The next day we were off to Cochin. Cochin is a big city divided over a couple peninsulas and islands, with most of the tourist attractions in Fort Cochin. Upon arrival on the morning train we headed to the Fort for a day of sightseeing. Our first priority was to go to “Jew Town” hoping to come accross a second seder. Instead we heard the sad story of the Jewish community there. The synagogue was closed for Passoever, there’s no rabbi and the man that’s in charge is old and has been sick for several months, and there aren’t enough people (men) left for a minyan. So a seder was certainly not happening. After a wonderful Kerala thali (big brown boiled rice with various veg and sauces) we continued sightseeing at the Dutch Palace. There were some really intricate murals depicting the Ramayana, beautiful but not so well kept. Walking back through the wholesale zone, Michael joined in in unloading some rice and back in the Fort area we saw the “Chinese” fisherman fishing. Basically a contraption with a huge net that they let drop into the water for 2 minutes and then have to pull all the way up. They were not too successful but it was fun to “help” them lift the net. We then made a quick stop a the St.Francis church where Vasco de Gama was buried for a while and then to the highlight of our evening, the Santa Cruz basilica. A very beautiful building that we saw exploding with people for Maudy Thursday services, and that we would consequently go back and see a few more times on Good Friday.
