One day in Fort Kochi and Mattancherry

Jew Town Road — spice warehouses, antique shops, and the synagogue clock tower at the end.

Fort Kochi and Mattancherry sit side by side on the same peninsula, about a fifteen-minute drive apart. Almost everything worth seeing is in those two pockets, and both are best on foot.

Morning: Fort Kochi

Start at the Chinese fishing nets, on the waterfront by Vasco da Gama Square. Early is better — the light is good and the operators are actually working rather than posing. They will invite you to help lower a net and ask for a tip afterwards. Fine if you know that going in.

St Francis Church is a five-minute walk inland. Built by the Portuguese in the early 1500s, it is generally held to be the oldest European church in India. Vasco da Gama was buried here before his remains were taken to Lisbon; the gravestone is still marked.

Santa Cruz Basilica is a couple of streets further, and the interior is far more elaborate than the plain exterior suggests.

Then simply walk. The streets between Princess Street, Burgher Street and the waterfront are the point — Dutch and Portuguese facades, cafés, and the odd art space left over from the Kochi-Muziris Biennale.

Lunch

Fort Kochi is well supplied with cafés, several with roof terraces. If you want the local version rather than the traveller version, the small places inland from the waterfront serve fish curry meals at a fraction of the price.

Afternoon: Mattancherry

The Dutch Palace (Mattancherry Palace) is the one people skip and should not. The building is plain; the murals inside are among the finest in India, covering scenes from the Ramayana across several rooms. Photography is not allowed. It closes on Fridays.

Jew Town is the street beyond it — former spice warehouses now full of antique and craft shops, and still smelling faintly of ginger and cardamom in the older buildings.

The Paradesi Synagogue at the end of the street dates from 1568. The hand-painted Chinese floor tiles are the thing to look for, no two identical. It is closed on Fridays and Saturdays and on Jewish holidays, which catches a lot of visitors out.

Evening

A Kathakali performance is the usual choice. The good venues start an hour early with the makeup being applied and explain the hand gestures before the story begins — go for the whole thing, not just the last hour.

Otherwise, back to the waterfront for sunset behind the nets.

Practical notes

• Check the closing days: Dutch Palace shut Fridays, synagogue shut Fridays and Saturdays.
• The peninsula is flat and walkable, but the sun is strong from about eleven. Plan indoor stops for midday.
• Parking in Fort Kochi is tight. Being dropped and collected is easier than driving in.
• The ferry from Ernakulam is cheap, quick and a nicer arrival than the road.

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