Kerala Trip : An 8 day trip to God’s Own Country

This year we chose to escape to Kerala as the scalding hot Chennai became impossible to bear during summer. We planned to go to the beautiful Alappuzha district, which happens to be my husband’s ancestral place. The backwaters of Alappuzha are renowned for their breathtaking beauty. The natural beauty of Kerala can inspire poets to pen verses singing its praise.

Day 1 : Alappuzha – Sterling lake palace resort

We took the evening flight to Kochi, Kerala and reached Sterling Lake Palace Resort, a couple of hours away from Kochi Airport. It was around 11:30 PM when we reached the resort. We were escorted in a buggy to the reception. As we entered, the resort lobby was dimly lit. We woke up the night-duty receptionist and buggy driver.

The room allocated to us had a view of the backwaters. Seeing the water and the boats from inside our room felt magical. I had always enjoyed water views for a long time. We turned off the lights and enjoyed our cosy night at the resort.

Day 2 : Birthday Party in the lake front cottage

The next morning was my younger daughter’s birthday. She loved going around in the buggy in the resort. After a decent breakfast at the Sterling resort, we lazed around the room enjoying the backwater view.

My husband had ordered a special vegetarian strawberry cake for my younger daughter’s birthday. We had a fantastic celebration at the resort. After that, all of us played badminton and toured the resort property.

Sunset Cruise

At around 4:45, we assembled at the Sterling Lake Palace resort boat jetty. A lovely boat was arranged as complimentary for those who stayed at the resort. A gentle breeze welcomed us as we entered the boat. We enjoyed the Sunset view as other boats glided along on the backwaters.

Mulakkal Sri Rajarajeshwari Temple and the market

We decided to go to Mulakkal Sri Rajarajeshwari Temple, a charming temple that exhibited Kerala architecture. Men have to wear Mundu/Dhoti to enter the temple. We did Archana for our family, and a Kerala Namboothri gave us prasadam in the temple.

We were delighted to see our favorite Hanuman in the temple. Our kids started chanting Hanuman Chalisa in front of the deity. There were special sannadhis for Lord Krishna, Lord Ganesha, Lord Iyappa, Lord Shiva, and Navagrahas. We were blessed to get the deities’ darshan on my daughter’s birthday.

We enjoyed a nice meal at the Rice Boat Restaurant which had pure vegetarian cuisine, after which we returned to the resort.

Day 3 : Moncombu Bhagavathy Temple

The next day we started early because the morning Darshan at temple usually ends by 10:00 AM. This visit was an essential part of the trip as the deity was our Kula Devi (Moncombu Bhagavathy Devi) who is in the village of Moncombu in Alappuzha district.

This village Moncombu is beautiful, surrounded by greenery and waters. However, the place is low-lying and flooding has become quite common in this area.

Moncombu Bhagavathy Devi temple is being renovated right now. A foreign company is assigned with the task of lifting the temple above by six feet. This renovation is very intense, and it has been going on for a year already. The Devi deities are now temporarily kept at a small shrine in the right side of the temple.

We did Archana at the shrine and had good darshan of Devi, Shiva, Ganesha and Iyappa. Though it is a much smaller temple, the priests do elaborate pujas for all the festivals. We talked to the locals and spent peaceful and quiet time here at the temple.

Ambalapuzha Sri Krishna Swamy Temple

Our next stop was at Sri Krishna Swamy temple in Ambalapuzha. This is a famous temple of Lord Krishna in this part of Kerala. Lord Krishna looked so cute and lovely. After the darshan, the locals told us that the paal payasam here is a must-have. So we joined the line for payasam and waited for 2 hours to receive the payasam. Don’t stand in the line if you can’t wait the entire period. After the long wait we got the prasadam.

I ran back to the main shrine at around 1 PM to get the second darshan of Sri Krishna Swamy who looked as gorgeous as Guruvayurappa. The singing of Narayaneeyam to the tune of Kerala Vadhyam brought goosebumps. This particular afternoon darshan is considered very auspicious as at this time Lord Guruvayurappa is supposed to be present to consume the naivedya of Paal Payasam.

We returned to the resort after the Darshan and took a break at this point as my elder daughter was suddenly having fever. By God’s grace, her fever subsided by next day.

Day 4 : Badminton, Table Tennis, Uno, Chess – Gaming in the Resort

We decided to take it easy this day for my elder kid to recover fully. My hubby and my younger one had a grand ole time at the resort playing all kinds of games and exploring and enjoying the gaming centre in Sterling Lake Palace Resort.

Marari Beach

That evening we visited the white sand Marari beach, which looked clean, fresh, and magnificent. This is a must-visit beach if you are planning to stay in Alleppey for a few days. Maanu and her dad played in the beach water for some time and kept walking along the beach holding hands. It was a beautiful sight to behold: The wide waters of Marari and the loving bond of dad and daughter.

Day 5: Private Shikhara Boat Cruise in Rain

My younger daughter wanted to go on a private cruise on the Shikhara boat. Thankfully my elder daughter had also recovered fully from fever and she was also in a fun mood. The morning looked cloudy, and the atmosphere felt more relaxed than usual. We instructed the boatman to pick us up at the resort boat jetty and drop us back there.

There was a small bed at the back of the Shikara. We all took turns to the enjoy the views of the backwater and the boats from different parts of the boat.

When the boat reached Vembanad lake, it started pouring suddenly. With no other boats in sight, we instructed the boatman to dock the boat until the rain subsided. We were finally happy to get back to the hotel after our morning adventure in the rain.

Guruvayoor Trip

That afternoon, we left to Guruvayur which was around 3 and 1/2 hours away. It took longer time than usual because of the road works. We had our evening tea and snacks, and headed to Guruvayur Temple at around 8 PM. The market surrounding the temple looked so charming with all kinds of puja essentials and idols of Sri Krishna.

We stopped by at a shop to get a Kerala style handloom saree and a dhoti. At around 9 PM, we went to Sri Veli in Guruvayoor temple and witnessed the procession of Lord Guruvayoorappa which brought so much bliss to my soul. Surrounded by elephants, Lord Guruvayoorappa’s processional deity was carried atop a decorated elephant. He looked regal like the king of kings. All of us chanted Sri Krishna’s names and felt overjoyed to witness this event. The kids loved the elephants and the procession. This is a must-do activity in Guruvayoor.

Day 6: Darshan and Tulabharam at Guruvayoor

The next day was a Saturday which is an auspicious day for worshipping Lord Krishna. At around 8 AM, we went to Guruvayurappan temple and the free darshan line was getting longer. So we got special Darshan tickets at the counter that was in the far right side of the temple.

We had a delightful Darshan of Lord Guruvayurappan and did Tulabaram for my husband with sugar. The Tulabaram line was super long and we had to wait longer in that line to get this done. We also got Paal Payasam, ghee payasam and sugar Prasadam.

My mother told me to visit Mammiyoor Mahadeva Temple which was close to the hotel that we stayed in. So, we had this special Darshan of Lord Shiva and many other deities in this temple. It felt very special to see both Mahadeva and Guruvayoorappan on the same day.

Our next stop was at the Anakotta guruvayur elephant sanctuary which had a collection of around 40 elephants. It was lovely to see them pose for the camera. It genuinely looked like they were posing for pictures. This is a must-visit place if you are taking kids to Guruvayoor.

We headed straight to Kochi, and stopped at some place in the middle for lunch. I highly suggest that you finish your lunch in Guruvayoor if you are a pure vegetarian as there are more options there. The drive was around 2 hours away. We stayed in Ramada resort by Wyndham which also had a wonderful view of the backwaters. Kerala is such a great picturesque place.

We had dinner at the Fennel restaurant in Ramada resort. The dinner buffet was phenomenal and it is a must have if you are staying in the nearby area.

Day 7 – Kochi sightseeing

The next morning we had breakfast at the resort which was again delicious. Lot of pastry options are available for breakfast. We first headed to the Dutch Palace (Mattancherry Palace) which had numerous murals, paintings, statues and exhibits of the Rajas of Kochi. Since I personally love history, this was fascinating to me as I learnt quite a bit about the rajas of Kerala, the attacks of foreigners and conquests of the Europeans. One must learn history to understand how to live and what consequences one might face if we repeat the behaviour of the past. A stunning collection of old paintings of Hindu mythology, the maps of days bygone and the history and tracing of the lineage of the rajas of Kerala proved to be fascinating.

We stayed for a long time at this place to really take it all in. After this, we toured around the Jew Town which had arts and crafts of India and some Indo-European fusion arts. The entire place had a strong European vibe. It didn’t feel like we were in India.

This road lead to the Jewish Synagogue (Paradesi Synagogue) which was built in 1568 AD. This was the first visit to a Synagogue.

Our lunch was at the Art Cafe restaurant which had amazing paintings displayed beautifully around the tables. We loved the ambience but the food was only passable. Most of the food items listed in the menu were not available. We managed to eat some pasta, French fries and tea.

A charming place for all art lovers, this Jew Town had a nice collection of Pashmina shawls. I bought couple of them and I am very happy with my purchase.

Our next stop was at Fort Kochi – St Francis Cathedral which was originally built in 1503 AD. The Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama died in Kochi in 1524 when he was on his third visit to India. His body was originally buried in this church, but after fourteen years his remains were moved to Lisbon. This was again a historic spot in Kochi. I was elated to see the Cathedral.

We then visited the David Hall Gallery where usually the Kochi Biennale happens. Though the Biennale ended last month, we were fortunate to view the contemporary Indian artwork of Kerala artists. A visit to Kochi without visiting the Art museum is a big NO-NO according to me. 😀 Just kidding. But you must visit if you are an art aficionado. It would be ideal to go to Kochi during the Biennale (Kochi-Muziris Biennale) if you are into art.

After this, we headed to the Kochi beach where one can view the Chinese Fishing Nets.

This is where you can find the Vascodagama Square and Heritage Buildings surrounding the beach.

After this wonderful sight-seeing day in Kochi, we returned to the hotel to view the sunset at the Ramada resort which has breathtaking views of the Sunset. Any description here would be inadequate as one must be physically present there to view the colourful red and purple skies, and their glorious reflection on the backwaters. This magic of God’s hand overtakes the beauty of any human-made art. A view to remember.

Karthik and I held hands as we watched the sunset. The resort was playing a nice song in the background which kinda set the mood for the evening.

Day 8 – Lulu Mall and Back to Chennai

The last day at Kochi was spent leisurely in the morning enjoying the breakfast spread, packing the bags and just chilling at the resort. At around noon, we checked out of the hotel and went to Lulu mall as we had heard good things about it from all. The mall was extremely overcrowded, thanks to the summer holidays and it is best avoided if you have nice malls in your own city. This is a hyped mall and not worth the visit as it has an extremely dirty food court.

The only good thing about this mall is the nice gaming centre called FUTURAMA. Both my kids and my hubby loved go-karting and went on rides in the gaming centre. This was the only fun thing at the mall.

We headed to the airport after that and caught the evening flight back to Chennai. What an experience! Kerala and its natural beauty is worth seeing again and again. The friendly and kind people of Kerala have won a place in my heart. I made friends in Alleppey, Moncombu, Ambalapuzha, and Kochi. This luxurious trip with our visits to the wonderful temples in between provided ample enjoyment for our eyes and brought bliss to our soul. This is a trip that will be remembered for a long time.