House Boat (Aqua Holidays) Alappuzha

... available to tourists.<br>A houseboat had been in our original plan, but given the uncertain weather we decided to drive to a different town tomorrow to see something new. If it isn&#8217;t too windy and rainy we&#8217;ll go for half day cruise.<br>It was still raining by the time we got back to the hotel but that didn&#8217;t stop Kerry from taking a quick swim. Kip went for an Ayurvedic massage. I went to the room and ordered a ...

We left our hotel early in the morning to get a good start on the day. We were heading to Alleppey to board a houseboat for the night and wanted to make sure to get as much time there as possible. Alleppey is a place known all over India as the starting point for houseboats that people can rent for a lazy ride along the backwaters. The backwaters consist of 900km of small canals and waterways that run throughout Kerala taking you along palm tree-lined ...

... us. The boat is only big enough for 2 people, 1 cook and one captain, so we settled into our private day-bed, coconut drink in hand, and floated out into the backwaters of Kerala. Although touristy, the 24 hour trip has been one of the highlights of the trip so far. It was so relaxing to sit and read on the slowest houseboat in Kerala, soaking in the amazing scenery and waving at the local families whose houses straddle thin ...

... all, except enjoying the views and the company. Bliss. It was at night that the bugs came out. Bugs, and bugs and bugs. So we ate dinner by candlelight to avoid the worst of them. Some of the houseboats that we went past were even more fancy than ours - widescreen TVs, hi-fi systems, huge mosquito nets covering the front of the boat; but we liked the rustic simplicity of our boat, and whiled away the evening discussing our bowels (How many days is it, Michelle, since ...

... foreigners to be different without judging them harshly. Here's the Rough Guide on mixed race couples "Beware, however, if you are (or look) Indian with a non-Indian male companion; this may well cause you grief and harassment, as you will be seen to have brought shame on your family by adopting loose Western morals." This is the complete opposite of our experience as, without exception, the attention we've received has all been good natured ...

Having breakfasted on freshly melted boiled sweet (pineapple) and coffee sweet enough to make your teeth fall out, we strolled round to the boat jetty the obligatory (for me) one hour early to catch our boat to from Kollam to Allepey. The early arrival stood us in good stead actually as we were able to get pole position seats at the front of the boat, ensuring that I didn't sulk and make us move several times, which is a genetic ...

... but go along anyway. We walk behind the rice paddies and come to an intersection in the water and go past a crowd of men who are seemingly just hanging out by the church. There's something being broadcast over the loudspeakers for the whole village to hear (My God, they're here, too!) and Augustine explains to us that it is the communist party rallying to village folk. Kerala is curiously the only democratically elected communist government, which would explain all the hammer and ...

... indians but the couples were very coupley and i didnt really get chance to chat to any of them. One German couple said a little bit to me and to b fair i could have made more effort with them but the others were all French and so i didnt even get a lookin! Anyway, i listened to my music and made the best of it, we stoped for lunch and ...

... Kerela is famous for its afternoon power naps and I have jumped right on the band waggon! It gets really hot in the afternoons so a couple of chapters of my book and a few hours sleep sort me right out for an evening stroll. We are gettin use to seeing elephants now, most temples have one and some villages use them for working. Next we will be taking an eight hour boat trip along the backwaters.

Hello everyone Have been in Kochi now for a few days. Very different here compared to the cities. So peaceful and stuff, although it does have a few loved up hippes, channelling their emotions 'man'. Cath & Dan have a dead nice place to stay, Rick & Nial are sleeping in the next door neighbours spare room. Seriously. We've hung out around here for the last few days just relaxing really. Had a wander, sorted some bits n bobs out etc. Couple of things to note ...