HEAVENLY HOME-STAYS

Kirsty Bennetts experienced a differant side to visiting India, Home-Stay. She reflects on her time in India, delving in to tradition and heritage.

 

Heavenly Home Stays

Kerala has been a favourite destination of our clients for many years now but on a recent trip to India, I explored some of the lesser-visited places in the northern parts of this colourful region. With a strong cultural heritage, rich in performing arts, travelling around I was reminded of how traditional this part of India remains. Home stays are becoming more popular and what better way is there to delve into the heart of these traditions than to share a family home for a few days? Home stays do differ in the experiences they offer and two of my favourites are Tranquil near Sultan’s Battery in the Wayanad region and Ayesha Manzil in Telicherry.

Tranquil calls itself a ‘plantation hideaway’, a description which aptly fits it. I was looked after by four generations of the same family plus the family dogs which were also on hand to accompany me on my morning walk. Coffee is the main crop although cardamom and black pepper are also grown on the 400 acre plantation and the owners have planned a series of colour coded walks of varying lengths and grades around the estate that allow independent exploration without the fear of getting lost. The atmosphere is very relaxed, and if not visiting the plantation most guests spend time relaxing on the shaded veranda or by the swimming pool. However members of the family are always happy to make alternative suggestions.

In the evening, pre-dinner drinks were followed by a delicious home cooked meal and more jovial conversation around the communal dining table. Eventually I retired to my bed – many of the guest rooms are situated in the main part of the house but I was lucky enough to stay in one of the two luxury tree houses. Nothing like the tree houses of my childhood, this one had all the amenities I could want for including a modern en suite bathroom with hot water, and a large balcony from which to survey the surrounding forest and enjoy a very locally grown morning cup of coffee.

From the cool hills and spice plantations, I headed to the coast and the historical town of Tellicherry for my next home stay experience, Ayesha Manzil. Dating back to the 1860s, this beautiful colonial style mansion is set on a lush hillside overlooking the glittering waters of the Arabian Sea. My room was enormous with old wooden floors and antique furniture and a traditional tiled bathroom. The British have links with Tellicherry dating back to 1692 and during their time here built a seaport through which a variety of spices such as pepper and cardamom were exported.

Tellicherry is famous for its black peppercorns which are the inspiration for Tellicherry Pepper, a cookery school based at Ayesha Manzil. Specific to this region Moplah cuisine is a rich fusion of Indian and Arabic influences and lessons are taught by Mrs Faiza Moosa, the lady of the house. Faiza is a chef of some international repute and even those without the desire or aptitude to take one of her courses are treated to her much praised cuisine, every dinner time.

The villages around Tellicherry are also the ideal place to witness a ‘Theyyam’ performance. Kerala is famous for many forms of performance art and I was already familiar with the dramatic, green faced dances of ‘Kathakali’, however Theyyam is traditionally performed in local villages for the villagers and these annual ritualistic rites are the highlight of the year.

Alan, the resident guide at Ayesha Manzil had already located a performance and we headed off in great anticipation. We drove down dusty roads, past village house until we arrived at a large clearing where already hundreds of villages had gathered and the celebrations, which can last over 24 hours, had already begun. In the heat of the sun, the dancers danced their slow, deliberate steps, laden with heavy costumes, their faces colourfully painted in orange and black. I was the only tourist there but despite feeling an intruder, they welcomed me into the rituals and all wanted to practise their English with me. Not able to take the pace for the full 24 hours, I left after a couple, feeling privileged to have experienced a small part of this very traditional event.

As is typical across Kerala, my two home stay experiences were both very different but equally rewarding and I left with a deeper understanding of Kerala’s rich cultural heritage, eager to return for more.