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| A very wet day! |
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| Breakfast at Ann's |
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| Breakfast at Ann's |
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| Ridsdale Rd |
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| Ridsdale Rd |
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| Ridsdale Rd |
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| Head Post Office, Ridsdale Rd |
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| Rose St |
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| Checking out the bus schedule to the airport , right opposite the Tourist Information Centre. We decided not to take the bus as they were known to skip a schedule! |
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| Jankar Jetty at Bellar Rd |
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| Long corridor to Pepper House, Art gallery and Library at Calvathy Road |
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| Pepper House Cafe |
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| The gardens at Pepper House |
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| Calvathy Rd |
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| Indy Old Court House Hotel at Kalvathy Rd |
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| Kalvathy Rd |
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| Ferry terminal |
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| It was raining so hard, Lake Verbanad was choking. View from jetty overlooking the Cochin Container Terminal |
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| Our beat up ferry! At this point, Claudine was beginner to wonder if this will be her last journey |
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| Inside the ferry |
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| Note the ceiling made out of screw pine leaves |
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| Custom House on Willingdon Island |
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| Factories around the waters |
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| Ships by Ernakulam Wharf |
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| Ernakulam Ferry Terminal |
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| Beautiful waterways in Fort Kochi |
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| Fancy seeings goats on the streets instead of dogs! |
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| Interesting narrow streets from Lucky Star Hotel to Santa Cruz Basillica |
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| Interesting narrow streets from Lucky Star Hotel to Santa Cruz Basillica |
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| Some of the hidden treasures along the way |
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| Some of the hidden treasures along the way |
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| Interesting narrow streets from Lucky Star Hotel to Santa Cruz Basillica |
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| Interesting narrow streets from Lucky Star Hotel to Santa Cruz Basillica |
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| Santa Cruz Basillica |
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| Santa Cruz Higher Secondary School |
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| Dutch architecture on Quirros St |
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| Petercelli St |
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| CSI Heritage Bungalow |
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| Ann's Residency |
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| St John De Britto School |
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| Bishop's House, Established in 1557 |
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| Santa Cruz Basillica |
We started the morning on a positive note. Ann served us a wholesome continental breakfast in her patio which overlooks her beautifully kept gardens. Last night's rain had teetered off completely, allowing the sun to peek through.
However, our luck ran out earlier than yesterday's! Just as we were about to step out, dark clouds began to loom.
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| As a foreigner, we were given first class treatment...jumping queue... |
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| ...and ushered into the treasury where a nice employee hauled out a sack of postcards, only to sell 2 pcs !!! |
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| The post office's corridor |
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| Taking selfie's while waiting out the rain...which never stopped! |
On borrowed umbrellas, we had not walked more than 300 meters when it began to drizzle lightly. Turning into the Head Post Office at the intersection between Ridsdale Rd and Bastian St for postcards, we managed to enter with dry clothes but had to brave the rain when it refused to stop.
Technically, it was a short 1.6 km walk to the ferry terminal for Ernakulam. However, it was technically challenging having to wade through ankle deep waters, ward off friendly tuk-tuk driver's proposition to hire them for the day and avoid getting splashed by vehicles. By the time we arrived at the jetty, we were completely drenched, waist down!
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| 4 rupees per pax for a single journey! |
It was interesting to note that there were male and female queues at the ticket booth. The ticket seller only man the booth a few minutes to departure time hence the line starts to build up as the time approaches. While the separation was necessary to protect women. there was also gender equality on ticket sales; the ticket seller deftly swings his arm from left to right between the 2 queues.
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| First bike shop |
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| Second bike shop after our tea break |
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| Hercules Roadster, weighing at more than 25 kg is a popular local brand for loading and long distance rides |
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| Cheap for a rigid steel bike |
We were on a quest to get our hands on the hand woven side panniers. This led us to 2 bike shops in Ernakulam and a close scrutiny of local bike, Hercules.
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| Lucky Star Hotel enjoys a good following from both locals and foreigners. We saw at least 4 tables filled with foreign tourists on the night we dined there. |
As Jaybharath Cycles (truly, the only shop that carries the hand woven side panniers) was quite a distance away, we decided to return home. Stopping by for tea at Lucky Star Hotel, we will soon return for dinner as they were cheap, good, efficient and within walking distance from Ann's.
