Backwaters

The Backwaters are large canal systems in Kerala. On a tour I participated in, we took a 4-hour tour on the Backwaters, got insights into the lives of the island residents, ate the traditional dish 'Sadhya', were shown how the different parts of coconut palms are processed, and finally took a canoe tour in the narrow canals of the Backwaters.

I was particularly impressed by the craftsmanship of the island residents, the effort and work that goes into it, and how they make use of the local conditions. With fishing nets and rolled-up pants, they fish for mussels in the water. The large ones are sold. All the small ones are first cooked over the fire and then filled into a large cylindrical sieve. When you turn it with a crank, the meat falls out of the mussels, through the sieve, onto a underlying tarp. That gets sold. The mussel shells are washed by hand, ground into a powder, and also sold.

Not only mussels and fish, but also coconut palms are used. After drinking the water and eating the coconut meat, the hair is removed from the shell and ropes are twisted by hand or with the help of a crank.

Roofs for houses and boats are woven from the leaves of the palms.

A special highlight was eating a locally grown banana... wow!! The flavor is really hard to compare with the conventional bananas that I know from Germany, it's just pure enjoyment!

If you go to 'Pictures', you can see the corresponding photos. There are 2 pictures that I haven't written anything about yet. They show a palm-like plant. Black pepper grows on it :)