Southern Hospitality - India style

I've been writing mostly about places and sightseeing, but I had one of the nicest encounters with a hotel manager in all my worldly travels that I feel it warrants its own entry.

I found Tissa's Inn, where we stayed in Fort Kochi on tripadvisor and all the reviews were excellent and raved about how nice and helpful Francis, the hotel manager was.  So, I called and booked our group 1 night, since we didn't know what we wanted to do and figured we could work out the details once we got there.  Francis emailed me the quote arranged transportation from the airport for us and also asked if there was anything else we needed.  So I asked about things to do, and arranging backwater tours, tea/spice visits, etc.

That was just the beginning.  He put together a sample itinerary and got some price quotes on boat hires.  He sent an email before we left and wished us safe travels.  But once we got there and met him, we realized, he wasn't doing this to earn a tip, he was doing this because he truly loves his job and being good to people.  We sat down with him after breakfast on Sunday after we got there and talked about options.  We decided to go to Munnar on Monday, so he called and arranged a car, he called to several different inn/homestays.  He sat with us for almost an hour, giving us ideas and just chatting.  He sure does like to talk :-)  The inn gave us water in our rooms, to take with us for the day and didn't charge, this was the first time in India we saw this happen.  We went to check out before we headed to Munnar for the night, but since the hotel wasn't busy and we were coming back Tuesday night, Francis said to just pack our things but leave them in our rooms in case they needed to move them.  And not to worry about the bill, we would settle when we left on Thursday/Friday.  How nice!  We didn't even have to pay for the room for the night, or worry about it being in hotel storage.  He called the homestay in Munnar to make sure we arrived okay and checked in with me later in the day to make sure the driver was doing okay.  I called him on the way back to have him arrange a boat tour for me on Wednesday (everyone else was going to beach, they leave Friday, I leave Thursday) and he took care of booking everything.  I didn't have to worry about paying a thing, it was all added to my room charges.  On the way back from Munnar he texted and asked what we wanted for dinner, he would have it waiting when we got there.  And finally on Wednesday morning, he called while I was getting dressed and asked what I wanted for breakfast, so he could have it ready so I wouldn't miss my ride. 

These may all seem like normal things, but it was the way he did them that just blew us away.  He was very soft spoken, always smiling, shaking your hands, patting you on the shoulder and saying that he just wanted you to relax and have the best experience ever.  Francis is probably in his late 50's, worked for the Taj hotel group for 15+ years, which is probably where he learned all of this.  He is a devout Catholic and had to leave Wednesday to meet with his family to work out the details for the mass for his mother, she just passed away about a month ago and they will have a 41st day celebration next week.  (to all my Catholic friends, what is the significance?).    He was apologetic for having to be away, and we reassured him it was fine, that family comes first.  On my way out yesterday morning, he sat down and ate breakfast with me and since he knew I was traveling, had the kitchen make me a lunch to take with me (no charge).  I asked how his day was Wed and he said all the arrangements were set, they were going to have 600 guests and also would serve a few orphanages (about 150 kids).  His mom (she was 93) must have been super special too, and she taught her son well!  He grabbed my shoulders and gave me a kiss on each cheek and wished me safe travels.  I actually had a tear in my eye thinking about how special he made this trip.  And finally, on my way to the airport, he texted and said he was praying for safe travels. :-)  (oh, forgot to mention the hotel gave me an early birthday card, guess they read the passports)

It just makes you realize that it doesn't take much to be good to people.  He knows that we are coming to a place where we don't know the language, the culture, how to get around, typical prices, etc, etc.  He just wants you to have the best time you can and to enjoy his world.  He succeeded in making this one of the most memorable vacations ever.  If you ever are in India, you have to go to Fort Kochi to experience Francis hospitality, southern India style!  (and to pick up my bathing suit which I left hanging on the back of the bathroom door, darn! haha, I'm sure Francis will take care of it)

Tea and Spices Everywhere!

I feel like I am in a totally different country!  The south of India is just so different from Jaipur, it's very refreshing to be able to see more of the country before I head home. 

After spending Sunday exploring Fort Kochi, we decided to head up to Munnar, in the the Western Ghats.  Munnar is a popular vacation and honeymoon location and is only 130 km from here, but took about 4 hours to get there.  Francis, the innkeeper in Fort Kochi arranged for us to hire a minivan for the two days, and Rajesh (our driver) was really good, and most of all, made us all feel safe, he wasn't crazy like most taxi drivers.  The drive is a steady climb up to about 2000 meters above sea level and the roads are so windy.  Poor Edina couldn't handle the twists and turns, on top of the stop and go Indian driving, and we had to stop a few times.  We finally made it to the Rose Garden, our homestay for the night, and dropped her off to take a nap.  What a cute little place!  It's basically someone's house that they opened to guests, including their two kids running around.  It also was an organic farm/nursery, even though it was set only on 2 acres, every inch of the property was covered with fruits/veggies/spices and they grow over 200 different varieties. 

We dropped our stuff off and headed past Munnar towards Top Station, which was supposed to have spectacular views.  We drove through fields and fields (or I should say mountains and mountains) of tea, which mostly are owned and operated by Tata Beverages (they own everything in India).  It was so clean smelling, no noise, just perfect driving and taking in the scenery.  It rained most of the afternoon so we never made it to the viewpoint at Top Station, but it didn't stop us from checking things out, including trying this amazing masala corn from a street food vendor, and fresh passion fruit.  They unhusk the corn and cook it quickly in an open fire, you can hear the kernels crackling.  Then they take a lime and rub in in masala spice and then on the corn.  Awesome! 

We had dinner at the homestay, all veg, but much different than up north in the desert.  A lot of the food was from their garden and most had coconut in it.  Really, really good.  Then we sat on the back porch in the dark and watched the fireflies and listened to the birds and peepers.  It was so nice to be out of the city and just relax.  I think we all fell asleep on the deck at some point, and everyone commented that this was one of the best parts of our stay in India. 

After a hearty breakfast, including fresh organic coffee that they grow, roast and grind (too bad I don't drink coffee, but everyone said it was good) we had a quick tour by Tomy, the owner of his gardens.  I was mostly interested in how the spices grow, I never knew that cloves were a flower.  He had vanilla beans, cardamon, allspice, peppercorns (they just grow like little nodes on the branch), coffee beans, cocoa, and lots of fruit and veggies.  We got to taste fresh stevia leaves too, I'll have to try and grow them in the garden this year.  He sells most of the stuff he picks at the local market, I did get to take some pepper and coffee home.
We then made our way back up to Munnar and were going to try Top Station again.  It was a beautiful day, lots of sun and not too hot.  Edina joined us this time and we only had to stop twice on the way up, poor thing.  But the ride was worth it, we felt like we were on top of the world.  No garbage or noise, just sweet smelling tea plantations and beautiful flowers.  Lots of lantanas everywhere (just like yours Mary Ann!) which gave us a nice scent.  We hiked our way up and down to the viewing point for Top Station and were all speechless with how pretty it was.  Too bad it was hazy and rain was coming, the pictures won't be that good, but in person it was amazing. 

We headed back down to town and toured the Tata tea museum, had a very brief tour/explanation on how tea was harvested/dried/crushed/sorted, etc and then saw a demo of the machines.  Of course we got a free sample and I purchased some black and cardamon tea for my collection.  Then it was back in the car for the 4 hour drive to Fort Kochi.  Less than 48 hours, but one of the best 2 days I've spent in India.  If you ever make it here, I highly recommend it! 

Goodbye desert! Hello humidity!

I actually never thought I would be saying that, but after spending a month in a desert climate, I am so excited to spend the next 5 days in the humidity!

I left Jaipur early this morning and said goodbye to a few fellow IBMers and made my way to the airport with half of them, Edina, Luis, Jaakko, Elin and Martin.  We were all on the same flight and heading to the southern tip of India to Kerala, known as God's Country.  What an odd bunch we are, from the US, Mexico, Hungary, Finland, Sweden and Spain (Charo was meeting us there).

I was very impressed with the flight, who knew that SpiceJet was such a nice airline.  The planes were very clean, they were on time (in fact early), the pilot kept updating everyone on the cricket score and Edina and I had a row to ourselves.  Not too shabby.  We did spend 2.5 hours in the Mumbai airport, which wasn't very exciting, but very clean and had decent food.  Landing and taking off in Mumbai though was very eye opening, you fly right over a very large slum area.  The city is massive compared to Jaipur and the poverty is apparent from the air.

Two hours after leaving Mumbai we emerged from the clouds and it was green and plush for as far as the eye could see.  After being in the desert for a month, this was just amazing.  Tea plantations, palm trees, water, everything was so spread out, it was heaven.  It's kind of like seeing the sun for the first time after days of rain.  As soon as we walked off the plane in Kochin we could feel the humidity, it was so nice!  Very small airport, we grabbed our bags and met our driver who was waiting for us.  We said goodbye to Elin and Martin who were heading another direction and made our way out to Fort Kochi, about an hour drive South West.

We booked a guest house/inn sight unseen, based on tripadvisor ratings and it is perfect.  It's a central location, beautiful building, decent size and very clean rooms and the water pressure in the shower was awesome.  I forgot to mention that my shower in Jaipur was sort of a trickle so I had to use the little cup hanging in the shower to get the shampoo out of my hair.

We got in around 6 pm, had a welcome drink of ginger lime soda on the roof near the tiny pool and decided to grab dinner here.  I had a piece of fish (yay, no more vegetarian!) and some pulao (rice with veg, cashews, raisins and tons of fresh spices), which was pretty good.

Tomorrow we are off to explore the local historic town, see where Vasco de Gama was originally buried and also see Jew Street/Jew town, one of the oldest jewish neighborhoods in India.  We'll be here at "Tissa's Inn" for another night and will figure out the rest of our plans tomorrow.  Probably will spend Monday on a boat in the backwaters and then head up to the hills to a tea/spice plantation.

I'm really liking the feel of this place.  Can't describe it, will post pictures tomorrow after exploring.  Oh, I have my PC, I decided to bring it to "research" the rest of the trip.  Off to bed now, but first I need to kill these two mosquitoes in my room...

Lassiwalla!

I can't believe I waited until the last day in Jaipur to try one of these!  Yes, that's a piece of curd floating on top of my lassi in an earthenware cone from the famous Lassiwalla shop (more like a street stall).  :-)  That's my teammate Marco, from Germany and Jan (the third cone).

Tomorrow - off to Kerala way down south to explore the beaches, tea and spice plantations and the plush backwaters.  Won't have a PC so will update when I'm back in Jaipur next Thursday, then I head back home on Friday! 

Eternal Love...

Did you know that the Taj Mahal was built as a symbol of eternal love?  Before last weekend, I knew nothing about it, just that it is one of the Seven Wonders of the World and that it's the thing to see when you are in India.  But after visiting I've learned that it's more than just a beautiful piece of architecture.

It was built over a 22 year period (11 years is good luck, so was a multiple of 11) from 1631-1653.  It is a mausoleum that houses the remains of the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan's wife.  She died giving birth to her 14th child and on her deathbed she asked him to build something to remember her by and to never marry again.  He took this to heart and spent the rest of his life fulfilling her request.  The purpose for which it was built was eternal love, but the way it was built is also very interesting.

It is located on the banks of the Yamuna River in Agra, right after a bend in the river.  There is no coincidence to the location or how it was built.  At the time, this location in Agra was said to be the most geologically sound in India.  The ground was said to be more stable because it on the strongest part (curve) of the river.  The basement contains wells filled with wood and stone, which are to help absorb shock in the event of an earthquake.  Also the outer minarets are at a 91 degree angle outward, in the event of an earthquake they wouldn't fall on the dome.  Quite fascinating if you think about it, because this was all architected and built by hand.  Each piece of marble was carefully carved and inlayed with local stone.  An art form that is still practiced today.

We visited on a Saturday afternoon along with thousands and thousands of other tourists, most of them from India. If you look close you can see them all lined up along the base of the platform.    

This is one of my favorite pics from the side of the building, showing all the colors of India and the people waiting to go inside.

We spent a couple hours just walking around, taking pictures and learning the history from our guide.  The line to go inside was wrapped all the way around the building, so we decided to not go inside and enjoy the sunset instead.  It was quite beautiful, with the marble reflecting the pink and orange colors and the silhouette of the building and minarets against the sky being so distinct.  Definitely a highlight of my trip here, a magical place.

And of course, a weekend wouldn't be complete without people asking to take my picture (or just taking it thinking I didn't know about it).  It is very amusing to me.  A man walked up with his baby daughter and pointed to her and asked if I would take a picture with her.  They must have been from a small village and aren't used to seeing "foreigners".  Of course I said yes, and only one picture, but then he introduced me to his wife and then somehow the whole family was in the picture.  Me towering over them.  Too bad I didn't get their email address (hehe) to see how it turned out.

The rest of the weekend was okay, we visited the Red Fort in Agra and another fort on the way back to Jaipur, but the Taj Mahal visit was the best.

Here are some of the pics from the weekend.

https://picasaweb.google.com/sachagoodson/TajMahalTrip?authkey=Gv1sRgCLTJmsS_opDdnQE#

We stopped at a UNESCO World Heritage bird sanctuary on the drive up for a couple hours.  This was awesome!  Charo, Pawel and I rented bikes and had a guide take us around.  We saw a python in the wild, lots of birds, parakeets, cows, egrets, storks, antelope.  It's on the edge of the desert, but in the rainy season is flooded.  It's a migratory point for a lot of large birds from Russia to escape the cold winters.  It was probably in the upper 90s but felt great to ride a bike and get out of the city and best of all not to hear any cars honking!