Where the heck are we now?: Backwaters of Kerala...Part 2

The people of Kerala, 'God's Own Country' are known to be extremely down to earth and lead a simple lifestyle. Most of them stick to their original and traditional way of living, which is away from the glitter of the stressful city life. Known as 'Keralites', the natives of Kerala like to stay close to their ancient traditions, rituals, practices and religion. It is no exaggeration if one says that they are extremely proud of their rich cultural heritage and these values have been preserved from generations. Keralites have a lifestyle that is not at all complicated and therefore, they are content and happy owing to their unfussy pleasures of life.

This way of life could be seen as we passed through the narrow channel out into more open water and along by the villages...

Some colourful houses...

Not all of them were small...

Some of the people we saw as we passed by...

Cute kids...

Mending his nets...

Malayalam is spoken by the people of Kerala and so sometimes, they are also referred to as 'Malayalees'. They give a lot of importance to education and as a result the literacy rate is quite high here. Not only modern education is importance for them, but the elders make it a point that they also offer religious and cultural teachings to their younger generations. Most of the Keralites are well-versed in English.

As far as hygiene is concerned, the natives of Kerala give a lot of importance to healthcare, cleanliness and excellent physical quality of life. They like to eat a balanced diet in their daily routine. The mainstay of Kerala's economy is Agriculture. Tourism and Export are also a significant role in the economy of this South Indian state.

We stopped at this lady’s house so she could demonstrate the making of rope from coconut husks. This is a cottage industry in the backwaters run by a village cooperative.

Our local guide explains the process, he is wearing the traditional men’s bottoms, some of them are short while others are long. They are called dhotis.

Rowing up one of the channels...

Us on the front of the boat...

We stopped on the banks for a delicious lunch served on a banana leaf...

More scenes along the way...

A Chinese fishing net...

More boats peacefully moving along...

Washing up the dishes...

The second part of the day some of the group boarded a canoe to go up further into the forest through a small village...

Watching the locals doing laundry and enjoying the water...

Our boatman at the back on this boat...

Most of us liked this part of the trip the most...

Keralites are quite tolerant towards the several residing religions and communities in the area and live side by side in the Backwaters.

The Matriarchal system, a unique social system is followed in Kerala. As a result the women in Kerala enjoy a better status than anywhere else in the country. Cases of female abortions, fatal daughter syndrome and female infanticide are very rare.

A local family...