How to get there:
Air: The nearest airport is Cochin,
64 km to the north, Trivandrum International Airport is 159 km to the south.
Rail: Alleppey has recently
been linked to Cochin by rail. Some trains link alleppey to cities like Chennai and
Bokaro. The Alleppey Railway Station is 5 km from the central bus stand and the boat
jetty.
Road: Alleppey is on the NH 47 highway and is connected to all
important towns in south India by public state transport buses.
Boat/Ferry:
Alleppey is linked by boat services through the backwaters to Quilon and Changanassery
(both trips particularly splendid), Kottayam,, Cochin, Kumarakom, Kavalam and Chengannur,
Frequent and inexpensive services originate from the boat jetty near the central bus
stand. The alleppey tourism Development Co-operative Society arranges on request backwater
cruises from Alleppey as well as trips to Quilon.
Local
Tours: The Alleppey Tourism Development Co-operative Society organises backwater
crises and trips to Quilon.
The Venice of India
To label Alapuzha (The Malayalam
name for Alleppey) The ‘Venice of the East’ might today appear a far-etched
cliche of travelogue writers, but this quaint little town is certainly the Venice of
India. Nowhere else will you find, spread out across the center of town, a unique
crisscrossing network of canals on which thatch covered country boats punt along
leisurely. The proximity of lakes adds to the Venetian ambience.
But when the town was founded by
Raja Kesavadasan, the Dewan of Travancore, in 1762, there was just one canal through the
strip of sand between the backwaters and the sea. This soon grew into a bustling waterway,
with shops, factories and commercial establishments springing up on either bank of the
canal. This attracted merchants from other parts of the country.
By the mid-19th Century, the sea
had receded a mile, offering more land along the sand strip. Trading vessels soon began to
call on Alleppey. In 1859 the first organised coir factory was started here and began
producing matting from coir yarn on a loom developed by an English sea captain. Soon other
British-owned weaving establishments followed.
Meanwhile, in 1816, the Church
Missionary Society set up its local headquarters in Alleppey and three years later the
first Anglican church was built. In 1851 Alleppey had the honor of housing the first post
office in the erstwhile Travancore State.
The commercial importance of
Alleppey began to decline after the late 1920s with the development of Cochin into a major
port. However, today Alleppey is still a major centre for trade in coir, copra and coconut
oil. Thanks to its long coast, Alleppey is also a centre for fishing and marine products
processing activities.
For tourists Alleppey is the
pivotal point for trips into Kerala’s famed backwaters and the state’s lush rice
bowl, Kuttanad, Between Quilon to the south and Kottayam to the east lie some of the most
entrancing scenery of palm-lined banks, quiet water-bound villages and little boats taking
the local people to and fro-everything framed in green.
Apart from the boat trips through
the town’s many canals and lakes, and the Mullackal
Bhagavathi Temple in the heart of town, Alleppey offers glimpses of the coir
manufacturing process-from the coconut husk tot the final rope/coir yarn stage. There are
also several shops selling coir matting and carpets, often at prices cheaper than
elsewhere.
The long sandy beach at Alleppey has a
lighthouse and a pier jutting out into the sea, once active in the unloading of goods from
ships calling at Alleppey. Children can romp in the Vijay Beach Park.
The
not-to-be-missed spectacle in Alleppey is, of course, the Nehru
Trophy Boat Race which began in 1952 on the occasion of the visit of India’s first prime minister,
Jawaharlal Nehru, to Alleppey, It is now a major event held on the second Saturday of
every August and features the gigantic snake-boats of Kerala, the chundans, once the
battleships of the Malayalee kings of yore. Today the Boat Race has grown into
Alleppey’s single most important tourist event, with each boat being sponsored by a
different village. Competition is severe as the boats, with over 100 rowers in each, race
to the finish to the accompaniment of rousing music.
A traveller
can use Alleppey as a base to make excursions to nearby historical sites and scenic
spots.
Pathiramanal,
a beautiful little island in the Vembanad Lake which can be reached only by boat, is set
to be developed as a major tourist spot. Boats to the island now operate on Sundays from
Muhamma and Kumarakom.
The Sri
Krishna temple at Ambalapuzha, 14 km from Alleppey, is
among kerala’s more famous ones, boasting of the typical temple architectural style
of the state. It is equally famed for its palpayasam, a sweet milk porridge offered to the
diet. The temple’s main festival occurs in March/April. It was in this temple that
the 16th century poet Kunjan Nambiar staged his first Ottan Thullal, a solo dance
performance with a high social content.
Close to
Ambalapuzha, the village of Karumadi is famous for its Karumadi Kuttanm a black
granite figure of Budha, said to belong to the 9th or 10th Century. During his visit to
Kerala in 1965, the Dalai Lama worshipped at this shrine.
Arthinkal,
known for the St. Andrews Church established by Portuguese missionaries in 1951, is near
Sherthallai, 22 km north of Alleppey. The feast of St. Sebastian is held here every
January.
On the Pamba
river is Chambakulam, the site for the famous boat regatta held during
August/September which has traditionally involved the participation of all communities.
The 18th
Century Krishnapuram Palace, built during the reign of the Travancore monarch,
Marthanda Varma, is a double-storied structure which displays typical characteristics of
Kerala architecture-gabled roofs, dormer windows, narrow corridors. It houses one of the
largest mural paintings in Kerala, called the Gajendra Mokshm. It measures 14 feet by 11
feet and is at the western end of the ground floor, a walking distance from the palace
pool. Inside is also a museum of antique sculptures, painting and bronzes. Situated 47 jn
from Alleppey on the way to Quilon Krishnapuram is easily accessible by bus from either
town..
A short
distance from Alleppey, is Punnapra, a village which has gone down in history as the scene
of a battle between the Communists and the Travancore State Police in the Punnapra-Vayalar
Communist Uprising of 1946.
Mannarasala,
32 km from Alleppey, is a very important centre of serpent worship in Kerala, Built in a cool grove of trees and shrubs, this temple is said to
contain 30,000 images of snake-goods, which line the path to the temple. |
