Varapuzha was also called Verapoli.
Was linked to Ernakulam by a boat service.
About 20 boats plied across these points, touching some 20 other points of jetties in various islands.
The trips lasted about 100 minutes. Some found entertainment in card games on the engine cabines.
Each boat required, a pilot, called srank, an engine man, two laskars. Laskar, no idea if it is Malayalam or English, did the tieing , untieing of boat in each jetty, while passageners were embarking and disembarking. That would mean, each boat provided employment for minimum four workers, and earnings for the owners family.
Then there were ticket sellers at each jetty, who were also petty shop keepers at the jetty. Most jetty area had a shop, selling tea, beedies and the like.
Things have changed.
Gosri bridge connected the Mulavukad island, people abandoned the boat service. Varapuzha bridge did the boat service in.
Twenty boats had no business, they reduced the number of trips to four, done by two boats. That is not full time employment for boats, and staff. Soon, the boat owners may decide to stop this service.
A boat trip that last 100 minutes, from Ernakulam to Varapuzha Church jetty costs Rs. 7.50.
(currently Rs 46 makes a US Dollar if you wish to compare).
If the people in the islands of Bolghatty, Moolampilly, and places like Vaduthala, Kurungotta, Pizhala and Nettor, make concerted efforts, more tourists, will know about this area, make trips and keep the boat service live.
Back water tourism is cheap here, and gives good value for money
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
A day out in the backwaters and trip to Vypeen and Fort Cochin ( kochi )
A trip to Varapuzha is recommended may travel mags, even ordinary magazines and dailies.
Apparently Lonely Planet wrote exotic things about this tract of waters and surrounding islands and ladmass.
I thought , i would go see my self.
There are only four trips daily from Ernakulam High Court Boat jetty.
Selected a Sunday and asked about the the jetty ( sevral are there at High Court area)
A peanut vendor, showed me one, and added " but today is Sunday, no service" End that days trip.
My wife suggested that we go to Fort Cochin.
So we drove to the Vypeen South End, where there are services to carry passengers and vehicles.
A barge that carries vehicles is called junkar ( jankar ?).
We joine a line of vehicles, that include mini lorries, auto cargo carriers, mobikes and cars.
That was a mistake.
A trip across the waters takes just five minutes, but the wait for my turn took 90 minutes.
Lessor no. one, If you are just visiting Fort Kochi ( Cochin ) park your vehicle at Vypeen and use the boat there, or barge service.
Ticket costs just Rs. 2 per person. Vehicle cost Rs. 20 if it is a car.
The small boat that ferried us was full, the boat crew crazy. The boat had semi beached on the sand bank that was forming , and not to get stuck in the low tide, the pilot ( srank ) put the boat in the reverse gear. People were getting out of the boat, and this sudden reverse movement posed a danger, some one could fall while disembarking. Bit of an altercation was the result.
Beach has disappered, eaten by the sea, which carried all the sand, and made puthu vype on the vypeen side.
The beach has a remnent, people thronged there to get their feet wet.
Passing ships is the best sight at Fort Kochin, ( ahem I don't know which is right) or Cochin, by the way a chain of auto loaded icecream vendors give a feeling that every one eats ice cream at Fort Kochi beach.
Apparently Lonely Planet wrote exotic things about this tract of waters and surrounding islands and ladmass.
I thought , i would go see my self.
There are only four trips daily from Ernakulam High Court Boat jetty.
Selected a Sunday and asked about the the jetty ( sevral are there at High Court area)
A peanut vendor, showed me one, and added " but today is Sunday, no service" End that days trip.
My wife suggested that we go to Fort Cochin.
So we drove to the Vypeen South End, where there are services to carry passengers and vehicles.
A barge that carries vehicles is called junkar ( jankar ?).
We joine a line of vehicles, that include mini lorries, auto cargo carriers, mobikes and cars.
That was a mistake.
A trip across the waters takes just five minutes, but the wait for my turn took 90 minutes.
Lessor no. one, If you are just visiting Fort Kochi ( Cochin ) park your vehicle at Vypeen and use the boat there, or barge service.
Ticket costs just Rs. 2 per person. Vehicle cost Rs. 20 if it is a car.
The small boat that ferried us was full, the boat crew crazy. The boat had semi beached on the sand bank that was forming , and not to get stuck in the low tide, the pilot ( srank ) put the boat in the reverse gear. People were getting out of the boat, and this sudden reverse movement posed a danger, some one could fall while disembarking. Bit of an altercation was the result.
Beach has disappered, eaten by the sea, which carried all the sand, and made puthu vype on the vypeen side.
The beach has a remnent, people thronged there to get their feet wet.
Passing ships is the best sight at Fort Kochin, ( ahem I don't know which is right) or Cochin, by the way a chain of auto loaded icecream vendors give a feeling that every one eats ice cream at Fort Kochi beach.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Thiru Nelly or Thirunelly
The name has a Tamil flavour.
Most people have heard this name, because of a Temple. But for the temple, which is supposed to be thousands of years old, this place would have never been in the map.
How to reach Thirunelly
Calicut is the nearest airport and rail head, from Calicut One has to go by road to Mananthavadi and then from there by road to Thirunelly. It is 31 kms from Mananthavadi to Thirunelly.
Distances:
Ernakulam to Calicut by train is 193 kms.
Busfare from Calicut to Mananthavadi is Rs 59. Takes about 3.5 hours to reach Mananthavadi.
Another one hour to Thirunelly. One needs to change buses here.
So total time to reach Thirunelly ..
Bus travel would be 4.5 hours long, car could be bit shorter.
If you wish to break journey, try staying at Mananthavadi, there are few hotels there. Newest one is hotel Brahmagiri, tariffs start at Rs 1000 per room. There are cheaper accommodations, one old hotel joint is Hotel Haksons. Phone 04935-240118. Tariff range is about 400 to 1000 rupees. Not a great place to stay, just a referece to a place.
B us ride from Mananthavadi to Thirunelly is most through reserve forest, one could see teak bamboo planted or growing here, not many houses. Early settlers (adivassis) live here in the reserve forest, and since they have no papers to show ownership, land remains with government, and documented land in private hands is very little.
There are no shops for general public here (few at the temple are for tourists) so inhabitants depend on mananthavady , which is 31 kms away for supplies. A telephone transmission tower in the temple complex has made life easy, now locals could use mobile phones, make orders for supplies from Mananthavady and get things sent through the buses which ply between Mananthavady and Thirunelly. One resident told me that, he visits Mananthavady only once in a month.
Most people have heard this name, because of a Temple. But for the temple, which is supposed to be thousands of years old, this place would have never been in the map.
How to reach Thirunelly
Calicut is the nearest airport and rail head, from Calicut One has to go by road to Mananthavadi and then from there by road to Thirunelly. It is 31 kms from Mananthavadi to Thirunelly.
Distances:
Ernakulam to Calicut by train is 193 kms.
Busfare from Calicut to Mananthavadi is Rs 59. Takes about 3.5 hours to reach Mananthavadi.
Another one hour to Thirunelly. One needs to change buses here.
So total time to reach Thirunelly ..
Bus travel would be 4.5 hours long, car could be bit shorter.
If you wish to break journey, try staying at Mananthavadi, there are few hotels there. Newest one is hotel Brahmagiri, tariffs start at Rs 1000 per room. There are cheaper accommodations, one old hotel joint is Hotel Haksons. Phone 04935-240118. Tariff range is about 400 to 1000 rupees. Not a great place to stay, just a referece to a place.
B us ride from Mananthavadi to Thirunelly is most through reserve forest, one could see teak bamboo planted or growing here, not many houses. Early settlers (adivassis) live here in the reserve forest, and since they have no papers to show ownership, land remains with government, and documented land in private hands is very little.
There are no shops for general public here (few at the temple are for tourists) so inhabitants depend on mananthavady , which is 31 kms away for supplies. A telephone transmission tower in the temple complex has made life easy, now locals could use mobile phones, make orders for supplies from Mananthavady and get things sent through the buses which ply between Mananthavady and Thirunelly. One resident told me that, he visits Mananthavady only once in a month.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Cochin Calicut and then on to Wayanad via Kalpetta
There are plenty of luxary buses, many of the brand Hino going to Bangalore. They go via Kalpetta and Sultan Bathery (Sultan's Battery). Most of these buses start at Cochin in the evenings, something like 6 PM and reach Bangalore in the Morning. Idea is that , while passengers, sleep, the driver keeps going. These drivers are chaps with good night vision, and with a good idea of where every pothole is. Buses and big, and even where there is an accident, deaths are rare. At least, we dont hear of them in the news papers. So Consider them safe.
Convenient and cheap, is train travel. But why do people opt for road trips like this. The point is that, rail seats are limited, and one has to plan and book his railway seat much , much in advance. Would Laloo prasad try to make money of this route as well. May be he could introduce something special like Gharib Rathh ( means poor mans chariot, for what ever reason) which has only airconditioned seats, and charges are like three times higher. Even so, charges are much cheaper than an air conditioned hotel room. Don't you see, these trains offer , sleep while you travel- in airconditioned comfort.
Convenient and cheap, is train travel. But why do people opt for road trips like this. The point is that, rail seats are limited, and one has to plan and book his railway seat much , much in advance. Would Laloo prasad try to make money of this route as well. May be he could introduce something special like Gharib Rathh ( means poor mans chariot, for what ever reason) which has only airconditioned seats, and charges are like three times higher. Even so, charges are much cheaper than an air conditioned hotel room. Don't you see, these trains offer , sleep while you travel- in airconditioned comfort.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Rail is always better and cheaper
To see India, or to move from place to place, rail travel is the best option.
see how cheap is train travel, one has to do it and find out.
A five hour journey in an air conditioned chair car, from Cochin to Calicut, takes about 5 half hours. what you pay is less than Rs. 300 or something equal to $15. I have seen youngsters employed in IT industry, using their laptops in the train, and watching movies with their on DVDs.
Railways were built by the British and the Indians later expanded on it. One reason why rail travel is cheap, is because it is run by the Central (Federal) Government, and there are plenty of hidden subsidies. Railway ministers want to remain popular and go to all extend to keep fares down.
Most of these years, Railways required funding from the Central Government. But Mr. Laloo Prasad, a canny politician from Bihar, found ways to increase revenue. He increased loads per wagon, and rates per load as well. Freight is where the money was, and now (for last four years ince 2005) Indian Railways generate extra cash.
The turn around of Railways has drawn public attention.
Several IIM (Indian Institute of Management) as well as foreign scholars have noted Laloo's achievements and honoured him.
see how cheap is train travel, one has to do it and find out.
A five hour journey in an air conditioned chair car, from Cochin to Calicut, takes about 5 half hours. what you pay is less than Rs. 300 or something equal to $15. I have seen youngsters employed in IT industry, using their laptops in the train, and watching movies with their on DVDs.
Railways were built by the British and the Indians later expanded on it. One reason why rail travel is cheap, is because it is run by the Central (Federal) Government, and there are plenty of hidden subsidies. Railway ministers want to remain popular and go to all extend to keep fares down.
Most of these years, Railways required funding from the Central Government. But Mr. Laloo Prasad, a canny politician from Bihar, found ways to increase revenue. He increased loads per wagon, and rates per load as well. Freight is where the money was, and now (for last four years ince 2005) Indian Railways generate extra cash.
The turn around of Railways has drawn public attention.
Several IIM (Indian Institute of Management) as well as foreign scholars have noted Laloo's achievements and honoured him.
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