Author: Salim.E.I

Thrissur Pooram – Temple Festival

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Photo credits : Jithin

Photo credits: Jithin

Thrissur Pooram is the largest and the most famously colourful festival of Kerala, a stunning mixture of magnificence and spectacle celebrated every year during the Malayalam month of Medam, this year falling on May 9th. Called “the Poorams of all Poorams,” the festival is a grand assembly of Gods and Goddesses who make their visit to the Vadakkumnathan Temple premises on caparisoned elephants, together with majestic ensembles of chenda melam and panchavadyam. Continue reading →

Kamakshi Amman Temple – Tamil Nadu

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Photo credits : Renuka Menon

Photo credits: Renuka Menon

Kamakshi Amman Temple is the one of the three important temples to the Goddess Parvathi (Lord Shiva’s wife) in India. The temple complex covers an area of four acres, and is constructed in the Pallava style. Continue reading →

Akshaya Tritiya

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Photo credit : Jithin Vijay

Photo credit: Jithin Vijay

Akshaya Tritiya is a very popular festival that Hindus and Jains celebrate every year. Based on the Lunar Calendar, this year it landed on May 2nd. The Hindu community considers it an auspicious day and believes that any venture will be more likely to succeed. Akshaya Tritiya is associated with gold and many people wait for that day to make investments in or purchases of gold.

Auto Rickshaw

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Photo credits : Harish

Photo credits: Harish

Auto rickshaws are common all over India and provide cheap and efficient transportation. Also known as three wheeler vehicles, ricks and tuk-tuks, they are a convenient mode of transport for very short distance travel. It is economically viable and a means of livelihood for thousands of people all over Kerala. Continue reading →

Andhakaranazhi Beach – Alappuzha

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Photo credits : Ranjith

Photo credits: Ranjith

Andhakaranazhi is a beautiful beach located 5km from Mararikulam beach (one of the most famous beaches in Kerala) in the Alappuzha district, approximately 30km from Kochi International Airport. There is a lighthouse near the beach, and the place is a confluence of the backwaters and the Arabian Sea. It is particularly beautiful at sunset and sunrise. Continue reading →

Varadharaja Perumal Temple – Tamil Nadu

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Photo credits : Renuka Menon

Photo credits: Renuka Menon

Varadharaja Perumal temple is situated in Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu. This temple was originally built by the Cholas, one of India’s great dynasties, in 1053. The main deity of the temple is Lord Vishnu. One of the most famous architectural pieces in the temple is the huge stone chain sculpted from a single stone. Continue reading →

Arattupuzha Pooram – Kerala

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Photo credits : Jithin Vijay

Photo credits: Jithin Vijay

Arattupuzha Temple is located in the Thrissur district of Kerala. The annual festival, Arattu Pooram, is a grand ceremony. Arattu refers to one of the concluding rituals of the temple festival, which is a ritualistic bath in the Karuvannur river on the next morning of Pooram day (when the moon rises with the Pooram star). Continue reading →

Velankanni Basilica – Tamil Nadu

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Photo credit : Shymon

Photo credit: Shymon

The Velankanni Basilica is a Roman Catholic house of worship in the Nagapattanan district of Tamil Nadu, on the Bay Of Bengal. It is one of the famous pilgrim centers in South India. The Basilica commemorates Mother Mary, who is said to have appeared as a vision to people in the area. The building is also known as Our Lady of Good Health.

Mattanchery – Fort Kochi

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Photo credits : Ramesh Kidangoor

Photo credits: Ramesh Kidangoor

Mattanchery is a part of Fort Kochi in Kerala, India. The first trade hub in the area, dealing primarily in spices and other agricultural products, it is now also a tourist destination, surrounded by the backwaters of the Arabian Sea.  Continue reading →

Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary – Kerala

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Photo Credits : Surus

Photo Credits: Surus

Parambikulam is located in the Palakkat district of Kerala. It is one of the world’s biodiversity hotspots that supports diverse types of habitat and wildlife. Considering its biological richness, abundance of wildlife and  scenic beauty, the Sanctuary is one of the most attractive national parks in the entire stretch of the Western Ghats. Continue reading →

Sapthaha Yagnam – Temple Festival

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Photo credits : Ramesh Kidangoor

Photo credits: Ramesh Kidangoo

Sapthaha Yagnam is among eighteen ancient puranas (stories) that are still told today, and one of the most important in the Srimat Bhagavatha Purana (Holy Book of Hindu), which deals with Sri Krishna. Sri Krishna temples host a ritualistic event of intense tradition in which this text is read. Continue reading →

Dutch Cemetery – Cochin

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Photo credit : Ramesh Kidangoor

Photo credit: Ramesh Kidangoor

The Dutch cemetery in Fort Kochi, which is about 290 years old, is an authentic record of hundreds of Europeans — despite its name both Dutch and English — who arrived in India to expand their colonial empire. It is considered the oldest European cemetery in India. Constructed in 1724, the cemetery has over a hundred tombs.

Flavours Of Kerala – Ela Ada

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Photo credits : Jithin

Photo credits: Jithin

Ela ada is an authentic recipe of Kerala cuisine. A mixture of grated coconut, sugar and cardamom is layered inside a rice flour batter and wrapped in banana leaf and steamed. It is served as evening snack. Continue reading →

Lalbagh Botanical Gardens – Bangalore, Karnataka

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Photo Credits : Dileep Kumar

Photo Credits: Dileep Kumar

Lalbagh Botanical Gardens is situated in the heart of Bangalore, the capital city of Karnataka State. Hyder Ali, the sultan of the Kingdom of Mysore commissioned the gardens 1760, but his famous son, Tipu Sulthan, saw to its completion, importing rare and exotic trees and plants from places as far flung as Afghanistan and France. Continue reading →

Sakleshapur – Karnataka

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Photo credits :Dileep Kumar

Photo credits: Dileep Kumar

Sakleshapur is a hill station town in the Hassan district of Karnataka state nestled 3600 feet above sea level in the foot hills of Western Ghats. The area is known for its tall mountains, vast tracts of greenary enveloped in mist, endless expanses of coffee estates and picturesque sheep and cattle enjoying the grass in the warm sunlight. Continue reading →

Elephant Pageantry – Gajamela

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Photo credits : Ramesh Kidangoor

Photo credits: Ramesh Kidangoor

A Gajamela is a procession of caparisoned elephants–a feast for the eyes of Indian elephant lovers. In Kerala this means a spectacular show of the beautifully adorned creatures. They are so well-loved that the Gajamelas have became the most popular and most eye-catching events of Kerala. The elephant Pambadi Rajan won the 2014 elephant awards (Ittithanam Gajarajapattam). Pambadi Rajan is the one of the tallest elephant in Kerala.

Continue reading →

Backwaters Of Kerala

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Photo credits : Shymon

Photo credits: Shymon

The backwaters of Kerala offer a perfect blend of scenic attractions and tranquility. Houseboat tourism is the most popular activity in Alapuzha’s extensive  network of canals and lagoons. The area is famous for its unique practice of paddy farming below sea level. Continue reading →

Old Fashioned Cinema

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Cinema Machine in the days

Old-fashioned Film Projector

Not many youngsters will recognize this machine but in the olden days it was the only source of entertainment for people other than the dramatic theatrical dances of Kerala. This huge, elaborate machine is the predecessor of the portable devices we now can plug into a laptop to entertain ourselves at our convenience. Years ago this beast of a machine was installed in movie theaters also called a cinema. Continue reading →

Flavours Of Kerala – Mambazha Pulissery

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Photo credits : Jithin

Photo credits: Jithin

Mambazha Pulissery is a classic Kerala sweet and sour ripe mango curry. Traditionally it’s made using ripe, small mangos cooked in their own juice. The main ingredients are small mango fruit, turmeric powder, red chili, grated coconut, green chili, cumin seeds, coconut oil and curd. Continue reading →