The island city of Cochin, in the Kerala state, has everything you could want in a Venetian town, except the Doge's Palace … and that it's in India.
And that's why it's so interesting to visit. It is actually a loose agglomeration of townships connected by waterways. Its natural situation among the waterways and backwaters is quite lovely, and along with the Indian buildings are many remnants of the three colonial occupations (Portuguese, Dutch, English) that it has undergone. It's also quite a tourist attraction and knows how to make a visitor feel at home.
Cochin, the commercial hub of Kerala, is a town of great historical importance. It has a fine natural harbour around which the city has grown. The Fort Cochin area, where the Portuguese settled in the 16th century, has been declared as Heritage Zone. |