Alappuzha- Venice of the East.

That was our houseboat

A couple of years back, Mr. Peter and I celebrated our wedding anniversary on a houseboat in the backwaters of Alappuzha. All that we wanted was to be away from the city and noise and all the hustle & bustle......moments which had just US !!
It was a spontaneous trip. 


I still remember that our anniversary was on a Saturday. Mr. Peter was busy with work at office and kids had school, so we couldn't take off on that Friday. Trains & flights were not available in accordance to our timings, so we took the bus on that Friday night from Bangalore. It was our kids'  first time on a long distance bus journey. And luckily they slept....no tantrums. 
We reached Alappuzha around 8am. Our tour manager told us that we had to check in to the houseboat at 11 am at the Finishing Point. There was still a lot of time left before we could check in to the houseboat. So we hired an auto and asked him to take us around this little town of theirs.....for a quick sight seeing.

Alappuzha is a Land Mark between the broad Arabian Sea and a vast network of lakes, lagoons and fresh water rivers flowing into it. In the early 20th Century, the then British Viceroy Lord Curzon, while visiting Alappuzha, was fascinated by its scenic beauty and declared it as the Venice of the East.

Situated on the south-western coast of India, Alappuzha is also known by its anglicized name Alleppey. Alappuzha, whose foundations were laid by Travancore’s Dewan Raja Kesava Das in the second half of 18th century, had trade relations with ancient Greece and Rome. Alappuzha port used to be one of the busiest trade centers since then. 

Close to Alappuzha lies Kuttanad, 'The Rice Bowl of Kerala’, where farming is done below sea level, which has the unending stretch of paddy fields, small streams and canals with lush green coconut palms. It was because of the efforts and foresight of Raja Kesava Das, who constructed roads and canals to improve transportation, that Alappuzha became a premier port town.

Christianity had a strong foot-hold in this district even from the 1st century A.D.  St. Thomas, one of the twelve disciples of Jesus Christ, is believed to have brought Christianity to Alappuzha when he travelled to India and the religion found a strong foothold in Alappuzha and surrounding areas. It is generally believed that he landed at Maliankara in Muziris Port, presently known as Kodungallur in 52 A.D. The church located at Kokkomangalam was one of the seven churches founded by St.Thomas.

Today Alappuzha has grown in importance for its houseboat cruises in the backwaters, attracting several thousands of tourists each year. The present day houseboats are huge, slow moving exotic barges used for leisure trips, and are in fact reworked version of Kettuvallams of olden times. 

The original Kettuvallams were used to carry tons of rice and spices. A standard Kettuvallam can hold up to 30 tons of products from Kuttanad to the Kochi port. In Malayalam language Kettu refers to ‘dwelling structures or knots’ and ‘Vallam’ means boat. These are boats with thatched roof cover over wooden hulls. The boat is made of planks of jack-wood or 'Aanjili' joined together with coir. This is then coated with a caustic black resin made from boiled cashew kernels. With careful maintenance, a Kettuvallam can last for generations. While most boats are poled by local oarsmen, some are powered by a 40 HP engine. 

Now these are a familiar sight on the backwaters and in Alappuzha alone, there are as many as 500 houseboats. While converting kettuvallams into houseboats, care is taken to use only natural products. 
The houseboat that we boarded was a cozy one. There was a small common area, at the main deck, behind the driver and the wheel. There was a small kitchen and our A/C room with an attached bathroom. There were two attendants cum chefs on the boat.

They gave us a welcome drink, a fresh lime with a twist of tender coconut water and cardamom. It was so refreshing and a perfect beginning to a wonderful cruise on the Punnamada Kayal of Alappuzha. 
All the houseboats set sail one after the other from the banks of the river. Every houseboat looked different and beautiful.  There were small ones and really big vessels too. 

The cruise began and soon we were travelling through the backwaters, we saw small houses, markets, couple of public boat taxi stands. There were Ayurvedic massage spas too. There were many different kinds of birds flying by and ducks playing in the water. 

All around you see is just green green green. The coconut trees and banana trees....all added to the greenery that reflected to the waters. It was a beautiful sight. All that I did was sit at the deck and look out at the beautiful greenery. It was the most calm and peaceful moments I kept cherishing every moment in that boat. Miss J was sitting on the other side of the deck and she too was gazing at the scenery. She was enjoying the serenity of the cruise. Our little man was occupied with his little cars that I had brought along, I knew it would come handy. Mr. Peter was capturing all of these sights in his camera as much as could.  

For lunch, we had rice and sambar along with the Karimeen Pollichathu, a local speciality along with king prawns, which we bought from the local markets by the banks of the river. The chefs prepared them really well. They were yumm!!!  After lunch we continued cruising. The weather was hot but the cool breeze made up for that heat. And soon it was sunset. It was one of the most beautiful sunsets I've ever seen. 

As per the government rule, cruising was not allowed after 6 pm. Our boat was parked by the

paddy fields, which was all set for harvest. We got out of our boat and walked through the paddy fields.....I had seen such sights only in the movies. 
Soon it was dark. We went into our rooms and washed up for dinner. The menu comprised of Kappa and meen pullimollakku, another local speciality along with chappathi and chicken curry. This was delicious. After dinner, Miss J and our little man went to sleep, while Mr. Peter and I sat at the deck. 


It was complete darkness with the paddy fields in front of us and all the other three sides of water. All we could see were small twinkling lights of other boats parked near and far. There was the sounds of the crickets and of the water splashing against the banks. And after a while we too went to bed. 

We woke up early in the morning to view the sunrise. This again was another awesome sight. Had our morning tea and slowly started getting ready as we had to check out after breakfast. The boat was untied and we started sailing back to the Finishing Point. 

Our trip was done. 

For those who live in a city like Bangalore, the Alappuzha houseboats is an experience of a different kind. It was a well deserved break. For us it was surreal. What is truly magical about a houseboat ride is the breathtaking view of the untouched and otherwise inaccessible rural Kerala that it offers, while you float in a relaxed way right through it.


Go cruising in the houseboats on the backwaters of Alappuzha!!!