Kerala stretches for 55o km down India's southwest coast and our first stop is Fort Cochin which is full of history. We visited the Jewish quarter (pictured above) which has been there since 1100 BC !!! Strolling along, we came to the original site of the East India Company smelling of spices, teas, and oils (alongside antique shops). Still today, we saw large burlap bags of tea being transported around town and for exportation worldwide. At sunset we looked at the ancient chinese fishing nets that take 4 men to control (pictured above) which line the northern shore. The mode of transport here is by ferry. We stayed in the charming artist's part of old town- Fort Cochin.
At night we saw a traditional Kathakali dance drama, one of India's 4 major classical performances. Kathakali means "story-play"in indigenous folk ritual and became more theatrical in 17th century. The play depicts gods and demons where both male and female roles are played by men. The villain takes hours to apply his face make-up in red (symbolizing aggression and passion) and black (symbolizing darkness and negativity). The actors also put seeds in their eyes for 2 minutes that makes their eyes turn red for the show!
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