Arriving in Cochin

Exactly eight hours after leaving Ooty, we get off the bus in Fort Cochin. Trying to hold my temper and politely say no to all the touts beckoning us into their restaurants (a 70 litre rucksack isn't really appropriate dinner attire), we head to a hostel recommended in the guide book which has dorm beds for only 200rs. We soon see why. The dorm is on the flat roof of the hostel. There is a corrugated iron awning, knee high walls around the edge and netting between the walls and the 'roof'. I am so tired that I am tempted to put up with the heat, noise and mosquitoes for a night, but thankfully Alex isn't.

Two Swedish girls I met in Mumbai who were heading to Cochin had mentioned a hostel that they were going to stay in. I didn't know where it was, and only knew that it was called something along the lines of  'The Avanta Good Morning'. I try this name out on several rickshaw drivers, all of whom stare at me blankly, until one of the near by restaurant workers over hears us. He tells a rickshaw driver the name of the hostel (The Vedanta Wake Up), gives him directions and negotiates a cheap fare for us. We thank him and promise that we will come back to eat after we have settled in. 

The Vedanta Wake Up is the most luxurious place I have stayed in so far. Even though a bed in a dorm room is 500rs each, we get free wifi, air conditioning, a common room with a tv and book swap, loo roll, towels, soap and sheets. There is even an actual shower cubical in the bathroom, instead of a shower head in the middle of the wall which soaks everything.

After showering and changing we head back to the restaurant where we are greeted by a surprised Aadi. He obviously didn't think we were going to come back, which is understandable when I think of all the times I have said to a shop keeper or waiter 'maybe tomorrow'. Whilst I couldn't say that people in India don't try to be helpful, they usually aren't. It is a relief to have found someone who gives practical and useful advice and so I am happy to come back. The cafe is called 'Cafe Delmar' and has a view of Cochin's famous Chinese fishing nets. Aadi gives us his business card which says 'Cafe Delmar - Reggae Cafe - We do all kinds of group foods'. There is nothing particularly reggae about the cafe, excpet for Aadi's Bob Marley t-shirt, knitted beanie, and singing 'Don't worry, be happy' as he lights mosquito coils around our feet.