Our last stop before returning to Cochin at the end of our two-month trip around southern India was Alleppey, ‘Venice of the East’, or at least I thought it was! As is our wont, I went on Trip Advisor and booked two nights in the number one rated bed and breakfast in Alleppey. Arriving in town from Kollam, we discovered that the place I’d booked was actually 20 kilometres out of Alleppey and it was going to cost us a small fortune to get there!
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Our Accommodation
Once at Lovedale Lakeside Homestay, though, we realised that it was lovely and the perfect place to reflect on the journey that was about to end. It was situated right on the lake and had a cabana where we could sit and watch all the activity – birds, fishermen, houseboats, boats delivering goods, and lots more. Our wooden cottage in the garden afforded us attractive and comfortable accommodation. Our hosts were very welcoming and served us delicious food throughout our stay – albeit in portions that were far too large!
A Colourful Local Festival
On our first evening, our hosts told us about a festival at the local temple, so we went to have a look. The procession of elephants, dancers and drummers was quite a sight!
Backwater Boat Trip
We did yet another boat trip whilst we were in Alleppey. This time, our boat was very, very low in the water and had no seats – we had to recline on the bottom of the boat. Getting on and off at each stop was a bit of a mission, especially for Mark whose back was playing up that day!
Our ‘captain’ for the day, Santosh, took us to his waterside home to meet his wife and have a meal. It was very interesting to see how he and his family lived.
Alleppey is busier and more populated than the other places we’d had boat trips, so there was certainly a lot more to see, not least the hundreds of houseboats we had to negotiate our way past to get to the narrower backwaters! It was fascinating to see village life up close and personal. We had several stops for refreshments and, on one occasion, for a walk to a paddy field.
As much as we thoroughly enjoyed our time in the backwaters, we were looking forward to getting back to Cochin for a couple of days before our flight back to the UK.
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Very nicely written! Beautiful place and beautiful post..Thanks for sharing