Anne Lind: Visit to Cochin (now Kochi)

We had a restful day at sea after our visit with Momo in Goa. I wanted to swim and tried the solarium pool, but it was far too warm. Fortunately, there is a deep (5.5-6 feet) lap pool outside on the pool deck that is a bit cooler. If I go late in the afternoon, there usually aren't more than two or three other people there.

On Saturday we stopped in Cochin. This is another port that the Europeans colonized -- first the Portuguese, then the Dutch, and then the British. It was a princely state that became part of modern India in 1956. This has been an interesting trip, with visits to three former colonial areas prior to British rule -- Pondicherry (French) on the east coast, Goa (Portuguese), and now Cochin, both on the west coast. Goa is the only one we have visited before, back in 1980 and again in 2008.

I signed up for a small group tour of the city through a company not affiliated with the cruise line (Dan went out on his own to find a barber and got a haircut). There were only five of us (couples from Maryland and Scotland), with a very good guide named Rajesh. He knew the history well, and had a special interest in trees, of which we saw many. After a walk by some vegetable vendors, we visited the dhobi khana. Laundrymen (dhobis) still do washing and ironing in a central place. We then drove to Fort Kochi, where the Portuguese first started a settlement with a fort and a church. The fort is long gone, as the Dutch tore it down and built structures called bastions. The fort area has a walkway along the edge of the Arabian Sea. This tour turned out to have a lot more walking than I was expecting and I struggled a bit, but made it through.

Ironing room in dhobi khana; they have electricity, but a few still use coal-fired irons.

One of the three remaining bastions. One is a museum, one the bishop's residence, and one is privately owned.

We visited the St. Francis Church, built by the Portuguese in 1503. It was Catholic, but when the Dutch came, it became Protestant. And when the English took over, it became Anglican. It still has two services every Sunday, one in Malayalam and one in English. Vasco da Gama's tomb is there, although his bones were removed to Lisbon in 1539.

Front of St. Francis church with war monument.

Inside the church. Upper right is one of the six punkahs, manually-operated fans (done by punkah-wallahs sitting outside and pulling ropes).

One of the many large old trees.

Chinese fishing nets are lowered into the water, then raised to catch fish, active in the morning.

We also visited the palace of the maharajah. He was friendly to the Jewish people who were being mistreated by others, so he invited them to settle close by him. You can see the temple from the palace.