March 18, 2015
Since the last post we have visited Colombo, Sri Lanka,
Cochin (Kochi), India and celebrated St. Patrick’s Day with a ship full of
pseudo-Irish and St. Patrick himself, AKA Papa Ku.
March 15: Colombo, Sri Lanka
We had a private tour with guide and driver, neither of whom
seemed to know how to get around very well. On our way to a tea plantation we
had to stop at least four times to ask for directions. No GPS nor maps in
evidence. But it was a nice day anyway. The tea plantation was interesting –
involving a rather treacherous ride up a narrow mountain road. We were told by
our guide that this was “low land” tea and not considered as high quality as
the tea grown in the higher elevations away from the city. But the smells were
wonderful and the production process fascinating. After a brief tour of the
city and a delicious lunch at the Ministry of Crab (Stay Calm and Crab On), we
visited a craft shop where we purchased some high country tea, a wood carved
fisherman, and a post card for Uncle Lingan. Of interest was a major
beach-front development project that is now in hiatus. Seems the project was
begun by Chinese investors during the previous Sri Lankan administration which
was considered corrupt. So the current administration has called a halt while
the various financing arrangements are scrutinized.
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| Tea Plantation |
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| At the Ministry of Crab |
March 17: Cochin, India
Cochin is in Kerala – the southernmost state in India. It
was one of the earliest settlements because of its abundance of spices. First
the Portuguese came and conquered, stayed a few hundred years before being
deposed by the Dutch and finally the British. We visited the oldest and second
oldest European-built churches in India – both built by the Portuguese. We also
visited the Synagogue, built in the 1500s and whose floor is paved with
hand-painted tiles from Canton, China. The state is 40% Christian, 30% Hindu,
and 30% Muslim. There are exactly seven Jewish people left and when they die
the entire Jewish population will be gone. Also interesting are the
Chinese-style fishing nets still in use. The picture is a better description
than I could make.
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| Chinese-style fishing nets in Cochin |
Unlike most of India, Cochin seems to have a lower level of
poverty. Our tour guide noted that family planning is popular here, the level
of education high, and thus no families have to live on the street. The architecture
is lovely and well maintained. The buildings in the old Fort Cochin area are
being preserved, some converted into boutique hotels. Fresh fish is abundant
and the fish market was a fun visit.
Shopping for fish in Cochin.
Overall, it is a lovely city. While there
we had an interesting conversation with an American woman from Seattle who
travels to India and other Asian countries every year by herself.
India has the most onerous entry requirements of any country
we have visited. In addition to having had to go through the expense and
time-consuming process of obtaining a visa, we also had to complete numerous
forms while on board and then have both a photocopy of our passport and an
entrance card stamped by an official before we could get off the ship.
Consequently all the tours left an hour late. Since we have booked a private
tour by a non-Holland America provider for Mumbai, we are a bit concerned about
missing our contact there on the 19th.
St. Patrick’s Day: Although in India, green was the color of
the day ship-wide and a party atmosphere prevailed. One passenger – a frequent sailor
from Australia nicknamed Papa Ku – was authentically attired as St. Patrick, complete
with staff and snake! It added a further note of fun to the evening.
Now we are on our way to Mumbai. The GI problem continues to
worsen, mainly due (according to the captain) to passengers who either ignore
their quarantines or fail to report symptoms. If it continues we may have to disembark
and wait for the entire ship to be decontaminated. This could result in some missed
stops in the itinerary. John has totally recovered from his bout and I have
been spared. But we are both still plagued with nagging coughs, residual from
our pneumonia and exacerbated by mild colds.
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