Solo traveller Diary. Day One and Two

Though I am a native of God’s own country; Kerala, i never had the chance to go for trips to explore my state and my Kerala visit was limited just to my hometown and my relatives.

Bored with the monotony of my native place this year I planned a trip wherein I could explore the unexplored areas before and also be there in my hometown for our onam celebration. The first onam celebration in Kerala.

Everything planned, I departed Mumbai on 17th August and reached Kochi two hours later. My first flight ever and being an aviation enthusiast I was quite thrilled by the journey.

After my security check I spent my time in plane spotting

Spicejet Boeing 737, the one which I flew in

The 1.5 hours journey was very memorable. What made my day more special was on landing at Kochi International Airport, in the bay next to us was the Saudi Arabian Airlines Boeing 777 which was preparing for departure. That huge jet is one of my favorite and the sheer size dwarfed me. The shutterbug in me soon set in action clicking shots until the bus came to drop us to the arrival lounge.

Saudi Boeing 777

I had coordinated with our family friend who picked me up from the airport and drove to his place. The feeling I had was something beyond words, I was relieved, leaving behind the madness and braced myself for the adventures that were soon to come. Uncle guided me about the local area and how to get to the places I wanted to. My evening was spent in familiarizing myself with the local area. I had my plans for day two.

The backwaters near my house

I planned to go to Marine Drive and spend my time there. I left my home at 10am in the morning and after an hour of bus ride I got off at the High Court junction as I was advised. A little ahead and I was at the place where I wanted to be. Excited and nervous I stepped in and soaked myself in the calmness of the waters, all I could hear was the cries of the water birds and the occasional horns of the ships entering the harbour. A stroll down the promenade I saw a gang of boys strumming guitar, a conversation followed up and revealed that they just set their feet towards music, particularly towards metal music.

Now from here I would let my clicks do all the talking. Brace yourself to a visual delight of Kochi.

The traditional Chinese Fishing Net

Cormorant, a common water bird

At equal distance exist such beautifully designed walkway bridges.

On the walkway

Panoramic view of the promenade

After spending some time here I was fatigued by the humidity and sweltering heat, I walked out and refreshed myself with a chilled lemonade. A little ahead I walked along the main road parallel to the promenade and again entered the promenade, this time at the place from where one could enjoy a view of the harbour by a boat ride. I enquired about the ride and the person took me to a boat which was about to leave. Grabbing a seat I could see the entire Kochi Harbour and the city. The one hour ride was worth every penny paid.

Cochin Shipyard. INS Vikrant can be seen in this picture

Leaving behind the jetty and the mainland

MT Olympic Spirit unloading Crude Oil

Swanky Sea facing residency

The boat ride was an experience in itself and after an hour I was back to the shores. Hungry I walked to grab some decent food and after a bit of scouring I ended up in a Chinese joint since I didn’t want to trade a chance with my stomach and spoil my holidays. Once I calmed my hunger pangs I returned to my onward journey home and this was the final image of the port of Kochi which I took from the last seat of the bus.

An hour later I reached home and the sun embarked on its wayward journey to the otherside of the world, bidding goodbye with a fireglow hue in the sky.

There couldn’t be any better way to call this a day for nature never ceased to surprise me.