Chambers at Large on the Roads in Kerala, at Athirapally Falls, and Thrissur, India
- Amelia Chambers
- 6 hours ago
- 4 min read
Driving from Kochi to Athirapally Waterfall was an eye opener revealing how wealthy India is, and how it is developing into a first world country. The houses are large, almost mansions, set in beautiful gardens, filled with numerous plants and trees. A vehicle sits in every driveway, whether it be a car or a motorbike, a van or a moped.
The houses soon gave way to lush forest which has a biodiverse ecosystem teeming with wildlife. The area is cordoned off by an electric fence and there were signs warning of elephants or wild animals crossing the road. This usually happens at night or towards dusk. Arriving at the falls at midday only ensured the monkeys and large squirrels were out and about.
My fellow travellers and I were warned not to encourage the monkeys as they have learned how to open soft drink bottles and one fellow traveller saw one wee monkey tucking into a Cornetto.
Being a Sunday, the falls were relatively busy as families visit the river, take a paddle and numerous photographs. Several of us were approached by people to have our photograph taken. Being white, grey and aged has an appeal to some, I think! I’m happy for my photo to be taken as it gives me a chance to chat to people, discover more about the area and about life in India. It is surprising how much people have in common wherever I go in the world.
One woman I spoke to was an English teacher, another had beautiful henna decoration on her hands, and one gentleman, who was out with his family, told me that the area was used frequently by the Indian film industry. I told him I had just watched the movie Eko on Netflix which is set in Kerala and he encouraged me to watch other movies by the same director. Eko is a terrific film, a slow burn thriller, very different from Hollywood (or Bollywood for that matter). Take a look and you will enjoy the marvellous scenery if nothing else.
Having enjoyed an hour in the open air we drove on to Thrissur, passing banana trees, palm oil trees, jackfruit trees and rubber trees, all of which provide an income for the local people. In the city of Thrissur we admired Our Lady of Dolour’s Basilica, which is considered to be the third tallest church in Asia, the tallest in India.
Religion plays a significant part in India and Christianity in Kerala is influential, but Hinduism is the foremost religion with Islam being third. There are a number of others too and what I noticed was the tolerance shown towards all beliefs. In Kerala I noted Roman Catholic churches stand beside Orthodox ones, which are adjacent to Hindu temples, Islamic mosques, not forgetting the numerous shrines to deities and saints that are on the roadside. I even saw one devoted to St Patrick!
Buildings for worship are huge and the Christian churches are busy every Sunday. As Christians eat meat the area has butcher’s stalls selling beef, pork, lamb, goat and this is why there are no cows wandering the streets. They are grazing in the fields.
Vadakkunnathan Temple, an ancient Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, stands tall in the centre of Thrissur which means the city of the sacred Shiva. The temple is more than 1200 years old and is pristine condition as it has been conserved using ancient methods and age-old rituals. Not being a Hindu I could not go inside, but I am told there are ancient murals on the walls, some over 400 years old, and there is a theatre hall inside the complex used for Sanskrit theatre forms.
I learned more about these performing arts at the Kalamandalam School of Arts and Culture, where students study from the age of 13. The selection process for the school is quite stringent, potential candidates having to sit an exam and pass an interview, but all castes and religions may apply. The regime at the school is pretty tough. Students live with a teacher who is like the head of the family and the day begins at 4.30am. In the morning the students study the performing arts, in the afternoon more academic subjects are taught, as in most schools. Exams are sat three times a year.
We were allowed to watch some of the classes where students learn how to tell stories via gestures, body movement and facial expression. These can be very subtle: an eyebrow movement, a pointed toe, a slight inclination of the head, a rolling of the eyes.
In one room a group of students danced to music played on drums made from the wood of a jackfruit tree. I found the drums exceedingly loud and feared for the hearing of the musicians, but was told it was not a problem.
In another classroom students were learning how to apply make-up which is most intricate and made more difficult as the make-up has to be made from scratch. The silent concentration in that room contrasted sharply with the drumming from the other.
We were then treated to a performance on a stage that was most energetic and beautifully synchronised, but I was also taken by the architecture of the building in that the pillars were inlaid with figures in poses similar to those the students were emulating.
Kerala was proving to be a very progressive area of India, showing a tolerance of religion, a stunning natural beauty worthy of film and a place where tradition is treasured and modernism embraced. But, my visit was far from over as you will see in my next blog.
Thanks for reading. Safe travels.
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My previous blog concerning Kerala tells of my arrival and stay in Kochi. You can read about it by clicking on this link.
I’ve been to India three times and you can read about my exploration of the north of the country via these links.
And my safari in the national parks in search of tigers was most successful. I saw leopards and guar and so much more. Please click on the link to come with me on my travels through the national parks.
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