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Kathakhali dance and music

Kathakhali is one of the major forms of classical Indian dance. It plays out a story, but is distinguished by the elaborate costumes and colorful make-up. It developed as a Hindu performance in the Mayalam speaking region of Kerala, southwestern India.

Kathakali performance synthesizes music, choreography and hand (mudras) and facial gestures to express ideas, emotions and a story. Before the actual performance, the female dancer showed us the eye and hand movements, and also went through all the emotions and performed each one in an exaggerated way.

We watched the male performer apply his face mask (make-up) before the performance.

Photos of mannequins from the Kathakhali museum.

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Chinese fishing nets and more …

Our goal today was to meander through town and to see the Chinese fishing nets.

Nothing really opens much before 10a.m. But it was pleasant and not too hot with a light breeze blowing.

This is an ingenious fishing mechanism and technique -it allows one fisherman to operate a 20m wide net alone. The system relies on counter balance – on the end is the net and on the other end it is balanced with big rocks. The fisherman only needs to walk across the structure for the net to sink and be submerged at high tide.

Some of the historic buildings are beautifully maintained, while others are struggling or crumbling.

This nice young man makes and plays all these instruments. His lovely young wife and daughter.

The sister of the bride told us this was a “post wedding shoot” – yes, photographers were there also!

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Dhobis, palaces, and spices

I grew up knowing that “Dhobi” meant washing/laundry, as that is what my father always called it! There are Dhobi ghats right here in Kochi – called Dhobi Khana. The origins of the dhobi khana lie in the colonial period, when British officers brought many Tamil villagers to Kochi to work as washermen and since 1920 they have been known as the Vannar community. To this day, most of the dhobis are Tamils. According to an article I read, there are about 40 families in the community who use this Khana. Each cubicle with wash pens and water tanks is allotted to one family.

The dhobis offer laundry services to private individuals, hostels, hospitals, and hotels. Many have been working there since they were young teenagers and are now in their 70’s and 80’s. The dhobi who was ironing let me feel the weight of the iron and told me it was 8.5kg, which I well believed!The laundry is soaked, pounded, scrubbed, rinsed, wrung and hung out to dry.

Some of the wall art at the Dhobi Khana.

Our next stop was at the Dutch Palace which the Portuguese built as a gift to King Veera Kerala Verma in about 1545. It came to be known as the Dutch Palace as it underwent major repairs at the hands of the Dutch. It now houses a museum, the Mattancherry Palace Museum. The interior has incredibly richly carved ceilings, beautiful murals and the displays include artifacts from the bygone eras of the Raj. A Hindu place of worship is on the grounds, and a spring fed pond is used as a swimming hole by locals.

This Hindu temple was on our way to the Spice Market.

Unlike the spice market in Dubai, this one consisted of some shops selling spices, to include a women’s cooperative. We picked up a few harder to find spices – like white poppy seeds and black cardamom.

We discovered that Bazaar Road was where the wholesale merchants were located. The street was a hive of activity as large trucks laden with sacks of rice, garlic, onions and more jockeyed for position to offload their loads. Men were busy counting money, giving orders, and doing book work – India still believes in the ledger!!!

This rather fancy hotel, renovated and converted from an old granary, was beautiful, but in a strange location.

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Shopping around Fort Kochi

We spent the (hot) afternoon wandering the streets of Fort Kochi and browsing the shops – gleefully when we came across one with a/c! As my granddaughter pointed out – there is a 100+ degree difference between here and Belfast, Maine!

A huge banyan tree outside our building.

Around a small part of Fort Kochi

Our tuk -tuk driver, Zakki.

plastic water bottles for recycling

Shopping…

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Kochi on Epiphany

Our three-hour layover at Bangalore airport was quite interesting and educational. When is people watching not just that? By the way, the airport is very modern, architecturally pleasing, and easy to navigate. We started with a breakfast of masala dosa attempting at all times to keep our left hands away from our food!!!

I was fascinated by some small groups of men dressed in black with orange and red bindis on their foreheads, and have since learned that they are pilgrims on their way to Sabrimala pilgrimage Center (Sabarimala Sree Dharma Sastha Temple, dedicated to Lord Ayyappa). This temple being the most prominent among all Sastha temples in Kerala, is situated on a hilltop in the Western Ghats. It is not open throughout the year, but only open for worship during the days of Mandalapooja, Makaravilakku and Chitra Vishu. It is said that the pilgrims have to follow fasting for 41 days to cleanse their minds before going to Sabarimala, and the journey to the temple is to be taken on foot through difficult paths in the forest. We observed some other pilgrims at a local Hindu restaurant in Kochi.

Fort Kochi is just as I imagined and hoped. Very lush, old but not shabby, walkable; evidence of its history – Portuguese, Dutch, and British – is everywhere. We have not yet explored many of the sights, but we will!

This morning we walked to St. Francis Anglican Church for their 8 a.m. English speaking service. What a lovely experience, made even better by meeting John (Dundu) and Anna (Lilu). John was baptized, confirmed and married in the church. I was asking him about the long fans that run the length of the church. He told me they are called panka and were last in operation at his brother’s wedding 25+ years ago! After the service we were able to chat with some of the parishioners and learn more about the church, including its history.

St Francis Xavier’s Church at Fort Kochi was built in the year 1503, by Portuguese traders. Initially, the church was a simple wooden structure, dedicated to St Bartholomew. In 1506, the Raja of Cochin permitted the Portuguese Viceroy, Dom Francisco Almedia, to reconstruct the structure in stone. The new church was completed in 1516 and was dedicated to St Antony. The ownership of the Church of St Francis Xavier then passed into the hands of the protestant Dutch, who captured Kochi in 1663. They converted it into their government church and it remained in the possession of the Dutch until 1795. Ownership then passed to the British, when they captured Kochi from the Dutch. The church became a protected monument in 1923. In 1947, the congregation joined the Protestant Church of South India (CSI). St Francis Xavier’s Church is also famous because Vasco-da- Gama, the first European to discover a route to India, died here in 1524 on his third visit and was buried in this church. Though his remains were shipped to Lisbon, at the request of his son, 14 years later, the gravestone is still there.

As we were leaving, John asked if we would like to join them for breakfast! They took us on a mini tour of Kochi, pointing out places and streets of interest, and then to amHindu restaurant where we enjoyed idlis, dosa masala, and coffee which is poured from container to container to cool! We stopped at a fruit market and they delivered us back to our apartment. What a lovely morning!

Our apartment

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Learning Goan Cuisine – breads and more …day 3

We started with another impressive number of items to make during our session to include:

  • Chicken biryani
  • Prawn kadai
  • Naan bread
  • Poori
  • Stuffed poori
  • Chapatti
  • Dosas
  • Uttapam
  • Medu vade
  • Paneer kofta
  • Rice pudding
  • Coconut chutney

We started with the coconut chutney which I first discovered at the hotel in Mumbai, and fell in love with.

Next up was Uttapam – the “Indian pizza”- made with the idli batter.

Then came dosas mad with a watered down idli batter.

These three items were for our breakfast.

We started with making the dough for the chapattis, poori and naan so it could rest and rise.

Medu vade- a donut like, deep fried, savory made with a dough of the same Urid lentils used in idlis, with the addition of chopped onion, coconut, green chili, ginger and cilantro.

The chicken was marinated for the biryani, the rice was cooked, with the spices, and onions were fried to a delicious crisp.

The kofta were formed and then deep fried.

The kofta curry was made and the kofta balls were added.

The chicken for the biryani was prepared and then layered with the rice, sealed and baked.

The Kerai was made

Now time to knead, and knead some more; roll, fold, roll; flip, oil, flip; bake over open flame and deep fry the different breads.

The end product – yummy!!!!

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Exploring Panjim

Our plan was to explore the old, Portuguese influenced, area of Panjim; however, our driver spoke just a smattering of English and didn’t know the way! Iwas able to direct him to Se cathedral and the basilica (16c) using google maps!!!

Our sight seeing of the old architecture in town was less successful, and when we finally found the market, discovered that it was not nearly as nice as the one in Vasco de Gama. The ride to and from Panjim along the waterfront was interesting, especially the roaming cows, dogs sleeping wherever -to include in the road, and the brightly decorated homes (for Christmas).

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Learning Goan cuisine – hands on! Day 2

Another full day of preparing Goan cuisine, and the menu was extensive!

We started with another clarification of the peppers and spices. Kashmiri for color, medium heat, and Cancon for heat!

Dessert was prepared first – a flan with cardamom.

Marinades we’re prepared for the Vindaloo- vin=vinegar and alyu =garlic.

sauce for Xacuti.

Vegetable korma.

Caldin prepared two ways – one with cauliflower and prawns, the other with poached eggs.

Chicken croquettes.

Idlis

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Learning Goan cuisine – hands on! Day 1

Rita picked us up just after nine in the morning and drove us to her house where she holds the cooking classes in a lovely covered patio surrounded by potted herbs and spices. We met our fellow classmates Kate and Lucy, sisters from London, and Tony, a Home Ec teacher from Darwin. We spent some time chatting and Rita explained the plan for the day which started with a delicious breakfast. From there we headed to the market to shop!

The menu for the day was:
Rissoles de Camarao
Galina Cafreal
Recheado
Prawn Curry
Fugath
Bolo Mimosa

After a brief introduction to the spices we’d be using, we started by making the crust, coconut filling and assembling our little tarts.

We then got to work slicing the snake gourd which was our vegetable in the Fugath.

We made a green sauce marinade for the chicken (Galina Cafreal) . Meanwhile a whole shallot was char roasted on the burner to be used for stuffing the squid ( Recheado).

The base for the prawn curry sauce was grated fresh coconut along with turmeric and other spices.

The filling for the prawn puffs (Rissoles de Carmarao) was made and the choux pastry too. They were then assembled, breaded and deep fried.

The last item on the menu was the Recheado which we stuffed into squid and cooked for a very brief time.

At three o’clock, with sore feet and stiff backs, we sat down with a beer to enjoy the fruits of our labor

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Vasco de Gama

The morning started out in monochrome as fog blanketed the bay, but quickly turned technicolor when we arrived at the farmers’ market in Vasco de Gama.

Our trip to the market was led by Rita, our cooking guru, and her helper Pooja.  We purchased vegetables, herbs and fish to use to create our Goan dishes. (More on that in the next post). Like all markets, the vibrancy and people watching opportunities were in abundance. The only problem was that I was let loose with a camera! So be prepared!

The Portuguese introduced marigolds to India, the flower is offered to the Hindu gods for festivals and celebrations. The yellow or orange dye of the flowers is also be used for coloring fabrics.

Kokum fruit after processing. Known in some circles as the “Indian super fruit” .

Some  of the people.

The colorful and very fresh vegetables.

Peppers, grains and spices.

Fish – the flat fish being Pomfret.

Vasco da Gama, named after the Portuguese explorer, is the largest city in the state of Goa and is situated on the western tip of the Mormugao peninsula, at the mouth of the Zuari river. Founded in 1543, it was in Portuguese hands until 1961 when Goa ceased to be a Portuguese territory.

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Goa, India

Our whole purpose for coming to Goa is to take some classes at Rita’s Cooking classes.  Our stay at the Kokum Tree homestay (named after the spice tree) is the perfect antidote to the hustle and bustle of Mumbai. Here at Kokum Tree one can sit on the tiled verandah enjoying some gentle breezes while overlooking a tropical wooded area to the bay beyond.

Call me nuts, but there is something fun and exciting about the craziness and apparent disorder on the roads of these cities. Fumes! Tuk-tuks, trucks, motor cycles, cars, buses, taxis all jostling and nudging and honking their horns! (Photos when we return to Mumbai). Meanwhile – I was totally impressed with the Chhatrapati Shivaji international airport and love these columns.

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Zurich stop over

Our flight from Boston to Mumbai included a 22-hour layover in Zurich – which we welcomed. The day couldn’t have been better for taking a stroll around the city center. After leaving the frigid temps in the USA, this New Year’s Eve day felt more like a day in April!

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The Limmat River.

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Rounding out the visit with raclette at The Raclette Factory – evidently a tradional New Year’s Eve dinner.