Captured this just outside the Forbidden City. Nothing like training communist patriotism at such a young age

Greetings from Kerala!

We spent the last 4 days in Kerala, having an absolute incredible time. It’ll be impossible for me to summarize everything in this single entry, so I”ll opt for the highlight which is coincidentally the highlight of the entire trip as well.

After spending a night in Kochi, we headed off to the Kerala backwaters to stay on a houseboat. However, to call this a “houseboat” is not doing this experience the justice it deserves. When I previously heard the word “houseboat” I thought of permanently docked and dilapidated houses that you see all the time on the shores of the waters around Seattle. However, this houseboat in Kerala is like a palace on wheels. Not only down is actually move through the water using a motor, but it also is fully furnished with multi-bedrooms and A/C. It also has a full staff that steers the boat and prepares all your meals. To make the deal even sweeter, it costs us a mere $50 US per night, which included the houseboat rental and all the King Fisher beer we drank.

Earlier in the week, we met 3 women in Goa that ended up sharing the houseboat with us which not only helped cut costs down, but also added some new blood to the mix to spice up our conversations. It also added more people in to play Uno with us which has taken over our down time

The 2 nights we spent on the boat were utterly amazing, filled with great food and unbelievable scenery. I’m anxious to post pictures when I get back to Seattle!

After the houseboat, we decided to splurge a bit and are currently staying at the 5-star Taj Malabar hotel in Kochi. This hotel is amazing, with super luxurious rooms, great amenities and a really posh infinity pool. The houseboat was the nicest from a scenery perspective, but this hotel is off the charts in terms of luxury. WOW!

Tommorow, we check out nice and early (6am!) to catch a morning flight to Mumbai where we’ll stay for just over a day before parting ways to our respective destinations.

For those anxious to see some photos, here is a photo I snagged while waiting for a 1 rupee (yes, 1 rupee) ferry in Kochi. Gotta love the penetration of communism

See everyone on the 11th in Seattle!