Cochin, India

            Sunday, 4 March 2018 – This morning started as almost a repeat of yesterday:  We had to get landing cards (white this time, instead of yellow) in the Horizons Lounge before going to meet with our group in the Insignia Lounge.  As the previous day, the crew was trying to keep the process orderly by calling people by tour numbers for each process.  Our bus finally left the pier about 9:00 AM for our 4-hour “Highlights of Cochin” tour, with Kabeer as our guide.

Cochin (also known as Kochi) is a city in southwest India.  On 17th March 2017 we had been on the Norwegian Star when she docked in Cochin.  However, we disembarked very early that morning, before daylight, and soon boarded a plane at Cochin International Airport to begin our side trip to the Taj Mahal.

Cochin has been a port since 1341, when a flood carved out its harbor and opened it to Arab, Chinese, and European merchants.  The city is built on peninsulas and islands.  (The Insignia docked on a peninsula, across some water from the oldest part of the city.)  An important spice trading center from the 14th century onward, Cochin was occupied by the Portuguese in 1503, becoming the first of the European colonies in colonial India.  Later, the city was occupied by the Dutch and then the British, until India gained independence in 1947.  Although the term “Fort Kochi” is used, where a settlement with tiled colonial bungalows and diverse houses of worship came to exist, no actual “fort” exists.  The metropolitan population is 2.1 million.  Cochin is the home of the Southern Naval Command of the Indian Navy, with an attached air squadron.

In comparison with Mangalore, the Indian city we visited yesterday, Mangalore has only a metropolitan population of 623,841 (in 2011).  Cochin is about 260 miles south down the west coast of India from Mangalore.

As we headed out, Kabeer told us that Cochin is cleaner than most Indian cities (which we had also been told about Mangalore).  They are also starting to adhere to smoking restrictions in public areas.  Kabeer spoke of the “bungalow,” a word once commonly used in the U.S. for a small house; the term originated in this part of India, deriving from the Hindi word meaning “Bengali” and used for a house in the Bengal style.

Our first stop this morning was at the Indo-Portuguese Museum, which was largely a depository of relics from the 16th and 17th century from the Church of Our Lady of Hope (pieces of altar, etc.) and from the bishop’s house.  No photos were allowed inside the museum.  Between the bus and the museum were various trees; Kabeer pointed out a vine, which he said was a pepper plant, growing up the side of a tree.

Next, we stopped at St. Francis Church, originally built in 1503 by Portuguese friars, the oldest European church in India.  The Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama died in Cochin in 1524 when he was on his third visit to India.  Although his body was originally buried in this church, after 14 years his remains were removed to Lisbon.  However, his sepulcher can still be seen here.  Because Sunday Mass was in session, we could not enter the church; nevertheless, we were allowed to take photos through the entrance.

The bus drove a short distance further to a fishing area, where there are Chinese fishing nets (fixed and cantilevered nets) used.  When the two of us found a bench in the shade where we could feel a slight breeze from the water, we sat, not too far from where we were supposed to meet in 25 minutes, and waited for others who were walking further.  By that time, it was 94 degrees and extremely humid.

Shopping Area in Mattancherry

After stopping at a handicraft department store (where one of the group purchased an expensive oriental rug), we entered the district of Mattancherry.  There we were given the opportunity to shop, visit a Dutch Palace, and/or visit a synagogue.  We chose the palace and synagogue.  The medieval-style Mattancherry Palace is a large but modest-looking building with sloping roofs.  The palace was built by the Portuguese in 1555 and given to the Raja of Kochi (Cochin).  The Dutch extended and renovated the palace in 1663, from which time it became known as the Dutch Palace.  The attraction of the palace rests on the large number of murals inside, executed in the best traditions of Hindu temple art.  As with the museum, no photos were allowed inside the palace.

The ancient neighborhood known as Jew Town where the synagogue is located was only a five minute walk from the palace.  Although the Jewish community has dwindled in numbers, the Paradesi Synagogue, built in 1568, has been beautifully preserved and is still in use.  “Paradesi” means literally “foreigners” in several Indian languages; the synagogue was built by Spanish-speaking Jews and attended by Jews who had been exiled from various countries.  The individual floor tiles were made in China, and no two of them are exactly alike.  We were required to take off our shoes before entering the synagogue and again, no pictures were allowed inside.

Although it was very hot today, we were not out in the sun as much as yesterday.  Still, when we arrived back on the Insignia about 1:00 PM, we felt relief in the coolness.  After lunch, we both napped.  Despite waiting until 6:25 PM to start our half hour of swimming, most of the time we shared the pool.

A Red Carpet Ball 2018 was to take place in the Insignia Lounge from 9:30 to 10:15 PM.  We had assumed lottery tickets would be given out for bottles of champagne and other prizes, as was done several days ago.  This time, however, bottles of champagne were awarded, first, to the best waltz dancers, for which we tied for first place with Lois and Bob.  Additional bottles were awarded for Oscar Trivia question winners, and the best swing dancers.  We still haven’t decided what we’ll do with our bottle of champagne!

Passengers were invited back to the Insignia Lounge at 6:00 AM for a “come as you are” Continental Breakfast at Oscars for a live telecast of the 90th Annual Academy Awards from Hollywood, CA.  Of course, we planned to sleep in and watch the re-broadcast at 1:00 PM!