Wow, it's been almost a week since we arrived in Kerala. Susan and I came to pick up Ranjit and Manju from the train station (Johanna remained in Bangalore) and then went on to visit relatives nearby in Ernakulam, a city attracting foreign investments and young people because of its business environment. After chilling with Susan's niece and family for a bit, we ventured into Fort Cochin, the nearby city, old and historic from before the modern colonial era began. One of the sites was the almost five hundred years old Jewish Synagogue, next to the palace of the local king. The king's palace, dated even earlier, was converted into the office of the Dutch administration for a brief period. Though it is preserved, it is not adequately maintained. According to literature, the initial wave of Jews took place shortly after the destruction of the Jerusalem temple. They were embraced by the people and local king and were given a special place for worship, and provided opportunities to thrive. The Jews in Kerala suffered a set back only when the Portuguese came. They were driven out from their original settlement and were resettled in Fort Cochin with the help of the King of Cochin. This is where the synagogue has been for the last five centuries. Not too far from this Synagogue is a church originally built by Portuguese and renovated in 1779. The body of explorer, Vasco de Gama, was originally buried here, but later his son took the body back to Portugal. We also visited the fishing village, a short distance from the church. The picture above of the two fishermen mending their nets coincided with the Book of Common Prayer's daily gospel reading of Peter and Andrew mending the nets and leaving them to follow Jesus. The fresh fish caught from there was prepared by a nearby restaurant as part of our lunch menu. Cooked in an earthen pot with spices from the Malabar coast, this fish was the most delicious we had so far. It again reminded me of Jesus serving broiled fish with his disciples on the beach on one of Jesus' post Easter appearances. More later!
This definitely was an experience. At the Dutch palace- they were talking about Indian royalty and in turn about the change in attire over the decades. It was incredibly interesting to see the transformation of the garments- specifically- of the sari from what we now know it to be.
ReplyDeleteThe fishing village was nice to see as well, and their use of the 'chinese' style fishing. However... I am not exactly of fan of seeing the fresh fish turn into a meal!!
I am so glad to be on this journey with my dad- even if only for a very short time.
I hope all you readers out there will become followers of this blog- and provide comments or ask questions of all that my dad is seeing and doing. I know he would love to hear your thoughts!
-Manju