What happens when 30 travel bloggers from across the globe sign up for one crazy road-trip in Kerala? It’s what you call the “Trip of a Lifetime”!
30 travel bloggers, 25 countries, 1 amazing adventure! Picture Credits – Jinson Abraham Kerala Tourism
Overview
And when, as the only Indian blogger in the bunch, you get a chance to see your own country through the eyes of 29 foreigners, you return home feeling nothing but immense gratitude and pride! India is such an enchanting amalgamation of culture and chaos, it’s hard to not fall in love with this place even as a foreigner (more so as a foreigner!) What with our “little spicy” food and deceiving head-nods – being a part of Kerala Blog Express with all these amazing travel bloggers made me see India for what it really is – a melting pot of beautiful traditions – a country that can mesmerize you as much as it can drive you towards the edge of insanity – the perfect recipe for instant love ????
Most of what I point out below might sound very redundant or cliche to my Indian readers, but I will do so anyway because I think we need a constant reminder of how beautiful such “cliches” are and why we should be grateful for our lovely country! On the last few days of our trip, I went around with my camera, asking each blogger three things that they will remember India for, and the answers were quite unanimous.
On going through those videos again, I noticed these are the 5 things that made all the heads turn, cameras click and pens scribble during the Kerala Blog Express 2016!
Even before I stepped foot on the coast, a birds-eye view of Trivandrum, looking absolutely glorious and unabashedly GREEN no matter where your eyes turn, made my heart leap with joy!
1. Colors
Kerala is so photogenic and colorful, and I’m not speaking only of the hill-stations like Munnar that are filled with tea plantations – even commercial cities like Cochin had much to offer. My fondest memory of Kerala will be of the Kumarakom backwaters, where we went kayaking, and even the water was lush green covered in water plants! Colors follow you everywhere you go – whether it is the breathtaking sunsets of Alleppey, endless lines of palm trees at Kumarakom, scenic tea plantations along winding road of Munnar, the stunning wall murals on the Cochin streets, or the traditional outfits of dancers at the Kerala Kalamandalam – that’s a blessing only a few places in India can boast about!
2. FOOD!
“Is this spicy?“
“Little spicy“
(After one bite) “OMG this is too spicy!!!“
EVERY-SINGLE-TIME!
No, that wasn’t me! But that was every other blogger on this trip, and it was so amusing to watch these reactions! A quick visit to the spice plantations of Kerala gave us all a fleeting taste of how many spices actually go into a simple Indian curry, and most of the westerners had never heard of them before! While the 29 bloggers had a love-hate relationship with Kerala’s spicy food, the best part was seeing them asking for more by the end of the trip. Even more amusing was seeing pictures of biryani’s and curries being shared after they returned to their own country, and went scouting for authentic Indian restaurants!
3. Animals
Cattle in the middle of the street, elephants leading religious processions, monkeys scaring the living hell out of you by popping up from nowhere – it’s amazing how animals are just about EVERYWHERE! As much as I dislike the domestication of elephants, I can’t deny being awestruck every time I saw one – whether it was in the wild at Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary, or on the streets during religious processions! Watching an elephant in the wild is one experience every single person in the world should add to their bucket-list; the sheer magnanimity and glory of the sight cannot be explained in words!
4. Culture
Picture Credits – Jinson Abraham & Kerala Tourism
Ladies dressed in colorful sarees, men walking on the streets in lungis, young girls in bindis, people eating “sadya” with their hands – a reflection of how the locals take pride in their traditions! The streets of India are always bright with colors and celebrations! In our short 2 weeks, we witnessed multiple religious processions, carnivals, traditional dances, and musical performances!
People at these functions will invite you to be a part of the festivities, join in the dance or take over the drums. Call me sentimental – but when I saw fellow bloggers give up the comfort of our air-conditioned bus and luxury suites, to stay back in Kochi on an excruciatingly hot afternoon just to get their hands painted with henna – I realized how we as Indians take our own culture so much for granted!
5. Smiles
Picture Credits – Jinson Abraham & Kerala Tourism
Easily the one thing almost every blogger definitely took back with them! It could be because we stood out naturally being a huge bunch of 30, but it’s fantastic how we were greeted with smiling faces no matter where we went! It was nice to see how curious people were, to know where we’re coming from, what we’re up to!
It was also funny to see how locals would be so excited about taking selfies with the bloggers, not knowing that the bloggers were actually more delighted about doing the same! People in Kerala know how to treat their guests – and this is one thing each and every blogger cherished the most during their stay here! “Atithi Devo Bhavah”, or the age-old Indian tradition of treating your guests as equal to your Gods, is a practice we should all be very proud of!
Thats It!
PS: Thank you Jinson Abraham for letting me use these amazing pictures for the article!
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