Kochi - 2018

My first stop in India was landing in Kochi and spent a few days there. An initial surprise was how many churches there were and how big the Christian population was. I learned that St. Thomas one of the 12 apostles arrived in Kerala in 52 AD and that many Christians from around the world came to live in Kochi specifically. Even though Kerala is still predominantly Hindu, there are also a lot of Muslims as well as Christians. One of the most impressionable things on me to see were churches and mosques right next to each other. And I got a sense that everyone co-existed together in relative peace and there was more community and collaboration outside of religious beliefs.

Here are a few pictures from around Kochi where I got to attend a Kathakali performance. The classical dance from Kerala that depicts different stories of Indian folklore. The dance itself incorporates music, movement, marital arts and a strong emphasis on facial gestures - to get a lot of emotion from the eyes. It was very interesting to experience.

There is also a big fishing industry in Kochi and because of the immigrant influence there, the Chinese fishing nets are used. The nets are quite large and there is a pulley system that lowers the net into the water to catch fish that swim by. Saw a few temple elephants as well. I love elephants, so it was difficult for me to see them chained up (even though I was assured they were well cared for). I personally just feel they need more space to roam. This is fairly common in India though from what I could tell. Here’s also a few pictures from Dhobi Khana, a public wash house for laundry.