More than Just Lines on a Map: Best Practices for U.S Bike Routes
Village Tourism
1. Village Tourism
A visit to God’s Own Country would be incomplete without a visit to its charming
villages. The pulse of Kerala can be felt in its villages, which reverberates
with the hum of daily life. The villages are seamlessly conjoined with each
other in this contiguous landscape spread along the length and breadth of the
state and Village Tourism is becoming increasingly popular among
India Tours.
The villages in Alleppey are an interesting sight. They can be experienced either
from the sun deck of a comfortable Houseboat or disembark for the short
walk, a meal or the day from the Houseboat or hotel. Scenes from ordinary
life play out before the eyes, chirpy children on their way to school, quaint tea
shops selling hot frothy tea and ‘Kadi’ (deep fried or steamed snacks) with
the customary bunch of ripe yellow bananas hanging in front to entice the
customer. A stop at one of these tea shops is a must. The sociology of the
village can be experienced firsthand. Old men in chequered ‘lungi’s’ (sarong
style cloth worn by men) congregate to discuss politics, weather or local
gossip over a hot cuppa, while the working class sit down for a quick meal.
Delicious snacks are served up, from deep fried samosas to ‘kozhukotta’,
steamed rice dumplings filled with grated coconut infused with jaggery and a
variety of local fare. South India Tours and packages are laced with these
kinds of Tours of Villages.
2. On a leisurely walk through the village, one can see the ‘velan’ shimmying up
coconut trees with his lungi precariously tied half mast to bring down
coconuts, an acrobat feat indeed! Or watch the local women engaged in coir
work, twisting coconut fibre into ropes for the manufacture of mats and other
products. Yet another stop is the ubiquitous Toddy Shop, where fresh toddy
or fermented sap of the coconut tree is served with finger licking, spicy
curries. The ambience of the toddy shop though rudimentary, will provide the
visitor a free and compulsory performance of local ballads sung off key by
drunken men feasting on tapioca and spicy fish curry. The delicacies of the
toddy shop menu include fish curry, duck roast, mussel, lobsters and clam in
kerala spices. A highlight in Kerala Tourism Packages.
A visit to any village in the hills of Munnar or Thekkady will take the visitor across
tea plantations spread like a green carpet over rolling hills as far the as the
eye can see. Villages in the hills are clustered and each village engages in a
specific activity or industry. In the hills, villagers rear sheep or goats,
handicraft, embroidery, basketry and the like. The visitor can opt to have a
meal with a local family and partake of the warm hospitality that is trademark
of Indians. The meal would normally comprise of hot rice, lentils, home grown
vegetables, spicy meat curries, shallow fried fish and a gooey warm desert or
sweetmeat. Responsible Tourism in India encourages Village Tourism as it
encourages the local economy while preserving local craft & heritage.
3. Visitors will be lucky if there is a local temple festival or church feast going on. the
colourful gaiety of the festival, replete with caparisoned elephants, colourful
processions, ringing of bells, chanting of verse and religious fervour can be
experienced along with the farmers markets that spring up to sell their wares to the
devotees. From handmade toys to homemade foods, kitchen ware to flowers to
adorn the snake like black plaited hair that dangles down the women’s back are
available.
Village Tourism creates jobs and sustenance without disturbing the ecology or
sociology of the place. It ensures that the culturally rich heritage does not make way
for modernity. It preserves in a subtle yet sustainable way.
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