Year 3 -27 March 2026 - Stormbird -A day in Kochi - India
I woke at a reasonable time and there was no sign of Roland thankfully so I hoped our plan had worked and we will have to continue to do this until we leave. Varghese came early to ensure everything was ready for the cleaning guys. I cut up some papaya which was delicious and we all had breakfast at various points.
We were all ready to leave at 9.00am as agreed to do a little shopping and to go to Kochi Fort.
We went to the market and got some mosquito nets and some new fishing lures for this area. The shop owner had fished himself in the Maldives and his sister worked for the NHS in Northampton.
We then went to get some microfibre towels for J from Decathlon which has a branch out here. J bought Stormbird some new sundowner fold up chairs as the ones I bought in New Zealand were very rusty and I think if we sat on them they would probably collapse.
Varghese dropped us off in Fort Kochi by the Metro station (the ferry terminal) and we walked to the Brunton Boatyard (the hotel Jules and I had stayed at) first and the reception staff recognised me. I showed the gang briefly round.
I suggested we did a tuk tuk tour and we got one for J, Miranda and Jamie and the other for Keith and I. The tuk tuk man we had was the one who took Jules and I around and when he broke down the other man who was with J and Miranda had brought us back.
The tour was almost the same as before but the others had not done it before. We went to the Basilica first and admired the frescoes, then St Francis Church where Vasco de Gama had been buried. Then to the Dutch Laundry where the army uniforms used to be washed and it is still in use today and some of them still use irons heated by burning coconut husks.
The tour took us on to the oldest Hindu Temple and then to the Spice Warehouse where we bought some cashew nuts and almonds and ginger. We then moved on to Jew Town and they all went to see the old synagogue. Keith bought some Harrington dash (flash) shirts and Jamie wanted some linen trousers but there were none suitable there.
The tuk tuk driver took us off to another shop and Jamie got a linen shirt and pair of trousers. I got a couple of short sleeve Harrington shirts. By this time we were all hungry so we were taken to a restaurant called the Seagull.
The Seagull was not far from the Brunton Boatyard and on the water’s edge looking out over the harbour. We had a good fish lunch although the service was quite slow. However there was a lovey breeze fanning us a and we were not in a rush. We wiled the afternoon away.
Once we had finished we decided to get the ferry back to High Court which is opposite Stormbird. We therefore walked up to the Metro station and caught the ferry. They are totally electric and quite modern and within 20 minutes we were at High Court. We then got a quick tuk tuk back to Bolgatty.
When we arrived the cleaning guys were just finishing and Stormbird looked good. I was not going to go in and look at the bottom bearing in mind this water and trusted that they had done it properly.
We showered and had a late snack supper in the Beer Parlour. It had been a great day away from the boat which was quite refreshing for me and I think everyone had enjoyed the day and seeing a bit of Kochi. Keith was wearing one of his new Harrington Shirts.
The picture of today is the 5 of us at the Seagull Restaurant.
Need/Opportunity Year Three
I will be going shortly from India to the Maldives and then on to Mauritius, Reunion, Cape Town, St Helena, Azores and back to the UK.
I am looking for one crew from Mauritius/ Reunion Island to Cape Town (mid June to end of July). If of any interest do email me.
The blog will continue as we continue the journey. If you have any comments or suggestions about the blog then do email me on hine.nick9@gmail.com