Fort Cochin and the Backwaters
.Fort Cochin is the old colonial quarter of the Cochin/Ernakulum metropolis , but is sufficiently distant from the modern city to retain its quaint ambience. The chinese fishing nets along the harbour are curious as is the Dutch Palace and the “White Jew Synagogue” ( Cochin’s Jewish community was created by refugees from the sack of Jerusalem in 72 AD , retained its identity for 19 centuries and returned en masse to Israel in 1948) .
Chinese Fishing Nets
Befitting a city founded by the Portugese in the 16th century , captured by the Dutch in the 17th and later ceded to Britain, the architecture is a mix of older mediterranean and Victorian Raj styles, very pleasant to walk around. I had the pleasure of being rejoined by Janet and Lindsay and we enjoyed the best English-style tea in India , courtesy of the Teapot Cafe, and excellent food at the Old Courtyard restuarant which serves deilcious steaks, seafood and even perfectly made spaghetti bolognaise. ( good Western food is not common in India ).
Most enjoyable was a trip on a punted canoe and covered boat on the backwaters. Gliding through the idyllic narrow waterways overhung by tropical trees , was a welcome relief from the almost constant noise of the Indian city.
