Recent Backwater Experience in Kerala

After an extensive trip to Kerala hill stations and beaches, I reached Kumarakom an amazing village on the banks of a large lake. The lake which is called Vembanad is the largest lake in Kerala. I reached my resort in Kumarakom after 1 pm.

After having lunch around 2:30 pm, we headed to Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary. It is spread around 14 acres managed by the state’s tourism development corporation. we couldn’t find many birds as we went there in the afternoon. They were all flying around somewhere in the village finding their food I think. Anyway, the sanctuary holds several local and migratory birds. One should go there in the early morning to see all of them. Migratory birds from the Himalayas and Siberia are said to be found here.

We also enjoyed boating in the sanctuary. It provides great ambiance with trees, green surroundings and the chirping of the birds.
Next day morning we went for a walk through the village. The banks of this rural backwater village are attractively packed with long coconut palms and small houses. We tasted some of the fresh toddy tapped by the local people from their coconut trees. Walking through the narrow path between the green paddy fields was like being in a song sequence of a south Indian movie.

We reached the jetty in Kumarakom by 12 noon. There were a few houseboats of different sizes and structure waiting for their travelers. We had booked a comparatively medium one. Our guide took us to the boat and introduced the crew. They were really friendly. Houseboat cruised slowly through the Vembanad lake passing a few small boat and canoes. Villagers use canoes to travel and transport things from shore to shore even today. There were a few resorts that lined the shores. The boat then gradually moved towards the narrow canals and streams that flow through the outskirts of the villages. This was a wonderful experience. villagers were doing their daily chores. There were a few women washing their clothes in the stream. Some of them were fishing. We saw coir making place as crew members later told us. Kerala exports a lot of coir as they have lots of coconut trees. Travelers can go and visit them as they make it.

The food we got on the houseboat was extremely delicious. We ate authentic Kerala cuisine for lunch, dinner and next days breakfast. The boat stopped the middle of the water at lunchtime and the crew served us with freshly cooked food. We had a complete Kerala meal with Karimeen fry.

Late that evening around 6 pm, after exploring the whole village through its waterways, the houseboat was docked on the canal. Every houseboat has a stopping slot nearby it’s owner’s house. After roaming around through the village for some time, we came back to our boat and spent the rest of the night in it. Sleeping in a floating houseboat was an amazing experience.
It was a wonderful morning too. After the calm night, the village woke up and started their routine chores. We could hear the noises of children playing. We ate the breakfast and checked out from the houseboat by 9 am and our exceptional Kerala backwater tour came to an end.