I was about to thank God that nobody had yet uttered those three dreaded words when somebody yelled, “God’s own country!” And spoilt that dreamy moment when I was just settling into feeling like the Duchess of Windsor on the sun deck of a houseboat sailing smoothly on the backwaters, a straw hat resting lopsided on my wind-swept hair and a mojito in my hand.
You cannot escape such cliches in well, God’s own country. Especially in Kumarakom, that little lake-fringed part of Kerala — the destination of the backwaters-hankering super rich made famous by former Prime Minister Vajpayee after he chose to repose there for a while.
Kumarakom was all that the glossy tourist brochures proclaimed it was — there was “verdant green” everywhere; the backwaters really “looked welcoming”; the weather was “perfect”; the herbal oil massage did put me in a state of “languid calm” and the food was indeed “glorious”.
I stayed at the Radisson Plaza Spa and Resort built on the shores of the huge Vembanad lake. The 205 sq km lake encircles nearly three-fourth of the 18-acre property that was voted to be one among the top 50 greatest destinations in the world by National Geographic readers. The accolade seems well-deserved, considering that the resort has been constructed with more than a little imagination. Chief architect N Mahesh of Ice Cubes, Dubai, created the six-acre lagoon shaped around which are russet-brown Kerala-style cottages and villas with surprise touches like timber pillars, cane-covered fans and wooden rafters. If you are still unimpressed, the 10,000 sq mt Maya Spa will work its charm on you. Winner of AsiaSpa’s ‘Best Resort Spa 2007’ award, Maya is the largest spa in south India and the resort’s La Raison d’entre.
After a session of oil massage in the spa and a breakfast of idiappam and ‘ishtew’, we set out on one of the resort’s redesigned kettuvallams on a tour of the famed backwaters. These are large boats, now converted into luxury houseboats and mini-yachts. Lake Vembanad, where our cruise began, is the largest stretch of backwaters in Kerala and our leisurely ride took us all the way to Alappuzha, often dubbed the ‘Venice of the East’ thanks to its abundance of canals and bridges. The promise of a meal of Karimeen fry, konchu (prawn) curry and freshly-prepared toddy had already put me in high spirits and the warm expanse of the blue waters, fringed by the green of the swaying palms, only buoyed me further. (There, I warned you — there is no escaping cliches in this land.)
See the backwaters with a tourist’s eye and you can spot such truisms everywhere. Look with the eye of history and it transforms into an ancient trade route, bustling with skilled boatmen, the air heavy with the aroma of spices, rubber and coconut being bartered briskly by canny businessmen and fishermen expertly fishing with bare hands...
Take the view of Kumarakom’s people and it becomes the route of frenzy — this is where the ancient and spectacular boat races are held every year around this time.
The traditional snake boat (Chundanvallom) is built from tree trunks and shaped like snakes with open jaws. The boat race festival climaxes with the Nehru Trophy Boat Race held at the Punnamada Lake in Alappuzha.
The climax to our ride arrived in the form of delicious Karimeen fry and steaming tiger prawn curry accompanied by the sweet-n-sour toddy. After downing the last drop of toddy, I succumbed. There was nothing else to do but sigh in pleasure, “Ah, God’s own country!”
how to reach
Bangalore to Kochi - there are several daily flights, train as well as bus services. From Kochi, Kumarakom is a two-hour picturesque drive. There are several resorts that line the Kumarakom stretch. Houseboats and homestays are other options.
Special summer package at Radisson Plaza Resort and Spa: Three nights and four days double-bed cottage stay: Rs 13,500; pool villa: Rs 35,000. The package is inclusive of meals, a 45-minute cruise on Lake Vembanad and use of Maya Spa.
