Lonely Planet India – August 2019

Walk into the past in

Fort Kochi, Kerala

In Kochi,if you’relookingto stepintoa timecapsule,FortKochi

is it. It providesa sharpcontrastto modernErnakulam,andthe

changesareneverso starklyrungin thanwhenyoudriveoff

theroll-on,roll-offferryintoaneragoneby(car:`65/one-way).

Startyourdayat theatmosphericTeapotCafé(00-91-484-221-

8035;PeterCelliSt; 8.30am– 9pm;from`160). Siponhotchai

or anicedtea,trytheblueberrycheesecakeor a main;everything

tasteswonderfulwhenyousit amidteapotsandtea-related

miscellanea.ThensetoffforSt FrancisChurch, believedto be

theoldestEuropeanbuiltchurchin India(ChurchRd;8.30am

-– 5pm;free). Constructedin 1503by PortugueseFranciscan

friars, the current edifice has replaced the original wooden

chapel, with alterations by the Dutch and British. You can

still see the tombstone of explorer Vasco da Gama, who died

in Cochin in 1524. His body lay buried here for 14 years before

his remains were moved to Lisbon, Portugal. Nearby you will

also find the larger Santa Cruz Basilica, dating back to the

16th century; the current structure was consecrated in 1905.

The white-washed exterior with twin spires cocoons an impressive

altar designed by renowned Italian painter Fr Antonio Moscheni

and his disciple De Gama of Mangalore, and their frescoesand

murals are well preserved on the columns (00-91-484-221-5799;

Bastian St, Fort Nagar; call and check for Mass timings).

WEEKENDPLANNER

Out of

TRIVANDRUM(215km)

Words & Photographs PRIMROSE MONTEIRO D’SOUZA

Mattancherry

Palace is a trove

of wonderful

artwork

EXPLORE

12 August 2019