Chapter one continues

Chapter one continues...

We left Guruvayur back to Ft Cochin. Arrived early enough to hit up the Old hthouse Bristol hotel for dinner and checked in for two more nights at Heritage House. We love this place with Dutch wooden beams and 300 year history, decorated in tinsel and lights: merry Christmas people would still say even a week later.

The next day, we had the epic adventure of walking through the back streets of Ft Cochin following Vidya's "good sense of direction... Along the dank smells of the canals, winding in and out of the Muslim part of town, gliding past stares and smiles. Goats, cows, covered faces. To the ferry to take us to the neighboring city, Ernakulam to get her phone fixed which had been dropped at the wedding. Some people come to Cochin for the romantic views and watery vibe of a house boat; we rode the ferry through garbage filled, dark waters that made my eyes water and my nose run.

When we arrive,?Where can we go? The tourist office pointed us in a direction and we landed in a kiosk where she turned her phone over to a salesman? A technician? An enthusiastic kid who performed surgery on her phone, replacing screen and display, 1.5 hours later... We agreed that we were definitely on an adventure. Back on the ferry, I felt my stomach turn, a fever rise and a nausea wash over me. Am I going to be sick? From ferry to hotel, we saw a procession of drummers leading "old man gloom" by the Chinese fisherman nets and local artisans... I finally say enough smells, sights for the day and hurry back to our hotel. A grape seed cocktail and a nap later, I bounced back just in time to eat (again?!) Local eats at Dal Roti, more naps and then the final dinner with the wedding party. New Years Eve dinner at The Malabar hotel. 9 courses, several performances later and a sparkle ended the night and the year.

It was time to say goodbye to the happy couple and start the next chapter of our journey: The pilgrimage to the Sacred mountain.