Day 5 & 6 - The tale of two chruches - Mattel & Cruz Millagres.

Day 5: Kumarakom - Thaneermukkom, Thavanakadavu, Aroor

NOTE : Pictures courtesy Mathew Vurghese, Jibin Thomas & Murugan Krishnan


It was 3:00AM when we woke up and Mathew's Mother was ready with the Kadunkappi (Black coffee). Black coffee forms the norm of early morning habituate in central Travancore. We all got ready and as the kayaks got rigged, we were ready to move.

Happy birthday to you.....Mathew cutting Birthday cake at Kumarakkom.

The cake for Mathew (remember it’s his birthday) was placed on a Kayak with lighted candles as someone called out to Mathew to say we were good to go! After the birthday celebration, one by one we took the kayak to the waterfront, 50meters from Mathew's house. The first group departed with headlights helping the motorized fishing crafts steer clear of us in the narrow canal that would take us to the Vembanadu Lake, past the boat jetty at Kumarakom. The lake was still, blinkers on the fishing boats and the gill nets markers they had deployed made navigation tough. The only hope was to deploy the compass and use dead reckoning. After many stops to discuss the bearing, keeping the moon on to our left was agreed as the right course to reach the western end of Taneermukkam bund. The backwaters were endless, we had left Mathew's place at 4:00AM and had to paddle 10KM to reach the locks. As we passed 5:30AM, a fisherman gave us the course to follow and there was relief for we were on the right track. For the first time, lack of a GPS device was felt; imagine how not far in our past, navigation was an art of science! We felt humbled for not being able to spot the north star thanks to our ignorance and for light pollution.

The locks opening at Thaneermukkom Bund.

Waiting for locks to open on the other side.

We had left Kumarakom as two groups and the forward party were six of us. It was tiring as Taneermukkam bund came into view and few of us trouped to the local market, seeking a tea to balm the early morning confusion and effort! Tea and breakfast are time consuming affairs and our past experience told us that we should push on. Gopu, the co-ordinator has visited the lock office the day before and hence we had support crossing the locks, manned by six government employees! Kaushiq recalled how locks in the United Kingdom were electrically operated. We waited for the second group to join us and as they were not in sight, we decided to cross the bund. The six of us got into the lock and were released into the saline water on the other side. The Kerala Dredging corporation and tourism offices were on our left and last  year we had pulled over to visit a good local Kappikada(local tea shop), it was 630AM and we decided to push on for Thavanakadavu for the breakfast halt, which was another 10KM ahead. Thavanakadavu is on the other side of the temple town of Vaikom.

Endless kayal, north of Thaneermukkom Bund

A ferry connects Vaikom to Thavanakadavu and is a bustling place.  We paddled on passing fishermen and clam extractors and it was past 8:00AM when we saw the ferry.

Pappu - The youngest member of the kayaking team.

We realized that Pappu (the youngest) had paddled so far off that he would miss the breakfast stop. We were close to Thavanakadavu and were asking the locals for any Kappikada, which was nearby. One of us had to paddle hard to reach Pappu and we did so close to the jetty.

Boat jetty at Thavanakadavu.

Pulling into the boat and bus jetty/stand, we moored the kayaks and headed for some good breakfast at the local Kappikada. Appam, puttu, kadalakari and muttaroast went down with gulps of sweet tea. The newly inaugurated toilet was a blessing. In between we had a call from the second team telling about them losing the bearing for the bund and Dani having dropped an expensive camera into water, which was retrieved! They updated us about having breakfast at the Kappikada next to the bund and told us to keep going.

Mattel Palli (Church), near Thavanakadavu.

It was 9:30AM when we set paddling with the Mattel church as our intermediate waypoint. Mattel church is the places were St. Thomas’s holy cross was found after being lost. Mattel church stands on a Thuruth (Mudflat with overgrowth that is almost flooded during high tide) and had few dogs that sounded ferocious. We took pictures of the place and pushed on with Aroor as our destination. The backwaters here is beautiful and vast, and the low tide made us feel as though we were gliding on a smooth slope with its incline toward Kochi. Fishermen have placed bamboo poles, across the backwater for attaching gill nets and the same poles form hangouts for fish to be reeled in. 

Jankar service, Mekkekadavu Nerekadavu, North of Vaikkom.

The only traffic we saw here were the Jankar service and the occasional speed boat, that we imagined were competing against the chokked roads in Kerala.  The imaginary incline we felt seemed to mesmerize Rakshit, he took off and repeated what Papu did and disappeared from view. It was well past 11:00AM when we made our left at Kaithapuzha Kayal and entered Achanthuruthu shortcut; we paddled on to re-join the backwaters. As we exited the Thuruth, there was no sight of Rakshit. Raj took the time to call the port officials at Cochin and as agreed during his meeting, told about our planned arrival at the Vendhuruthy Bridge, the next day at 7:00AM. Raj had met the port officials and they had agreed to escort us across the shipping channel to Fort Vypeen.  It was another few minutes later that we connected with Rakshit on phone and as he joined, we all decided not to break away from the team. We were told to look for Vaduthala jetty were school kids were waiting to receive us.

Rakshit briefing School kids at Vaduthala Jetty, south of Aroor.

Going past the ferry that crisscross various Thuruth’s here, we reached Vaduthala Jetty with 100’s of kids cheering us, along with Gopu and Anoop. They wanted us to come closer to the bank, braving water hyacinth and the excitement was such that we could not resist. Except for a few of us, we all took the kayaks as close as we could and explained to them what we were doing and kayaks in detail. We promised to meet at their school post lunch and with great struggle broke free of the weed. Our destination was on the other side of the big expanse, on the island of Panangad, 4KM. Past 12, the sun was at its peak, the wind from the west had made the waters choppy, and paddling was getting hard. We had initially planned to be at the Ernakulum Sailing Association campus and had to change plans as the sailing association had moved premises. 

Meridian Homes, the property Ravi is developing in Panangad.

Raj's friend Ravi, who is the MD of Meridian homes, had a villa project at Panangad, which was our new destination. The day was perhaps the longest distance we had paddled, 35KM or more. Raj was leading the way (not sure if it was his familiarity with the property or the fact that his wife was waiting) and he was in constant touch with Ravi to locate the property, we just followed Raj through waves that were looking menacing.  Dani appeared suddenly; he was with the second batch and decided to push himself, we were seven now. The other second batch members were nowhere to be seen, we were getting tired and the school program was planned for 2:00PM.

Welcome banner put up by Raj's friend, Panangad.

With great difficulty we reached the Meridian homes property and were delighted to see the banner Ravi and other friend of Raj had put it "Welcome Green paddles to Panangad"! On landing there was joy and fear, the former for finishing the day's leg and the later out of concern for our other friends. Jibin, had to pull over as his kayak was large and getting blown by the breeze, we were worried about our other batchmates that had all odds against them; the sun, wind and the waves. One by one all of the first batch came in and Jibin decided to give a try of his own after the local shop vendor powered him up with some Sodanarangavellam(Lime soda in short). Jibin made it and so did the other team members some of whom reached at 2:00PM. Gopu and Anoop had come and so were the chain of Raj's friends who came to the property. After the quick lunch three of us, Raj, self and Mathew headed to the school, it was already late! The school function was powered by the Assistant Principal, a lady of amazing confidence. Mathew was picked up by his friend after the function to head home to Kumarakom as his parish was celebrating its festival. We headed back to camp and found that all the team members were just tired and cooling themselves by literally taking over Ravi's office. Ravi was there with family to see us off at Kollam and now, he was doing his best to give us the much needed comfort in all ways possible. Water was pumped up to the external tanks for us to take shower and wash our clothes. The one tank on the ground was leaking and we were helpless to see all 500 litres of it recharging the table. We got fresh near the open tap behind the building and hung the clothes on the line that Dani had tied on the terrace. With wind blowing from the backwaters the expectation was that the clothes would dry fast; the time was past 6:00PM! As the night set in, some of us had a siesta and were fresh to join the mini party that Raj's friends were throwing for us. There was chilled beer and the code of conduct for the expedition meant we had to relish it by seeing others gulping it!  We got to know many of Raj's fiends and also met Shaji, who had challenged Raj with the party if he could kayak from Kollam to Kochi! After the evening dinner were food was of all kinds in plenty we said our goodbyes to Ravi and Raj's friends and went to sleep. It was a tiring day, inspite of all the flying nurses that Kochi is famous for, we slept like rock, and anyplace a body could be stretched at Ravi's office. Flying Nurses....these are the ubiquitous mosquitos that Kochi is famous for!

Day 6: Aroor, Fort Cochin, Vypeen 
The clothes were still wet the next morning, it was 4:00AM(not 3:00AM), when we got up and packed them into plastic liners. The consensus the previous day was that we had done an additional 10KM, stretched ourselves the previous day and hence could have a bit of luxury! The coffee was boiled on the Solo stove; served to all, including the office staff and watchmen, who stayed back to help us pack up and leave. The Solo stove is an amazing thing to carry on expeditions as it provides a great platform to have a cooking fire. It was 5AM, when we were all launched and headed westbound with the Aroor Bridge as the first land mark. We had taken prior permission and the plan was to stay clear of the naval areas around Kochi and take the western side of the backwaters to reach Vendhuruthy Bridge. 

Kaushiq, paddling towards Kochi.

After crossing the Aroor Bridge we stayed to the left of the channel and were too preoccupied to avoid the restricted areas. Kaushiq called us to alert that his compass was showing south and when we crosschecked we realized that we had taken a left and were indeed heading south! Dani took over with his GPS and we pulled back to the main channel with the favourable low tide making us move at amazing speed. At night the horizon can be elusive, situational awareness is challenging and the need for conscious effort was underlined by this incident.

Refresher stop - "Does anyone have dryfruits?"

Some of the stretches we saw was heart wrenching, the floating garbage and foul-smelling water are the leftovers from our modern living. Water front homes and villas in Kochi are gaining prominence; yet, the need to own and protect these waters is low on our priority. We moved on, marvelling at the speed the low tide was giving us and it was close to 7:00AM, when we reached Vendhuruthy Bridge. 

Approaching Vendhuruthy Bridge

Vendhuruthy Bridge, with its span that can open to let vessels pass.

Naval micro lights were taking off to our right and we could only imagine how the ten kayaks, neatly lined up near the bridge would be viewed from the skies. Raj called the port officer and the boat "Water Ways" headed towards us. We followed it and then the lead party moved ahead with the plan to regroup next Aspinwall for the channel crossing.

Kayakers following "Water ways", between Cochin port(Right) & Fort Cochin(left)

Blessing travellers for time immemorial - The statue of Virgin Mary at the Cruz Milagres Church jetty.

We went past the coastguard and customs office to reach Aspinwall; were the Cochin Muziris Biennale is happening this year. I had been to the Biennale few days back and it was great to admire the bell exhibit with a different perspective right behind the Seagulls restaurant that was next to pepper house, another Biennale venue. We all grouped in, took count and at the instruction of the port officer started crossing the channel. Being a low tide (the same that got us here fast) and the water being choppy, paddling was tough. We crossed over to the west of Vallarpadam and said our goodbyes to the port officials. The Taj outdoor adventure facility was a surprise for all of us, it was ill maintained and had heaps of garbage, either dumped or brought by the tides. The next target was Ochanthuruth, we had breakfast in our mind. 
The first stop was the fish market at Fort Vypeen, we could not see any Kappikada and could see the Cruz Milagres Church (Kurishingal Palli), in a bouquet of green. With no hopes of the Kappikada, we decided to head straight to the church, the low tide that got us to the sea opening, was now a challenge. We paddled on to reach the Church and were faced with a unique issue; the low tide had increased the landing jetty’s height by 5 feet and there was no way to access the church compound. Raj took the lead of climbing over the church compound through thickets of bushes, one by one we followed. 

The Little Therese School, next to Cruz Milagres Church(Kurishingal Palli).

The Priest was a bit surprised by the alien invasion and directed us to the Mother Superior, who was our person of contact and Principal at the Little Theres Girls LP School, were the afternoon sessions were planned. He sends along a local parishioner named. Mother Superior was a little taken back that the Priest wasn't informed and managed to make up for the miss.

Lining up Kayaks in front of Cruz Milagres Church(Kurishingal Palli).

We went back to the Church compound and with help from David uncle took over one corner for ourselves kraaled by Kayaks and equipment.

 

David Uncle, far left.

David uncle was similar to Joseph uncle whom we met at Dalavapuram; both were very friendly and caring. David uncle had worked in Dubai all his life and after becoming a widower, spent most of his time volunteering at the Cruz Milagres Church (Kurishingal Palli). 

The majestic Cruz Milagres Church(Kurishingal Palli)

Cruz Milagres Church (Kurishingal Palli), was built by the Portuguese in the16th century and has some amazing architecture and stained glass; depicting travellers with Christ. The Church is one of the oldest in and around Cochin and forms the backdrop to lot many Indian and foreign movies. The local Mathrubhumi reporter and our contact for SEED Vinod joined us to co-ordinate and report on the day.

After the late breakfast at Ochanthuruthu.

We headed to a local Kappikada that had tasty food but not so friendly a person serving it, maybe it was the odd time when we were coming in for breakfast, it was past 10:30AM. We took in all the food they had, few of our friend had to go further to find food. 

Mathew, siesta at Cruz Milagres Church(Kurishingal Palli).

Coming back, we freshened up and had clothes done. A wedding was going on in the Church and the squatters in the compound with their kayaks became a point of gravitation. While some of us took to the scattered benches to siesta, others explained what we were doing to a steady stream of people and helping kids take pictures, sitting in the kayak. 

Jyothi; Raj's wife with the kayking team.

Raj's wife came to visit us and he went along to see his Daughter who was not keeping good health. Gopu and Anoop came around lunch time and after lunch, we headed to the Little Sisters Girls LP School for the session and the kids were all excited to attend the session. Rakshit and Kaushiq explained all about the kayak. The sisters who do an awesome job of helping the society were equally thrilled to see the kayak and we obliged to their demand to see one in the water, later in the day. 

Wow!;Inside, Cruz Milagres Church(Kurishingal Palli)

Stained glass on the eastern wall, Cruz Milagres Church(Kurishingal Palli).

Ceiling at Cruz Milagres Church(Kurishingal Palli).

Stained glass, Cruz Milagres Church(Kurishingal Palli).

We rested post the school session, some of us visited the Cruz Milagres Church (Kurishingal Palli), took pictures and were amazed to see how beautifully it was maintained. It was post 5:00PM, after siestat & tea when the Sisters trouped in and Jibin took a Kayak (remember through the thicket and over the compound wall) for a spin and clarified questions. We showed them the route we took to reach the church premises as Mathew drew their attention to the garbage just beyond the compound. Mother Superior was humble to say it was theirs and she will do the needful to prevent it. Rakshit and Kaushiq went to Fort Cochin to get some dry fruits. We had run out of the stock that Ria (Kaushiq's Daughter) had packed for all of us and the breaks we had while paddling, dryfruits was the big attraction. You lift a pouch of dry fruits and everyone would congregate around it. For Dinner, Sister sent us some amazing Idlis with two kinds of chutney. David uncle came as we had dinner; he shared how things had changed after the road bridge linking Fort Vypeen to Kochi had been commissioned. He echoed of losses than gain; friendship, camaraderie, love  affairs and leisure, travelling on the ferry, had all disappread!

Vallarpadam at night.

Tenting at Curz Milagres Church.

We got permission from the Priest to pitch our tents in front of the Church and were fondly surprised to see the Sisters come to say their goodbyes and see what a tent was. Mosquitos were in plenty, the big ones that visited us at Dusk were now replaced with tiny ones that would squeeze into the tent from any opening we were careless to close.  Thanks to the pre-work done by Raj, the travel around Cochin port was without any hiccups, the day was nearing its end.

Cruz Milagres Church(Kurishingal Palli), at night.

As we were enthralled looking at the illuminated Cruz Milagres Church (Kurishingal Palli) at night, we slipped into siesta.


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Day 3 & 4 - Fourteen Omelletes - Valiazheekal to Kumarakom, via Thotapally, Karumadi, Pallathuruthy & Alappuzha

Day 3: Valiazheekal - Thrikunnapuzha - KV Jetty - Thotapally - Puthenchira
 

NOTE : Pictures courtsey Mathew Vurghese, Jibin Thomas & Murugan Krishnan

Sunrise, as we said good bye to Valiazheekal.

We woke up at 3:00AM, after the morning brew moved to get to launching spot that was may be 100meters away. It was 4:00AM when we were ready to roll the trolleys and we had help from Anish, who had come early to see us off. The jetty next to the Valiazheekal School was at a corner leading to the sea and a kilometre wide backwater in the front. The launch had to factorize large number of fishing boats and trawlers going for their daily job, very close to the launch jetty. The LED headlamps all of us were using had a White light in the front and 2 red blinkers at the back. We launched as 2 groups, crossing the boat channel for the far side of the backwaters and then turning north. 

"Break time", Kayankulam Kayal.

One of the best stretches of the backwaters in the south is Kayankulam Kayal and being dark, that view was missed. We cherished this stretch the last expedition as it was early morning when we crossed Valiazheekal and headed to Vetethukadavu as the halt point. We headed north, with the Tsunami bridge as the waypoint, passing the bridge, we took the east side of the Kayal. Stopped at multiple points to take pictures and pick on the dry fruits. The youngest member of the team took off and could only be seen as speck on the horizon, which gave jitters. Kayaking is a safe sport when done in a group or in tandem. We struggled to locate the next landmark; Kayankulam Thermal Power Plant, with its four majestic towers that would indicate the northern tip of the Kayal. Finally it looms over the horizon as Murugan recollected how his Father was involved in its construction.

Kayankulam Thermal Plant in the horizon.

The low tide should have ebbed by the time we completed the 13KM run, to reach the northern end of the Kayankulam Kayal, and were surprised to see Pallana  River, emptying into the Kayal at reasonable speed. We moved on hoping to catch a local Kapikada, as the time was past 830AM and calories were high on everyone’s mind. We stopped at Coir Village, which is on the canal bank Breakfast. Being a resort, we initially got a shock, saying food was limited. Fortunately, they accommodated ten of us, along with the other guest. The team trickled in with Jibin and Murugancoming at the tail end; it was close to 10, when the group started again.

Breakfast at Coir Village, Thrikunnapuzha.

Pallana river, is were in 2007, had met two oars men in their late 60's; Kasimka & Arjun, buddies for life who plied goods on these waters for 40 years. Arjun had passed away and Kasimka was still in touch; meeting them was the inspiration for planning this and the previous expeditions. 

Arjun & Kasimka.

At KV Jetty, Pallana River, with Arjun(Right) & Kasimka(Middle)

We moved to see why Pallana River was flowing so fast! The entire watershed system in Kerala called Kuttnad has 6-7 rivers emptying their water. Kuttanad has 2 openings to let this water run to the sea; Taneermukkam Bund, in the north and Thrikunnapuzha Locks in the south. Taneermukkam was closed few weeks back and all the excess water was making it out thought Thrikannapuzha locks, giving us a Class-I rapid upstream to tackle. The first few who tried crossing the lock were swept back and then Mathew tried crossing right at the centre of the flow, and he succeeded. One by one, we took Mathew's path and crossed over! Eight of us were on the other side and two more of our folks; Jibin & Kaushiq were yet to cross the lock and swirled nightmare for us. Jibin was kayaking a broad 11 footer that we fondly called "Kattabomman", Kaushiq on a 11 footer with very low clearance, thanks to all the gear Kaushiq hauled (he lost few of them, water line improved)! Self and Mathew climbed up the lock with a rope in hand, in case our buddies needed help. Finally when we had them in view we asked them to give a try and with cheer from the others on the other side Kaushiq pulled though. Our fears were now for Jibin, he was slow and steady, as he cruised to the other side. 

There comes the coconut; Pallana River.

We moved on to find the sun baking hot, until we found a person on the banks, who was willing to give two tender coconuts. The entire troupe jumped to the offer and we got tender coconut for all; for a cost! We moved from shade to shade as the Sun was at its peak and around 1:00PM, we came to Thottapally. The Puthenchira Church was another kilometre or so away; another 30 minutes of paddling in hot sun.

Puthenchira Church.

Gopu Keshav, cheering at the last leg.

Gopu Keshav and Anoop were at the Church waving at us and cheering the tired paddlers. Few of us had other plans and headed to the other side of the river bank for a well-deserved swim and washing of clothes. It was around 2:00PM when we crossed over to the Church for a quick lunch. The lunch was amazing for the fish, beef curry and mussels fry.

Cooling off, opposite to Puthenchira Church.

We then proceeded for the meeting organized by "Green Roots Nature Conservation Society" volunteers at Thotapally beach. The meet was one of the best for the program was organized by Amurtha Sebastian of Mathrubhumi Seed. Amurtha had introduced us to the sea turtles of Thotapally, during our last expedition and was one of the founders of Green Roots along with Saji Chitralayam. Green Roots had successfully collected and hatched sea turtle eggs, the last season.

The interaction at Thotapally.

The meeting at the beach was the best we had, with local panchayat members, other founder and active members of Green Roots, International club representatives from JCI & Rotary. Of all the interactions we had in the thirteen day trip, Thotapally stands out; seriousness of the crowd and our feeling of fulfilment being part of the sea turtle conservation effort. We carried a memento for the Green Roots team and also gave them a copy of "The Birds of the Indian Subcontinent".

Sahi Chitralayam and team from Green Roots

The clean up, after the meeting at Thotapally.

After the meeting we planted trees in the green area of the beach and did a thrash collection which netted close to 40 discarded glass bottles.

Sunset at Thotapally.

We marvelled at the sunset and sought refuge at a local tea shop for the next one hour, relaxing in the company of a drunkard, who entertained us with all antics. The number of tea and banana's we had as a group become a counting challenge for the shop owner. 

Accounting by counting Banana skin.

We headed back to church compound and settled down, there was no running water, yet water was available in plenty from the river. After dinner we pitched tents for the first time as there was not enough room for all. Pappu, who got a room for himself was asked to move out as a gunny bag of grains stored in the same room had tell-tale marks of a rodent visitor! It was a tiring day and we did 25KM.

Pitching tent at Puthenchira Church courtyard.

Day 4; Puthenchira- Karumadi - Pallathuruthy - Kumarakom

We woke up at 3:00AM and departed from Puthenchira Church jetty by around 4:00AM. Pappu, the youngest member of the team had an upset stomach; thanks to the mussels fry. He had cramps and was struggling to paddle. 

Fullmoon near Pallathuruthy.

It was a full moon night and we paddled on past the Buddha statue at Karumadi, fondly believed as the local guardians and called as Karumadikuttan. On the way Rakshit disappeared from the group and came back after a refreshing tea. Rakshit had gone to a Thycavu (Prayer mosque) for using the toilet and was also offered tea. Such simple acts of being treated like a fellow being is what we marvelled all along the trip. Neither caste nor religion or economic class mattered, when we asked for help!

The kapikada at Pallathuruthy.

Competing with locals.

Hunger took hold and enquiry started about Kapikada. It was 7:30AM, when we reached Pallathuruthy that the group took over a local kapikada to the extent, the owner risked antagonizing his regular patrons. After loads of Putt and Parota, we left Pallathruthy at 8:30AM. Murugan and my-self headed to see if we could locate Padmini Chechi; who was kind enough  to give us a place to sleep and tea. By the time when we searched and located Padmin Chechi's house and knocked on the door, there was no response. Neighbours came enquiring and they told that she had left for the fields. After handing over some gifts for her, we joined the group for the next halt at the entrance to the magnificent Vembanadu Kayal. 

House boats moored near Alapuzha.

We paddled on and saw traffic in the canals close to Alappuzha. Houseboats were racing each other and creating wake that looked monstrous for folks like us who have only paddled inland. It became such an issue that we shouted at few of them, when our request to slow down was not heeded. All of us felt that it’s a tragedy waiting to happen. Tourism in Alappuzha (backwaters of Kerala) has become one of the biggest curse; engine exhaust contaminating the water, Sewage and other waste generated aboard the boats being dumped into the canals and no oversight by any government or self-appointed body; all of these factors will eventually kill this industry is what we felt. 

Entering Vembanadu Kayal; Marthandom Kayal on far right.

Reeds growing along Marthandom Kayal.

We moved on and kept asking how far was the Kayal (Vembanadu lake) and it was 10:00AM when we reached it. We could see the tip of Marthandam Kayal at our 2'O-Clock, and we decided to aim for it. It took us thirty minutes to reach the reed fringed Marthandam Kayal. The banks of the Marthandom Kayal are full of reeds and one cannot miss the reed warbler calling from its hideout. What made one sick was the garbage that was dumped from houseboats. We wondered which boat had dumped it and who the tourists were, on that boat. We felt that the tourists should take more responsibility in hiring boats that leave very little environmental impact. We retold the story of how the Kayals were reclaimed by Shri Murikan, who is considered the Father of Kayal paddy cultivation. From Marthandom Kayal, we took a NE bearing and set off for Kumarakom. As the sun climbed to its peak, the heat was building up; adding to the agony was the lack of any breeze in the Kayal. 

Never ending Vemabanadu Kayal.

Water looked still and the white cross pillar leading to the Kumarakom jetty looked never reachable. Once in a while a house boat would cruise by, with the Driver at the wheel and no other visible soul. We paddled on and the White Cross pillar would look as far as when we left Marthandom Kayal. Your body tends to give up as the drive becomes so long, it’s just the mind that gets you going, one paddle at a time. It was past 12:00PM when the white cross pillar looked close; to the left one could see the Muhamma Kumarakom ferry coming in. Some of us decided to race with the ferry to keep the mind going. As the ferry got past the Holly Cross pillar, we were few hundred meter behind; that was not bad for we had reached our destination. Taking cover of the first available shade we emptied the water bottle; it was more than 2 hours that we were in open sun and continuously paddling without a break, completing a distance of 13Kilometers of Vembanadu Kayal. 

We moved past ladies cleaning up the canal embankment as part of the NREG scheme, heading in the direction of Mathew's house. The ferry that we had raced was now turning to make its return to Muhamma, blocking the canal. Crossing the Bridge next to the Kumarakom Jetty and going past the temple on the left, we pulled over. Anandan Chetan (elder borther) came to help us move the kayaks to Mathew's home. We were all tired and the need to have lunch was high on the agenda. 

Kudumbashree hotel at Kumarakom.

Waiting for the much needed lunch.

The Kudumbashree run lunch place was mobbed as we settled in after a day of demanding kayaking. It’s amazing how women self-help groups in Kerala have come together to make a difference in every walk of life. The place where we went for lunch was also run by a Kudumbashree unit, serving good food at reasonable rates. We feasted on fish fry and omelette, buttermilk; before heading back to Mathew's place. Mathew's home was special for all the good things we had missed for the last 4 days.

Handing over the book at Governmet High School, Kumarakom.

Post lunch we headed to the Kumarakom Government High School for the session. It was past 4:00PM, when we came back. This was the same school were Mathew had studied and as he got up during the team introduction, there was a huge applause from the audience. In the evening we again trouped to Kudumbashree hotel for the evening tea and  as we were leaving, Raj was asked "Who will pay for the 14 omelettes?"!  Initially we thought he had all the fourteen; later we realized that six of us had shared it.

"This is what happens when you have fourteen omelletes".

Anandan Chetan was kind enough to get us some toddy that 'cooled' us down. The evening dinner was a spread of Dosha, Appam and all kinds of non-vegetarian stuff. Evening hush confirmed that the next day was Mathew's birthday and Adarsh volunteered to get a cake that we all wanted to cut, before our departure the next day. We agreed to wake up next morning at 3:00AM for the day was long and went to sleep. Day 4 had come to a closure at Mathew's place, we covered a total of 33 Kilometres, it was tiring!

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