Carly, Orla and I met for breakfast and ordered a number of items from the menu we were interested in trying. It was too late for idli and appams but we enjoyed Kerala Parota’s (bread that resembles puff pastry due to the excessive amounts of butter or ghee they contain), fried bananas, tomato fry, raita, omleette, French toast, banana pancake, pineapple lassi’s and dark Keralan coffee. After the substantial meal we visited the best tourist information desk ever. Our plan was to hop a bus to visit a spice plantation three kilometers away and then another to the Connemera Tea Estate. The man at the information desk wrote our desired stops in English and Malayam so that we could show the conductor.
We arrived at Abraham’s Spice Garden about fifteen minutes later and were surprised to learn that it was in fact a garden and that the plantation is located elsewhere. Our guide, Mr. Krishna Tulsi pointed out spices they grow from pepper, cardamom, and curry leaves, four varieties of coffee beans, two types of cocoa beans and various tropical fruits including sweet lady finger bananas that we got to sample. In addition he explained the various processes for making pepper black or white and how cocoa was processed. We learned that Abrahams sells raw materials to various processors so our tour was limited to the garden. Mr. Krishna Tulsi also entertained us by recounting his favorite episodes of Mr. Bean and admitted to being an avid fan of Baywatch.
From Abrahams we headed up the hill to the bus stop where we waited to board another bus to Kottayam. Fortunately the name was written in English on the sign and I wagged by index finger to signal the bus that I wanted to board (I had seen the signal performed before). The back door flung open and the bus slowed just enough for us to hop on board. Ten kilometers down the road we jumped off the bus at the Tea Estate.
The tour at Connemera was excellent. Our guide Rajeev was swift and knowledgeable and had a good command of the English language. Women were working in the fields and would approach us to show the tools they use and to learn our names. At this particular estate they cut the leaves rather than pick by hand unless there is a drought. They use hedge clippers that have a small sack made of fiberglass tarp fixed onto it that the leaves fall into. From there they sort the leaves into two giant pockets that hang from a single piece of fabric on their heads. Each worker clips something like 50 kg. of leaves each day of which maybe 10 kg. will be turned into tea. The tour included a video of processing and then a tour of the facility. We finished by sampling two types of tea. I was the only one in the group who drinks black tea and was the only one able to discern the differences between the two varieties. Many of the women at the plantation and children outside asked us for pens. Unfortunately none of us had any otherwise we would have freely given them- in 2005 I travelled with two dozen good pens to pass out and never had anyone request them or accept them when offered.
The three of us caught a bus back to Kumily to have a snack and do a little shopping. Carly and Orla planned to catch an evening bus to Kochi but first wanted to buy dhoti’s for their boyfriends/brother. We wandered into one of the textile shops and the shop girl, Lakshmi showed Orla how to tie the dhoti. We each bought one and Lakshmi was admiring the mehndi on my hands and my western dress. She invited us to her house for dinner and to do mehendi for Carly and Orla but since they had limited time they refused. Instead they had an impromptu mehndi design right in the middle of the textile shop! This is one of the many great things about India – the spontaneity and warmth with which you are greeted in some of the least probable situations.
After a snack of masala dosas and pineapple lassi’s the girls went to pack their bags and investigate bus timings. Typically there are several buses everyday to Kochi however after 4 p.m. there are no more buses until midnight. I sat with them at the post office/Internet cafe while they debated about waiting a few more hours for the bus or splurging on a taxi. They opted for a taxi and we said our good-byes. It was nice to have such great company for a couple of days and to learn that I am not the only woman travelling solo.
No comments:
Post a Comment