Raph, Ethel, and I see Chinese fishing nets and Kathakali dance in Kochi
Raph, Ethel, and I see Chinese fishing nets and Kathakali dance in Kochi
We spent a couple of days in Fort Cochin. After some searching around for a place to stay, we found a reasonably priced guesthouse called the Taj Mahal for 300 rupees a night. A nice family has started this new guesthouse with about four rooms. They are adding a restaurant on the first floor.
The highlight of Kochi are the Chinese fishing nets along the channel. In addition to looking beautiful, the fishermen will let you help pull the nets up with the long ropes, hauling the huge booms up high. So that was a lot of fun.
Doing the walking tour around Kochi is kind of fun. I was suffering from a fever at the time so perhaps I did not enjoy it as much as I could have. There are some pricier restaurants in Kochi, but they serve very good food. Kochi seems to have a more upscale traveller than the budget traveller; the demographic is older, with more money to spend. Kochi must be a stop on a tour of Kerala and South India.
We also went into Ernakulam to see a traditional dance called Kathakali. Raph wasn't too impressed, but I was impressed by the elaborate costumes and the dancing of the story. In this particular performance the story was from the Ramayana; Sita asks Rama to bring her a flower from a forest that humans are forbidden to go to. Rama feels strong and confident so he heads off to get the flower for her. His brother, Hanuman, is concerned about his endeavor; Hanuman disguises himself as an old, weak monkey. Rama finds him in the forest but can't get past him because of Hanuman's strength; Rama realizes he must be Hanuman. Hanuman listens to what Rama wants to do; Hanuman decides it is worthwhile and then decides he will help Rama make it through the forest in whatever way he can. Rama continues in the forest in search of the flower.
It struck me that the story began like the Garden of Eden story from Genesis in the Bible. But it turns out just the opposite. Instead of being punished for the rest of human history with original sin, Rama is helped on his journey because he feels strong and confident. It struck
me that a story could start the same way but turn out not to be about guilt and sin but rather about strength, confidence, and the love between Rama and Sita.
The costumes and makeup took over an hour for the performers to put on; the costumes looked very hot, being made of plastic burlap bags wrapped around and around the waist.
Raph, Ethel, and I see Chinese fishing nets and Kathakali dance in Kochi
