December 2023 was one of the most spontaneous months ever in my travelling history because I wanted to travel to the core, but I also had a minimal budget. That typical traveller mindset never allowed me to compromise, but I have adjusted to it by using public transportation and living in hostels. It was worth enough, mainly when I explored one beautiful part of Kerala, Fort Kochi. This trip was too instantaneous as I only decided to travel to Kerala after finding affordable public transportation from Coimbatore to Tamil Nadu.
After my sadhana at Isha Foundation on the last auspicious Monday of Karthika in December's first week, I travelled back from Isha to Coimbatore bus station. Even though I booked my hotel accommodation for one night in the city, I have cancelled last minute. Fortunately, the hotel guys were rude and didn't allow me to come early check-in, making me visit the Isha Foundation early in the morning and complete all my rituals by early afternoon. When I reached the bus station, I found Kerala buses leaving from there, and as I had nothing to do in Bangalore as all my folks would be busy with their work schedules on weekdays, I thought of extending my trip a few more days before leaving to Bangalore. That was how I decided to visit Kerala out of nowhere.
The bus guys told me they would reach Ernakulam late evening, costing me 275 rupees on a super luxury, non-airconditioned bus. There was no rush, and I was happy to board the bus, but I ran out of charge. With my typical curious exploring mindset, I got onto the bus, took the ticket, and plugged my phone in. I borrowed a fellow passenger's internet through my iPad and booked my two-night hostel accommodation. Thankfully, the Gostops chain is available in Fort Kochi.
After crossing beautiful roads, greenery, and highways, especially those in the Kerala districts of Thrissur, Guruvayur, and other known spots, I reached Ernakulam in the late evening around 7.30 pm. It took almost 6 to 7 hours to travel from Coimbatore. My phone didn't get charged correctly, but I called one of my best friends from Kerala to pick me up and drop me off at Fort Kochi.
He was a bit late, but we spent the whole night, which was the best part of the day after my tiring journey in the daylight. The route from Ernakulam to Fort Kochi island is so far on roads, but the best way of transportation is through a jetty, which I explored on my way back. But I was a passenger princess on my guy's bike that night. I have checked in to my Fort Kochi Gostops, which is situated amidst the most happening lanes of Fort Kochi Beach and connects to almost all the happening spots of the island. I kept my stuff and introduced myself to my roommates, with whom I spent the next day wildly. But for that night, I was all for my guy who took the time to pick me up and show me around.
I got ready and started to explore the beach at night, only after having a good dinner. This open restaurant spot at Burgher's Street was where we had our veg and non-veg dinner amidst the engaging music, lovely conversations, beautiful graffiti art and cosy lighting. The people of Fort Kochi beach spots were pretty welcoming; no wonder this island's tourism always stays charming. We had our food, got some fantastic clicks, and started roaming every lane of Fort Kochi. Even though it was Monday, it still happened with the December holidaying crowd. I have seen exotic restaurant spaces, spas, hotel chains, resorts and, most importantly, the bustling lanes. But unlike other beach spots, Fort Kochi shuts off pretty early, but no one objects to roaming outside until and unless you wear a helmet and are drunk driving.
We were chilling around the beach line, taking pictures, smoking at random spots, relaxing under lamp posts and talking about our lives as we met after a very long time. That night went decent, with long drives, food and a fantastic time. He dropped me back at my hostel, and everyone had dozed off by the time I reached, I didzed off.
That was how the night one at Fort Kochi went, but the next day was more impressive than the previous one. I woke up, and I made friends with everyone in my hostel. There were hardly 5 guys. This Gostops is the smallest one in India, yet it maintained the signature Gostops ambience and atmosphere. Of all of them, I still cherish Liam from Australia, who visited India to explore and travel. It was his last day in Fort Kochi, but what a lot of conversations. That day, I also explored all alone without anyone's guidance.
I stepped out alone to explore the lanes in the daylight I had roamed the night before. I went to the coastline and explored the street shopping, street food and, most importantly, those typical sunny December mornings on a beach road. The sun was scorching, but my melanin tolerance was relatively high, so I did not hesitate to explore the famous spots of Fort Kochi Beach Road. By the end of the day, I had memorised all the paths, like a locality. Speaking of the local crowd, you can find Malayali-speaking people who are comfortable speaking English and Hindi. After clicking some fantastic street photography worth clicks, I stopped and returned to my hostel.
I chilled with my hostel mates for a while and didn't rest because I didn't want to waste my time sleeping, especially after knowing that Liam was about to leave that evening. It was a good evening with Kerala snacks, coffee, and selfies. Once he left, I again got ready to explore Fort Kochi's most happening and rated cafe, Kashi.
It's an art cafe; if you love art, you must visit it. The reviews are overrated, especially regarding food, but the vibe makes anyone fall in love with the space. Hence, I visited and had a cold coffee and food. Embraced my me-time amidst the soft music, lavender incense, tables with people and their conversations, beautifully sculpted walls, and amazingly decked-up antique and vintage interiors with some women empowerment-themed art. The owner is an artist who set up this cafe after the name of India's most cultural town. This place has its vibe and attracts people almost daily, regardless of the time.
Once I was done with my food, I stepped onto the lanes of Fort Kochi, exploring all the street vendors. I have witnessed some lovely antique stores, cultural stalls, bookstores, and decor stores, and I bought an age-old book called Leela's Book from an ancient bookstore on Beach Road called Idiom Booksellers. I explored some more food stores, and that night, I saw food on the beach road stalls from local stalls. After my soiree, I returned to my rustic hostel; sadly, five people were reduced to only three.
In the downstairs, we chilled over games, food and conversations before deciding to hit the beach again because Fort Kochi is all about the beach and nothing more than that, especially after 9 pm. Every store shuts down, but local vendors at the beach road stay awake till midnight. So we thought of hitting the beach road, walking under the lamp posts, and crossing all the beach spots. Fort Kochi's beach could be better than Vytilla, the island seen from Fort Kochi. Unfortunately, my plan didn't include Vytilla Island though. That night, I spent well, and it was a good Tuesday, but back in my mind, I was thinking about whether to extend my stay or leave Fort Kochi and head to the next destination.
In the middle of the night, I decided to leave Fort Kochi as I had already explored it way too much, and my guy was also unavailable because of his exams. I thought of travelling to my next destination the following day after cherishing every nook and corner of that Gostops hostel of Fort Kochi.
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