The other South India: getting lost in steamy northern Kerala

If you have ever dreamt of spending a night on akettuvallum (rice barge) houseboat, cruising the backwaters while an on-board chef prepares fresh barbecued fish or a succulent Keralan curry, you’ve already got the Kerala bug. But there’s a whole other Kerala lying north of Kochi that is only just starting to capture travellers’ imaginations.

The beaches, backwaters and wildlife sanctuaries in the southern half of the state are now established stops on the traveller trail, but those in the know are turning their attention to the north of Kerala, where the Arabian Sea beaches are just as gobsmacking, the wildlife sanctuaries just as teeming, the temple rituals even more mind-blowing and the impact of tourism is only just starting to be felt. Welcome to Northern Kerala, authentically Indian and far from the regular tourist trail.

Blissful beaches & backwater backwaters

When people talk about Keralan beaches, they usually mean Kovalamand the clifftop backpacker enclave at Varkala. Both are beloved and lovely, but touristy and crammed in the winter season, with wall-to-wall resorts, restaurants and souvenir stalls. But north of Kochi is an interrupted and virtually people-free stretch of Arabian Sea coast just begging to be explored, and not a trinket seller in sight.

The best and most accessible seashore is around Kannur. Just 8km south of Kannur city, Thottada beach is home to fishing villages and a growing number of charming, local homestays, where you can stay relatively cheaply with a local family and eat some of the best home-cooked meals India has to offer. If you like your beaches golden and deserted, other than the odd fishing boat being hauled in from the breakers, this is the place to stay - just endless sand as far as the eye can see and glorious sunsets melting into the ocean. Be warned though: the sand shelves steeply and rips are strong, so paddling rather than swimming may be the order of the day.

Jungle Book Of India

We all know Kipling’s jungle. Whether you first encountered it in the pages of his short stories, or found it in Disney’s adaptation, you are no doubt familiar with its steamy layers of leaves, its sun-warmed pools, its ancient temples overrun by monkeys and creeping vines.

It is the living backdrop for a cast of animal characters whose names are as familiar to us as childhood toys – from the sleepy brown sloth bear Baloo to the fearsome tiger Shere Khan; the panther Bagheera, his voice ‘soft as wild honey’, and the quixotic python Kaa. And of course it is home to Mowgli, the orphaned man-cub raised by wolves.

With the possible exception of a resident wolf-boy, the jungle 
so vividly described in Kipling’s fiction does indeed exist – but it was not a place the writer knew himself. Although he spent most of his twenties in India, he never visited the central region where his stories were set, and only began writing them after he had moved to Vermont in 1892. Kipling borrowed his jungle from a fellow Britisher – a district officer who published a contemporary account of his years spent living in the Satpura Range, and enlivened it with his own imagination.

Satpura National Park, in the modern-day state of Madhya Pradesh, derives its name from the same set of sprawling hills. The landscape that surrounds it echoes the one conjured in The Jungle Book – dense forest is edged by small hamlets like Nayapura, where villagers live in simple mud huts, colourful saris hanging from home-made washing lines. Subsistence farmers tend fields of rice and maize, and collect the fruits of the forest to make a little extra money.

Meet Mumbai – India's modern megacity

A gargantuan, pulsating metropolis that reinvents itself every time you blink, Mumbai is India’s most modern and most happening city. The best entertainment spots, the liveliest cultural melting pots, the yummiest meals at the most trendy cafés or the latest designer threads gracing the most beautiful people – Mumbai is where you'll find them. Indeed, the city is getting a make-over unlike anything India has seen before, with more than 15 'supertalls' – trade slang for skyscrapers over 300m – under construction in the northern suburbs.

Many travellers limit themselves to the historic neighbourhoods of south Mumbai and miss out on Mumbai's modern cutting edge. Here’s a look at some of the sights and activities that help you to get under the cosmopolitan skin of India's 'Maximum City'.

FREE THINGS TO DO IN DELHI

If there’s one thing you can guarantee when travelling somewhere new, it’s an unexpected cost you didn’t budget for – an irresistible detour, a magical momento you just have to have, a few extra days in somewhere amazing.

Take heart though; in Delhi, you can stretch your budget by exploring a string of free sights and attractions, leaving more left over for those little indulgences.

When visiting India’s historic capital, it’s worth paying out for big-hitting sights such as the Red Fort and Qutb Minar, but don’t overlook the abundant free sights and experiences in this fascinating city. Take your pick from verdant parkland, centuries-old monuments, mysticism and faith, colonial pomp and circumstance and exploring contemporary Indian culture and the arts.

A DISH OF ICECREAM

In the days when an ice cream sundae cost much less, a 10 year old boy entered a hotel coffee shop and sat at a table. A waitress put a glass of water in front of him.

“How much is an ice cream sundae?”

“50 cents,” replied the waitress.

The little boy pulled his hand out of his pocket and studied a number of coins in it.

“How much is a dish of plain ice cream?” he inquired. Some people were now waiting for a table and the waitress was a bit impatient.

“35 cents,” she said brusquely.

The little boy again counted the coins. “I’ll have the plain ice cream,” he said.

The waitress brought the ice cream, put the bill on the table and walked away. The boy finished the ice cream, paid the cashier and departed.

Today I Choose

Today i choose to be happy . I choose to let go. I choose to be myself. To love myself.To cherish myself. Today i choose to let go of the people whose company is toxic to my peace of mind. Today i choose to be free. I choose to liberate my soul from the aches it's been through. Today i choose to stay away from closed doors. I choose  not to craft a wall around my heart. 

I choose to decorate it with the lessons i have learned, I choose to paint it with respect and confidence. Today i choose to forgive myself. For being too much of myself. For allowing myself to hurt myself. Today i choose to embrace my flaws. I choose to accept my mistakes. all that is precious is unique. All that is unique is different. And all that is different is beautiful, Today i choose to be wise.

I DESERVE IT..!!!

I would rather be disappointed by the truth than satisfied with a lie, Respect me not because i respect you but because i deserve your respect. How pleased would you  be if you found out i respected you only because i wanted you to respect me back or because i something in return? i respect you because you deserve it. Don't listen to me just because i listen to you. I listen to you because i feel good.