Day 65 - Cochin, India

Today we are in Cochin (also known as Kochi) in the state of Kerala on the southwest coast of India. It has been a port since 1341.It was occupied by the Portuguese in 1503. It was later occupied by the Dutch and the British. Kochi was an important spice trading center on the west coast of India from the 14th century onward, and maintained a trade network with Arab merchants from the pre-Islamic era.  It is known as "Queen of the Arabian Sea".
Our excursion was "Panoramic Kochi". We drove through the old parts of the city, saw the oldest European church in India (1503), some of the Chinese Fishing nets for which the city is famous. It is believed that they were brought here at the time of Kublai Khan. They normally fish at night and have a light over the net to attract the fish.

sailing into Cochin harbor

first sights of the Chinese fishing nets

a water bus

more water buses docked

where we docked

Vendors were already set up. There were people sleeping in the white mesh domes to guard there merchandise

a temple

a street scene

a waterway

a church originally  built in 1503

vendors set up near tourist attractions

we stopped near a waterfront

the famous Chinese  fishing nets

checking for fish as the net rises out of the water

egrets watching for fish in nets

back to the ship. there were tuk-tuk taxis there

many vendors were sedt uo near thye dock. I bought a few things

sun setting over Cochin

another view of the fishing nets as we sailed out of the harbor

last sights of Cochin

Day 64 - at Sea - sailing towards India

Today we cruised from Sri Lanka to the southwest coast of India.
It was a hot day,
Kathy took a floral arrangement class. Here is a picture of her arrangement.

Kathy's floral arrangement

before sunrise, a Celebrity Cruise ship passed near us

sunrise

not much of a sunset this evening

We saw a number od small fishing boats this evening. This is 15 - 20 miles offshore

Day 63 - Columbo, Sri Lanka

Wednesday, we were in Colombo, Sri Lanka (previously called Ceylon). Our excursion was  called "Holy Colombo".  We  visited 4 temples/churches/mosques, one for each of the 4 main religions practiced here. First we visited the Gangarama Buddhist Temple. Next was the Captains Table Temple which is  an ancient Hindu temple. It has a recorded history of more that 400 years.  After that we visited the Jami Ul-Alfar Mosque (also called the Red Mosque). The Islamic community comprises 7% of the population of Sri Lanka. . Our last stop was at oldest Protestant church still functioning in Sri Lanka. The building of it started in 1749. It is the Wolvendaal Church of the Dutch Reformed Church.

First lights of Colombo

The harbor in the early morning

this is a busy container ship port

sunrise over the container port cranes

The ship docked next to us

a view of the city from our ship

an ancient lighthouse

a city street

a new tower called "Colombo Lotus Tower" It has not opened yet.

At the Buddhist Temple

Inside the temple

a monk giving an  offering

monks at work

more Tuk-Tuk taxis

the Hindu temple

offerings

a Buddha statue

a Buddha

a monk

We had to take our shoes off at the first 3 sites visited

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people could get their picture taken beside the elephant

at the Islamic Temple

One of the prayer halls in the mosque

inside the mosque

the front of the mosque

an ancient clock tower

walking along one of the busy  narrow streets

a street scene

busy streets

The Dutch Reformed Church 

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a  Tuk-Tuk taxi up close

the old city hall

Back to the ship

One of the towers we could see from the ship

The Chinese are helping build a new port on reclaimed land

the Lotus Tower

the Red Mosque

the container ship port cranes