Cherai Beach

We set off for Cherai beach this morning, after a lazy breakfast. We boarded the ferry to Vypeen Island with other walking passengers and a bunch of cars, trucks and motorcycles. We could see the Cochin harbour from the ferry and the Chinese fishing nets in the distance. It looked quite serene – partly because we could not hear any vehicles.

We hired a rickshaw to take us to Cherai beach, which is about 23 km from the Vypeen harbour, and bring us back after a couple of hours. The rickshaw driver took us to a beachside resort, which was supposed to have the best location for swimming. We were a little disappointed by the not-so-white sands and the not-so-clear water. Maybe we were spoilt by the amazing beaches in Krabi? The kids had a good time in the water. It was as warm as bath water – warmer than any other beach we’ve been to. The resort people let us use their showers to clean up after our swim and then we had lunch at the restaurant. It was great to sit on the covered rooftop, watch the waves crash on the beach below, feel the sea breeze and have our lunch of prawn curry and rice. Aaaahhhh!

The rickshaw guy picked us up by mid afternoon and we headed back to the ferry terminal. It is so incredible to see the rural life in India. You see more men wearing their traditional loongis here instead of pants, and the women of course are always in traditional clothes. Everyone is going about their business against a backdrop of coconut trees and rice fields. There are all kinds of roadside stands and people selling this or that. Some of the little “shops” were covered with dead grass and vines were growing on them. It was wild!

The traffic, as usual, was very chaotic. There were buses, motorcycles, bicycles, cars, rickshaws, and an assortment of barnyard animals vying for space on the narrow road. Everyone is quite used to it though and they just keep on going without a care.

NM