled the throttle with a small bell. Downstairs, next to the engine, sat another 'captain' or 'engineer' who would respond to the bell and adjust the throttle at the engine. Most of the time he was reading the paper at the same time. At the front sat all the men, while the rear half, behind the engine, sat the women. All in all quite a performance. Where the government ferries weren't operating, you could cross the river for a few rupees via canoe. If you were lucky enough to sit at the front, you too would have to paddle and help. And so people went about their lives on the backwaters.

Our cook brought out tea, coffee, biscuits, fruit and delicious omelette and soon were on our way. We were not far from the main marina where all the boats were also returning from their overnight treks. We headed back toward the small canal where we started. The captain, like he done last time just plowed into the same jam that we had when we started. Instead of waiting we bade them farewell and left the boat - thanking them for the trip. Funnily, they gave out the guestbook asking us to fill it in. Nearly everyone had written warnings about checking the boat before getting on but that the food was great. I think we go the same treatment and in the end really didn't mind because we had split the cost and generally had a great time, allbeit not the luxurious one that you read about when travelling on the Kerala Backwaters.

We went back to the guest house to pick up a few our posessions we had left including my clothes that two days later hadn't dried after I washed them. The humidity didn't allow for drying! Our train wasn't to leave until 7pm that evening so it was suggested we take a tuk-tuk out to a beach about 15kms out of town. Called Marari, the beach, once we arrived was picture perfect, with palm trees providing shade, white sand and pretty much no one there. The beach to the water was steep and although there were only small waves, actually they were pretty strong and for a decent swimmer like myself, were not much fun. In the end we settled for reading and sleeping under a palm tree for the afternoon. It was superbly relaxing although a bit friendlier water would have been good.

One of the highlights of Allepey was watching the chefs make Paratha's, a southern Indian bread. It is quite an art but well worth the effort. They not quite like the dry breads you get elsewhere. Here they are made with a very oily dough and then as part of the preparation to make them go flaky during frying, are rolled initially into small hand-sized balls. When they are needed, the balls are thrown and spread into a large think dough, cut in half and wrapped into a scroll. Again more oil is used. The scroll is then flatten once again and put onto a very hot hot-plate. When frying, the layers created by the scrolling would open up like a pastry due to the oil and layering. The resulting texture is a combination of a stringy yet flakey bread. We all loved it and asked to watch the guys make it. Actually, interestingly, an indian commercial kitchen is full of men peeling onions, scraping coconuts, making parathas and whatever other tasks there are. It was a sight worth seeing.

Soon it was time for the tuk-tuk ride to the train station. We were apprehensive about this part of the journey as we were still stuck on the waiting list in positions 5,6,7. Nonetheless we stuck with Plan A - our train ride back to Bangalore. Sad to be leaving Allepey and the boating and food adventures we waited for our train to arrive.