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December 2018

St. Francis church Fort Kochi

Fort Kochi 2018: St. Francis Church, Jew Town and Mattancherry

Date: March 14, 2018

This was our last day in Kochi. After breakfast, we set out early to take the ferry to Fort Kochi. We took an auto rickshaw from our hotel to the Ernakulam boat jetty.

Ferry boat jetty Ernakulam
Our ride
Inside Fort Kochi ferry
Boats are frequent — and cheap
Cochin Port Trust administration building
This is the Cochin Port Trust administration office building
Taj Malabar Resort Spa Cochin
And this is the Taj Malabar Resort & Spa
Sukhayus Fort Kochi Kerala
We got down at Fort Kochi jetty and just walked to the tourist area
Continue reading “Fort Kochi 2018: St. Francis Church, Jew Town and Mattancherry” »
Kannur international airport front

Flying into Kannur International Airport for the first time

December 18, 2018

As a native of Kannur district in north Kerala, I have been anticipating the opening of Kannur’s first international airport for a while now. It was a long time coming (as is the case of every large infrastructure project in India).

Kannur airport’s inauguration was held on December 9 and I decided to fly home from Bengaluru just to experience my “first flight home”. Currently, only Go Air has started flight operations from Bangalore airport (airport code: BLR) to Kannur airport (CNN). IndiGo launches their flights from Bangalore to Kannur on 25 January, 2019. SpiceJet has announced they intend to fly to Kannur but as of this writing, no date has been announced for commencement of services.

Since trains were all full due to year-end holidays, I checked for flights and got an airfare for Rs. 2154, which included a Rs. 200 fee that I paid to pick a window seat of my choice. (Window seat is a must for me on daytime flights)

I wanted to see just how much it would cost to fly solo from Bangalore to Kannur (all inclusive) so I told my dad not to come pick me up from Kannur airport in our car. Of course, the problem with Bengaluru is that the city’s airport (Kempegowda International Airport handles both domestic and international flights) is located so far from the city — making the taxi ride to the airport an expense by itself. Not to mention how long it takes. I had to leave home by 5am and since I couldn’t grab the airport bus at this time, I just hailed an Uber. Opting for Uber Pool, there was only one other passenger, and so the ride cost me Rs. 465 and took 40 minutes from where I am currently staying.

Bangalore airport early morning
This is the first time I was catching a domestic flight from this airport. Didn’t know it gets this busy so early in the morning.
Continue reading “Flying into Kannur International Airport for the first time” »
Lulu mall Ernakulam Kerala

Munnar to Ernakulam by bus, Marine Drive and Lulu Mall

Date: March 13, 2018

Today was our last day in Munnar. We planned to leave the hill station and head to Ernakulam city, in Cochin district.

Poori vada bhaji chutney
We had a filling breakfast at Saravana Bhavan

We then boarded a state transport bus going to Ernakulam city.

Tea plantation worker Munnar
It was time to capture the last few shots of these amazing tea plantations

Munnar hill station view
It was cold up here but by the end of this bus journey, it would be hot & humid again

Kannan Devan Munnar tea estate

Munnar hill clouds Kerala

Kerala police sightseeing Munnar
Everyone is mesmerized by Munnar’s tea plantations

The journey to Ernakulam was around 3 hours long. We eventually made it to the hotel I had booked for us. Imperial Regency is a ‘business hotel’ but when booking, it was key that I chose a place close to Kochi Metro.

Continue reading “Munnar to Ernakulam by bus, Marine Drive and Lulu Mall” »
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