Bangalore – Mysore – Bangalore – Kochi - Alleppey – Kumarakom – Kochi
When we arrived it was good that
the students had time to rest and get freshened up before we went out for a
nice walk in the park. The guide was really good and pitched himself well on
this day.
In Bangalore and Mysore we were
overall very impressed with the organisation as everything seemed to run very
smoothly (not something you would typically expect in India!). The staff in
both of the JP hotels were
absolutely fantastic in looking after Seb with his allergies and went out of
their way to provide food he could eat.
Parikrma School was great, the
staff were very welcoming and the kids very relaxed. It worked well that our students were put
into smaller groups to chat with the local children and then do some art tasks
together. The visit to Teknic was also very good. The owners were so passionate
about their business and that really made a difference to the visit. They went
out of their way to ensure that the
tour was tailored to our needs and
showed us a vast range of processes there.
The Toyota visit was once again
very good. It was great to see the whole site and one of the best things was
that the lunch they had arranged was in the staff canteen so it was great for
the students to experience that. The packed lunch we were given that day was
very disappointing. They had been out on the bus very early that morning and
kept on there until they were given to us early afternoon. This didn't help
their state but the sandwiches were nothing more than a tiny bit of lettuce and
tomato in some not very appetising bread.
Magnasoft was a really interesting
visit as they took the students through the research process for a new product
which they are about to bring to market. We got to see mock products there and
the man delivering the session was absolutely fantastic. This was the visit
that the students enjoyed most as they felt that had something to give back as
they were asked their opinions etc.
The silk manufacturing process in
the village was great as they got to see what a very ordinary Indian village
looked, felt and smelt like.
The Mysore market that we visited
there was excellent and the palace was worth a look. We were taken to a hotel
for lunch today which was only marginally better than the packed lunch which
was planned.
Overnight train was brilliant
again, the kids really enjoyed it. It was slightly curious that the students
were all in one carriage and that the three of us were in another carriage 2
down.
The Holiday Inn in Cochin was
excellent, the best of the trip. Again they were really good at taking care of
Seb. The visit to the school wasn't what had been arranged on the itinerary. We
were under the impression that it was a local village school which would have
been better than the reality which was a staged visit to a girls catholic
school. The first half was staged, they didn't know the age of our students so
they had the wrong age group arranged to be with us. They were also under the
impression that our students would sing/act something for them which we didn't
know anything about and they were then very pushy for a donation. This is of
course fine if we know about it in advance.
When we arrived at Kitex it felt
again like they didn't really know anything about us or why we there. We felt
that the visits in Cochin hadn't been fully briefed on the purpose of our
visits and it felt like it was all being made up there and then. This was the
complete opposite to the visits in Bangalore. Nonetheless the visit was really good,
they were very helpful once they got into their stride and we got to see
everything which was great. It was a really worthwhile visit as it was much
more basic than the other businesses we visited.
The seafood processing unit was
very good and they were very helpful. They showed us around everything and we
got to wear silly outfits which was good fun. The only minor negative was that
we didn't actually get to see any fish.
The sightseeing was good. The
Chinese fishing nets were great to see. Fort Cochin was a great
place to see. The synagogue was closed (which we knew from our guidebook) but
it was a shame that we were visiting there on a day which it was closed. There
were some shops there which were good for shopping etc. The dance show was a
cultural experience! It was good for the kids to see it.
We felt like over the next 3 days
there were big chunks of free time where there hadn't been much thought into
what we were going to do. Their suggestions were late starts and 'free time' so
through our initiation we added a visit to the beach on Sunday morning, and a
visit to the shopping areas of Cochin in Tuesday afternoon and evening.
The house boat was superb in
every regard. It was a most pleasant experience and the staff went out of their
way to look after us. The whispering palms hotel was okay but a little bit
tired.
The canal boat
cruise in Vaikom was very enjoyable and the lunch they
provided in the village was really cultural and fantastic food. The craft
things were artificial but interesting enough.
The airport transfers were very
well organised at both ends.
Overall, the food has been
perfect as the students haven't got ill. This is largely due to the mostly
westernised establishments we ate in. It would however to be good to have a
greater sprinkling of the more traditional foods throughout.
I hope you can see from this report that we have
all had a truly fantastic time. Any suggestions/criticisms are very minor
indeed and have in no way impacted upon the overall success of the trip. I
would like to thank you again for all of your time and efforts during the
organisation.
