Page 46 - india

Kerala has a cell phone and Internet con-
nection, and its literacy rate (90.92 percent
for all people there) and life expectancies
(68.23 for males and 73.62 for females) are
well above all India levels.
We stayed at the Trident Hilton in Co-
chin, an excellent hotel with beautifully
landscaped gardens on Willingdon Island,
about 20 minutes from the city center.
One of its finest features is its Ayurveda
Centre that offers many single or multiple-
day treatments.

Ayurveda is an ancient healing tradition
that began in India about 600 B.C. It seeks
to achieve an optimum balance between
mind, body and spirit. Ayurvedic proce-
dures are done either to detoxify the body
or to help strengthen its immune system.
I experienced the rejuvenation massage
and steam bath wherein two masseurs
massaged my body with special medicated
oils before securing me in an herbal steam
bath. It was a unique massage experience.

The Kerala experience was surely the most
relaxing way to begin a journey to India.

IF YOU GO

Check availability at Oberoi Hotels’
web site for its M.V.Vrinda: http://www.
oberoihotels.com/oberoi_vrinda/. A
two-night, three-day cruise is about
$750 for two people, all meals and ex-
cursions included.
The Trident Hotel, Cochin: http://www.
tridenthotels.com/cochin/hotel.asp. A
single night begins at about $100 in
this elegant, contemporary hotel with
77 rooms and eight suites.

To hire local guides throughout India,
including Cochin, go to http://www.
coxandkingsusa.com and find the best
local experts available.

Top: We transferred to a smaller vessel to cruise the
narrow canals of Kerala, where we got really close
observations of the traditional ways of life there.
Middle: The 100-man crew in a snakeboat gets
ready to race on the waters of Kerala in southern
India. Bottom: Traditional rice boats are common
sights on the waters of Kerala in southern India.

46 Wine Dine & Travel Spring 2014