The famed ‘Backwaters’ is a term used for the network of lagoons and canals which link the north to the south, and which sheltered the trading ships from the fury of the monsoons, whose winds they took advantage of to sail across the water. Life here is lived on, beside, and often in the water, and it gives off a languid aura amid silence, which is haunting and evocative. The slender coconut palms, never ending paddy fields, meandering lagoons and backwaters, mangroves nesting birds of a hundred varieties is the pristine beauty of Kumarakom the charming emerald peninsula jutting into the ever-effervescent and scenic Vembanad Lake where there are plenty of traditional country crafts, boats and canoes. Kettuvallom houseboats (Converted Rice Boats) are all the rage among the discerning travelers to Kerala and a few days on this wonderful ‘hotel’ is quite magical.
