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A CGH Earth communiqué
July-September 2007
Charming Chettinad
The rich and unique architectural and cultural heritage of the Nagarathar Chettiar community can be
enjoyed to the fullest at Visalam, CGH Earth’s new resort
By Visalakshi Ramaswamy
THE very word Chettinad conjures up
myriad different images from delectable cuisine to rich
woodcarvings. This semi-dry area comprising of 75 villages
in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu is home to the Nagarathars or the townsfolk.
Chettinad represents the story of a conservative merchant
community whose ancient traditions of a splendid past it still
strives to sustain in a fast changing world and whose rare financial acumen has helped in resurrecting itself in a different
business environment.
Continued on page 4
PAGE 6:
Recipes for good
health from
Kalari Kovilakom
PAGE 8: Fishing
with friends at
Coconut Lagoon
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REPORTS FROM THE RESORTS
spice village
Pineapple paper
Harish Viswakarma, the
artist at Spice Village,
goes through waste with
the diligence of the
paparazzi. After all, there’s
no knowing what precious
waste he can lay his hands
on. And guests can get
down and dirty with him.
Suitable waste is recycled to
make paper and visitors can
lend the artist a hand. It’s
proving a popular activity
with guests even buying the
equipment, so that they can
practice the newly-acquired
skill at home.
The process is simple, but
time-consuming. Waste is first cooked for a couple of hours, and then mulched in
a blender with some gluey material and water. The mulch, which forms the paper,
is then carefully poured over a mesh submerged in water. The paper can be given
textures with flower or leaf pressed into it. The drying out takes a couple of days
and your beautiful, handmade paper is ready to use.
Kalari kovilakom
Monsoon magic
The monsoon is not usually the tourist’s favourite time of year to travel. But
when an option is to stay indoors and rejuvenate, it does not seem so bad.
In fact, the monsoon is considered the best time of year for an Ayurvedic
treatment. Dr. Jouhar, the Ayurvedic physician at the Kollengode - based
Kalari Kovilakom, says that this is the ideal time for cleansing therapies such
as the Panchakarma. “But also at Kalari, we look at specific ailments our guests
might want treatment for,” he says. “Since our packages are for a minimum of
14 days, our Ayurvedic programme is not only about leisurely rejuvenation. So,
while monsoon is good for Ayurveda, our doors are always open.”
SWASWARA
Take to the water
While the focus of a holiday at
SwaSwara is on self-discovery through
yoga, the resort also offers other
activities. After all, you can never
tell now one can attain epiphany,
particularly when you are a stone’s
throw from the beach.
So guests are encouraged to take a
two-hour trek over the cliffs and walk
their way through the five beaches in
the small town of Gokarna. Or they can
take to the beach through the recently
introduced water-sports: canoeing or
kayaking. Watching dolphins pop out
of the water while you are mid-sea on a
kayak can be breathtaking. And after a
40-minute session with the kayak, you
might discover more than the self.
But then, there is the Ayurveda centre
for aching muscles.
ART CAMPS
Picture perfect
CGH Earth will see a burst of colour
in the coming months, with various
properties hosting art camps, some in
partnership with the prestigious Kerala
Lalithakala Akademi. The exercise,
which will bring together recognised
and young names from the art world,
is expected to give the participants an
inspirational environment, and also a
platform to encourage and inspire each
other. The camp is also conducted with
the aim of creating an awareness and a
market for art. Similar camps hosted by
CGH Earth in 2005 produced “a rich
body of varied works,” according to art
critic Sadanand Menon, and opened to
a tremendous response at an exhibition
at the Durbar Hall in Ernakulam. The
paintings can also be viewed online at
www.cghearthgallery.com.
The camps will be held at Visalam from July
7-21; at SwaSwara from August 5-13;
Bangaram Island from Sept. 15-25; David
Hall from October 22-30 and Anakkara in
Idukki from Nov. 18-26, 2007
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Casino
SIGHTING
Fish without frills
Flower power
Fresh catch cooked any way you want; it cannot get simpler or
tastier than at the Fort Cochin restaurant
Like any fish-eating Malayali, I grew up on a diet of rice and plenty of fish, so
trying the traditional Kerala fish curry at Fort Cochin, Casino’s specialty seafood
restaurant, was not going to be a novel experience. Still, since it is known to be the
best seafood restaurant in south Asia, and its popularity had made CGH Earth
repeat the concept at Marari Beach and Kumarakom’s Coconut Lagoon, it might be
an experience worth savouring.
A little over 20 years back, the restaurant plan was made around an old banyan
tree. Today, the imposing tree, which has grown with the restaurant, seems to be on
guard duty. Fort Cochin boasts a elite clientele and is a popular place for company
executives to entertain
clients or guests to the
city. But it is a dinneronly restaurant open
from 7pm to midnight
and the atmosphere
is more attuned to
winding down after a
hard day rather than to
talking shop.
There is no menu card.
The ‘catch of the day’ is
chalked on a board and
the guest can choose
how he wants his meal
to be cooked: grilled,
curried or boiled. It is a
good idea to follow the chef ’s suggestion on cooking methods, when he wheels out
the fresh catch, supplied each evening, on a trolley and displays them proudly like
jewels. So, if karimeen has been netted, the chef will tell you that it might be boney
fish, but you will forget that when it is served up to you in a local preparation.
When your choice is made, the fish are wheeled back in to be cleaned and cooked,
so there is a 30-minute wait before your dish is served. You could feed a persistent
cat that is bound to hang around your table and look despairingly at your starter,
which is served on the house. Or there is the huge tank with ornamental fish that
will help you while away time.
The meal is served with a helping of rice, appams or string hoppers. Like I said,
I have grown up on the traditional Kerala fish curry, but after I have eaten my
succulent fish dish, I wanted to borrow the recipe for my mother.
Fort Cochin, Casino’s seafood restaurant is open from 7pm to midnight. Casino has
another restaurant Tharavadu and the Vasco da Gama bar
Spice Village prides itself on the
botanical diversity here, with 130
species of plants: herbs, shrubs,
stragglers and trees. Not to mention
the variety of spices, the property in
the Periyar boasts.
Eighty and more of these are native
to western ghats or are naturalised
over the past four centuries, when
plantation agriculture gripped the
high ranges.
While guests might not able to
catch the seasonal flowering of
some of these plants, some like the
cardamom are a treat with flowers
round the year. Be sure to take
a look when you are next in the
property
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Continued from page 1
There were nine temples established by
the Chettiars in a 600 square mile area
between the principality of Pudukkottai in the north and that of Sivaganga
in the south. Every Chettiar, wherever
he is born, is a member of one or the
other of the nine temples that had been
established by his forefathers and to
which his father belongs.
The Nagarathar community is in many
ways unique. Traditionally the men
followed a financial calling and business took them to many foreign lands.
The women left behind to care for the
homes and the family, sharpened their
managerial skills while dealing with
agricultural lands or property.
Usually the brothers took turns to
travel abroad in order that remaining
members could spend ample time in the
village with the family. The wealth that
the men earned in their stint abroad
was invested in their ancestral village in
the form of palatial homes and lands in
addition to being used for philanthropy.
Each family boasted of a mansion that,
while second to none in conforming to
the traditional norms of construction,
yet created a structure that was unique
and different from the next. Many of
these houses drew upon an amalgamation of experiences, with the result that
each became a masterpiece.
Using everything from Italian marble
to Burmese teak, the mansions were
lavished with the best that money could
buy even as the pool of traditional
masons in the area ensured that these
houses were built to perfection.
Most Chettiar mansions comprised
of a public reception area abutting
the street. An enclosed area or builtin courtyard immediately behind the
reception area surrounded by corridors
and small rooms leading off them
served as the living area and for functions and rituals.
The front corridor sometimes broadened to accommodate two bench like
structures closer to the ground on
either side of the doorway.
The rear hall served as the women’s
domain where the women of the community reared children, engaged in
food preservation and went about other
domestic activities.
Their ornateness was
based on local skills like
wood-carving, stone-sculpting and stucco-moulding. It
was the richness of decoration that distinguished one
house from another, for
most of them were built to
an almost identical plan by
master craftsmen with the
most rudimentary of homemade equipment.
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The wealth that the men earned in their stint abroad was invested in their ancestral village
in the form of palatial homes and lands in addition to being used for philanthropy.
Many of these houses drew upon an amalgamation of experiences, with the result that
each became a masterpiece. Using everything from Italian marble to Burmese teak,
the mansions were lavished with the best that money could buy
Generally a long hall ran along the
length of the house. This was used for
dining; in some houses with larger
families, there sometimes were even
two dining rooms. A second courtyard
generally comprised of a kitchen and
cleansing area very much like the previous courtyard in broad concept.
The living area with the personal
rooms was replaced by storerooms and kitchens.
Among the many embellishments in these
houses was the use of carved
wooden pillars in the more
‘public’ areas, elaborate
carving on doorframes and
lintels, and the raising of
decorative elements like
masonry balustrades over
the reception area. The
addition of balustrades
to embellish the facade
above roof-level led
to the building of a
second storey across
the width of the house, with facadeembellished towers or turrets at both
ends.
This first floor was usually a long, multipurpose hall with pillared verandahs
on either side.
With the increasing prosperity of the
community, more decorative houses
came up, all marked by greater use of
the famed mirror-finish to walls and
floors called Madras plaster or egg
plaster.
Their ornateness at this
stage was based on local skills like
wood-carving, stone-sculpting and
stucco-moulding. It was the richness
of decoration that distinguished one
house from another, for most of them
were built to an almost identical plan
by master craftsmen with the most
rudimentary of homemade equipment.
An amazing feature of these houses is
the evenness or gentle slope achieved
where needed – the great slopes of the
roofs, the identical nature of decorative
features repeated and, above all, the
built-to-last quality of the homes which
even today, 125 and more years later,
do not leak, reveal cracks, or show any
structural weaknesses and which do not
need major repair.
That all this was achieved by untutored
master craftsmen, who learnt by watching and through experience, is the true
wonder of these houses.
A delight to ethnomusicologists and a
rich cultural treasure is the unfading
and yet a dying trend of poetic lyrics of
the wise old women of the community
who effortlessly weave true stories and
anecdotes into their poignant musical renditions. Be it the lamentations
during the death of a loved one or the
gentle moral-filled personal lullabies for
children – the women of the community kept the family history alive and
passed it on from one generation to the
next through this oral tradition.
Weddings were a source of great enjoyment and revelry in Chettinad when
many families came together in the
spirit of community. It was a gathering
of friends and relatives from near and
far. The exotic fragrance of jasmine,
the swish of the kanchipuram silks
and the wafting aromas of the
splendid meals all made weddings an affair to remember!
To most chettiars, a wedding
rekindles a sense of belonging
and fortunately the custom of
returning to their ancestral
village ensures that the
tradition of communal
festivity is kept alive.
The chettiars are a simple
community who do not
believe in showing off their
wealth, although pomp and
pageantry is slowly creeping in
and exacerbating differences in
an otherwise regimented community with an unwritten code.
A frugal people who excelled in the
art of food preservation, the summer
months in Chettinad proved particularly difficult due to the dry and arid
conditions of the area. Conservation
became the byword of the community
and they conserved everything that
they came into contact with.
Water, a precious commodity in this
dry region was conserved adeptly as
were the gifts that the daughters-in-law
received at the time of their weddings.
The storerooms of the palatial homes,
with rows upon rows of neatly stacked
utensils, containers, mattresses and
preserved foodstuffs are an amazing
sight. Everything in excess was to cater
to the large number of friends and relatives who participated in the occasions
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at the house.
For many members of the community,
as they grow older the pull of the roots
gets stronger with every passing day
and going back to Chettinad is going
back home. However, an increasing
number of the younger generation are
migrating to foreign lands leaving the
maintenance of the ancestral homes in
the hands of the elders of the family leaving open the question whether
these young chettiars will ever return or
take steps to conserve their architectural heritage. Many homes have been lost
due to the inability to maintain them,
their rich heritage now lost forever.
The need is to spread awareness of the
fragile state of this unique architectural
and cultural area and take positive
steps to conserve and maintain it for
posterity. A few conscious members of
the community have taken the cue and
converted their homes into heritage resorts and home stays, thereby adding to
the influx of tourists to the area. Chettinad today is a rediscovered region
that is being featured as a prominent
tourist destination on several foreign
tourist itineraries of South India. Many
a domestic and international leisure
traveller has gone away enriched with
memories of Chettinad and its stunning heritage.
Being back in Chettinad and seated in
the verandah with the rain splashing
down around you into the central open
courtyard is a blissful experience far removed from the humdrum of everyday
life in the metros. To me, Chettinad is
a special treasure that is like a chest of
memories, experiences and happenings.
To see the gable roofs of the Chettinad
homes from a distance as one drives
along the dusty winding roads creates a
special feeling in my heart… the feeling that I am home.
Visalam, CGH Earth’s new resort in
Chettinad, opened its doors to guests in
June. For more details, please check page 11
Article reprinted from Seminar, April 2007
Eat right
According to Ayurveda, the right diet is the foundation of healing. The ideal
diet, that follows the principles of this ancient science, seeks to balance the
humours or doshas of our body. Take a leaf out of our book on healthy living
with recipes from our chef at Kalari Kovilakom, the palace for Ayurveda
Okra Stew (Vendekka Stew)
Action: pacifies Vata, increases Kapha.
Taste: sweet & pungent
Preparation Time: 5 mins Cooking time: 5-10 mins
Serves: 2
Ingredients
Okra cut into 2 cm lengths
Coconut milk Onion diced
Ginger chopped
Green chilli, seeds removed
Cardamom
Cinnamon, ground
Cloves, crushed
Coconut oil
Salt
Fresh curry leaves
1 ½ cups
1 cup
½ cup
½ tsp
2 med
3 pods
1 pinch
3
2 tbs
to taste
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Tomato Chutney
Action: pacifies Vata & Kapha
Taste: sour & sweet
Preparation Time: 15 mins
Serves: 4
Equipment needed: blender
Ingredients
Unseeded tomato sliced 2 cups
Ginger chopped
1 tsp
Onion sliced
1 cup
Green chilli seeds removed2
Curry leaves
8
Mustard seeds
½ tsp
Coconut oil
1 dsp
Salt
to taste
Method
Heat oil. Add cardamom, cinnamon,
cloves and stir for a few seconds. Add
onion and okra. Stir well for a few
minutes. Add ½ cup coconut milk,
½ cup water, ginger, green chilli,
curry leaves and cook until okra is
soft. Add rest of the coconut milk
and stir well over a low heat for a few
minutes.
Health benefits: Good for gaining
weight and convalescence.
Method
Heat oil and sauté onion until light
brown. Add tomato, ginger and green
chilli and cook for another 2 minutes.
Allow to cool. Blend to a fine paste.
Heat oil, crackle mustard seeds, add
curry leaves and mix with the paste.
Stir well. Serve cool.
Health benefits: Good for prostate,
respiratory system, rich source of
anti-oxidants,
stimulates appetite, hangovers
and constipation. Cleanses
the colon.
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Anglers’
call
The writers found that their
interest in fishing won them
friends on their travels.
At Coconut Lagoon, the
couple found what they were
angling for
By Gillian and Rodney Coates
We knew
that India
would be
different but
neither of us
anticipated
that it would
be on a wholly
different astral
plain: a magical
experience in which we would be
privileged to participate for a brief
interlude.
We were touring southern India for
three weeks, sandwiched between a visit
to the Gulf of Arabia and the wedding
blessing of our son and daughter-in-law,
which was to be held in Goa at Easter.
Our journey in India commenced with
a surreal touchdown at Mumbai, as we
flew into the airport over tightly packed
shanties and tenements. This contrast
between poverty and affluence was to
remain with us throughout our visit.
Clearly, we were witnessing, from the
very start, the enormous gulf between
the advantaged and disadvantaged.
Having said that and whilst recognizing
the nature of grinding poverty, as
contrasted so vividly against great
wealth and affluence, one thing was
borne home to us on a short a trip from
the airport to our luxury hotel. Poverty
there may be in India, but what an
energetic hive of industry the country is!
The first few of our many, many miles
driving in an Ambassador –surely the
traveller’s “car of choice” took us, in the
early evening darkness, through a tangle
of tiny shops and go-downs. Litter
everywhere. Fruit, vegetables piled high
and sari silks tumbling in mountains
and cascades of colour. Bright lights
streaming from doorways. Squatting
men welding, cutting and hammering
by the roadside, fashioning who knows
what, from scrap junk. Sparks from
grinders spraying upwards and outwards
in fire fountains. But work, working
with cessation. Yet all comes to a stop
within a matter of feet as we descend
from the car to find ourselves being
saluted by the Sikh doorman on the
marble steps of our hotel. To be ushered
in to a cool, quiet and immaculately
clean lobby……..
…..it is called “culture shock”. But it is
not really such a shock. Like everything
else, we adapt quickly. Dodging
Mumbai traffic is a skill soon learned.
The main criterion is an appreciation
of the function and purpose of the
horn. India’s drivers are, without
doubt, the most skilled we have ever
encountered. To quote one driver “the
problem here is that there is no rules,
only …….Judgement ……”Tell that
to a Western traffic cop! We explore
the delights and minor horrors of
Crawford Market; we browse streetside bookstalls; we attempt escape from
insistent shop-owners bent on selling
us wonderful Kashmiri carpets. We visit
Elephanta and Gateway to India and
the Taj Hotel and watch cargo under
sail –now so rare a sight –in the harbour.
All that past and seen so briefly, we
flew down to Madurai, from whose
spectacular Hindu temples our trusted
driver and guide, Shaji, took us to the
cool and quiet of the tea plantations,
We moved on expectantly to
Coconut Lagoon. We were
not disappointed. From the
moment we were ‘piped’
ashore from the boat, like
admirals, into the reception
area we knew that we had
arrived in ‘our kind of place’.
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then to natural splendour of Periyar lake
and, following two nights on a riceboat
in the Kerala backwaters, finally on to
Cochin.
Now, since he was old enough to toddle
off and topple into the brook at the
end of the lane, Rodney has been an
enthusiastic catcher of fish. Somehow,
he has managed combine his love of
fish and angling with his career as
a University Professor. Researching
and teaching the exotic subject of
Underwater Acoustics, he knows that
many fish, not just whales and dolphins,
communicate by sound. This they
do to call alarm, to attract a mate or
defend territory. Calling fish in fact,
do much the same thing and for the
same reasons, as singing birds. Rodney
also knows that as people develop their
shores and waterways, man-made sound
can disturb and influence the behaviour
second method was to thrash the water
with your rod tip to attract the fish.
Throughout our tour, Rodney had
been plaintively asking ‘Where can
I fish?’ Whenever we posed this
question to our Indian hosts, it was
at first treated with incomprehension,
followed by amusement but then, after
an explanation, with the beginnings of
interest. As Rodney explained, what he
wanted to do, with a rod and line, was
to catch Indian native fish just to see
what the waters, whether fresh or sea
contained. He would not kill or eat the
fish, it was just the pleasure of, for want
of a better word, ‘outwitting’ the fish and
recording that success by photography.
At which point the fish would be
returned to the water.
In Cochin, we met Anna from the
‘Transindus’ office, who immediately
understood what Rodney wanted to do.
of place’. Following the formalities, we
were introduced to Shibu, the naturalist
fishing guru. As we were to discover
later, he was also a skilled photographer,
snake handler and bird expert.
It was agreed that we would meet up
with Shibu the following morning and
he would show us the best fishing spots
of catfish and snakeheads, types of fish
often found in the drainage ditches of
rice paddies. Rodney was particularly
interested in these two fish. The catfish
is known to vocalise, so he was hoping
that he could possibly hear and record
it using an underwater microphone
or hydrophone. If he caught some, he
might hear them vocalise, as he landed
them.
The snakehead was a little different.
It is not known if it vocalises, but in
appearance and habitat it resembles the
bowfin, a fish found many thousands
We discovered that Shibu was the snake expert for
Kerala. And the snake catcher for Coconut Lagoon. He
unlocked a cupboard and produced a large, beautiful,
non-venomous water snake. And another that contained
a young and somewhat annoyed cobra! Shibu intended to
photograph both snakes before releasing them well away
from the resort and village. Coconut Lagoon also has some
54 species of dragonflies and damselflies and an equal
number of incredibly beautiful butterflies.
of its natural inhabitants.
Whilst on the riceboat, Rodney did at
last manage, briefly, to use our carefully
transported travel rod. He was, however
thoroughly out-fished by the skipper,
who, using only a palm frond, nylon line
and hook, managed to catch five fish for
every one that Rodney managed to land.
Indeed, he was even introduced to two
brand new fishing methods well known
to Indian palm-frond fishers but as yet
undiscovered by Europeans. The first:
fish collect at the back of the boat where
the galley scarps get thrown out. The
A day later she phoned us to stay that
she had called ahead to our next stop:
Coconut Lagoon. She had been told
that they had three naturalists, one of
whom was very knowledgeable on the
fish living in the backwaters and in the
Lake Vembanad.
So, having enjoyed the sights of Fort
Cochin we moved on expectantly
to Coconut Lagoon. We were not
disappointed. From the moment we
were ‘piped’ ashore from the boat, like
admirals, into the reception area we
knew that we had arrived in ‘our kind
of miles away in Florida. The bowfin,
as part of its mating ritual, produces
an underwater sound similar to that of
a Hindu temple bell. If Rodney could
show that the snakehead produces such
a sound, this would be a remarkable
example of convergent evolution.
However, science was put on the
sidelines for a few hours as we began
to sample the delights of the Coconut
Lagoon resort, such as our wonderful
wooden heritage mansion, with its open
to the skies ‘en suite’ facilities. Our
enormous double bed that each day was
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Snakeheads prefer to live in the murkier
environment, so guided by Shibu we sought
suitable waters. Shibu demonstrated the local
method for catching these fish. This involved the
collection of cockroaches, by his neighbour’s
small daughter, to use as bait.
decorated with scarlet hibiscus flowers.
The cuisine served in the restaurants
always delightfully varied. Each day, the
warm greetings by the staff, their smiles
outshining the sun. And of course,
there was the Ayurvedic centre where
Dr. Susan regarded the treatment of
Rodney’s arthritic knees as a personal
challenge.
On our first full day, Shibu took us to
his office. Here, we saw photographs
taken by him and the other naturalists
of the variety of wildlife that can be
found at Coconut Lagoon. As we
admired the photography done to the
highest professional standard, we also
discovered that Shibu was the snake
expert for Kerala. And the snake catcher
for Coconut Lagoon. At this point,
he unlocked a cupboard in his desk
and produced a large, beautiful, nonvenomous water snake. We duly took
the opportunity for photos, but then we
spotted a large jar at his desk. Curiosity
impelled us to look more closely. As the
jar was removed and placed on the desk
by Shibu, we realised that it contained
a young and somewhat annoyed cobra!
Shibu intended to photograph both
snakes before releasing them well away
from the resort and village. A little
later we were introduced to David,
another naturalist, who is one of India’s
experts on dragonflies and damselflies.
Coconut Lagoon has some 54 species
of these often-dramatic insects and a
similar number of incredibly beautiful
butterflies.
But of course, we still had to go fishing.
Initially, Shibu suggested that Rodney
start fishing in front of the reception
area. Before long, David and some
guests joined Rodney, and palm-frond
fishing rods multiplied. Pearl Spot
were caught and one catfish, which
complained briefly, but then stubbornly
refused to talk. However, this was
not the area for snakeheads, nor was
chappati dough the appropriate bait.
Snakeheads prefer to live in the
murkier environment, so guided by
Shibu we sought suitable waters.
Shibu demonstrated the local method
for catching these fish. This involved
the collection of cockroaches, by his
neighbour’s small daughter, to use as
bait. Ultimately, Shibu’s traditional
hand-lining method of fishing was
successful over rod and line angling and
a small snakehead was caught.
Shortly after our arrival at Coconut
Lagoon, the General Manager,
Subrahmanian P, contacted Dr.
Padmakumar, head of the Regional
Agricultural Research Station at
Kumarakom and arranged for us to
visit him, accompanied by Shibu.
Dr. Padmakumar and his team have
developed methods for breeding catfish.
After a very interesting meeting, it was
agreed that we would return a few days
later to try and record the sounds made
by catfish that the college had in tanks.
This we duly did.
Whilst, by now, we had become used
to being driven in India, the journey
to the college laboratories had a charm
of its own. Sharing the college Land
Rover with Dr. Padmakumar, his three
assistants and Shibu, we arrived at the
field station. We both noted that there
was a narrow cement bridge over a
dyke, which went up at an angle of 45º
flattened and, then went down at an
angle of 45º. This, we thought, is where
we all get out to walk, but no. With
great skill, the driver guided the vehicle
over the bridge. The journey then
continued for some 2km navigating
further bridges and narrow tracts before
we arrive at the laboratory. Here, at last
we were rewarded with the viewing of
three rear snakeheads and three catfish.
Unfortunately, although the catfish
talked, the snakehead would not.
And so, regrettably our time at Coconut
Lagoon was drawing to a close, but
our adventures with a fishing rod had
become a talking point for staff and
guests alike. On our final evening,
Rodney’s last attempt to catch a
snakehead failed. Our disappointment,
however, was ameliorated by a
delightful meal in the ‘Fort Cochin’
Seafood Restaurant of the resort, with
Subrahmanian.
Rodney’s fishing rods opened doors too
numerous to describe here, during our
trip to India. We also came to realise
that well-managed angling could be
developed as a tourist benefit for India.
There are many, equally obsessive,
anglers walking the streets of Europe
and America.
In the short term, we hope that we can
use e-mail to maintain contact with
the friends we have made at Coconut
Lagoon. In the slightly longer term,
we very much wish to return with, of
course, our magic wands in hand.
Coconut Lagoon is a CGH Earth resort
on the banks of the Vembanad Lake
styled on Kerala heritage homes.
10
10
Earth
EarthCalling
Calling
www.cghearth.com
www.cghearth.com
CGH EARTH RESORT RECKONER
CASINO HOTEL
Business meets comfort and relaxation at
Casino Hotel, our first
venture. Situated in
Cochin’s Willingdon
Island, Casino
strikes a perfect
balance between the
cosmopolitan and the
traditional.
Accommodation:
Suites; standard rooms
Dining: Multi-cuisine Thar avadu
restaurant; Seafood specialty Fort Cochin
restaurant; Vasco da Gama bar
Facilities: Swimming pool, gift shop,
Ayurveda and conference centre
Things to do: Sight-seeing in Fort Cochin,
cruise in Mattancherry
Getting here: 40 km f rom Cochin
International Air por t; 6 km f rom
downtown Ernakulam
COCONUT LAGOON
The perfect retreat from fifth-gear living.
E n j o y
the birds,
dragonflies
and butterflies that
thr-ive by the
Ve m b a n a d
lake
in
Kumarakom.
Live in grand
traditional Kerala homes. Relax, but also
be inspired.
Accommodation: Heritage bungalows;
heritage mansions & private pool villas
Dining: Kerala cuisine and seafood
specialty
Facilities: Swimming pool, Ayurveda, yoga
and meditation centre
Things To Do: Explore life on the
backwaters; visit the bird sanctuary and
farms and learn to cook with spices
Getting There: The resort is a 10-minute
boat ride from to Kavanatinkara boat
landing, which is 10 km from Kottayam,
the nearest town. It is a 25-minute boat
ride from to Puthenangadi boat landing,
a 80 km drive from Cochin International
Airport
SPICE VILLAGE
Cool off; breathe mint fresh air, tune in
to bird song and animal noises, and enjoy
the blanket of greenery of the Periyar
wilderness on the Western Ghats. Live
in the split bamboo and elephant grass
cottages modelled on the dwellings of the
local tribal inhabitants.
Accommodation: Private garden cottages
and spice garden cottages
Dining: Kerala cuisine, flavoured with
fresh spices
Facilities: Pool, badminton, tennis,
Ayurveda, yoga and meditation centre
Things to do: Boat safari in Lake Periyar,
trekking, spice plantation visit and learn
to cook with spices
Getting here: 190 km f rom Cochin
International Airport, 145 km f rom
Madurai Airport
MARARI BEACH
Come here for the sun, sand and surf, but
also to be cast under the spell of the sea;
see the treasures it offers to its people. At
Marari Beach, in quaint Alapuzha, your
experience encompasses the people that
lend life to the sea.
Accommodation: Garden villas, garden
pool villas, deluxe pool villas
Dining: Kerala cuisine with fresh catch
Facilities: Swimming pool, tennis,
Ayurveda, Yoga and meditation centre
Things to do: Get a tan, explore village life,
go cycling, learn to cook with spices
Getting here: 88 km f rom Cochin
International Airport
BRUNTON BOATYARD
The Brunton Boatyard celebrates the many
influences-Portuguese, Dutch, British,
Arab, Jewish-that have made Fort Cochin
what it is today and transports you to the
eventful past of the old boatyard of Geo
Brunton and Sons.
Accommodation: Harbour-view rooms
and suites
Dining: Cuisine that reflects the cultural
influences of Cochin, Portuguese, Dutch,
English, Arab and Jewish; terrace grill
offers the catch of the day
Facilities: Swimming pool, Ayurveda
Things to do: The sights and sounds of
Fort Cochin are just a walk away.
Getting here: 42 km f rom Cochin
International Airport
BANGARAM ISLAND
With virgin
coral reefs,
turquoise blue
lagoons, silver
beaches, exotic
fishes and lush
green coconut
palms, we
almost had no
work to create
a destination on
Lakshadweep’s
Bangaram Island.
Accommodation: Standard and deluxe
huts
Dining: Cuisine of Lakshadweep and
coastal India, beach barbecue
Things to do: Scuba diving, snorkeling,
deep sea fishing, boating /kayaking,
island excursion, Ayurveda, yoga and
meditation
Getting here: Flights from Cochin to
Agatti island, transfer from Agatti to
Bangaram by boat. (Or by helicopter
during the monsoon: May 16 to Sept 16).
Foreign nationals require entry permit.
Airport: Agatti (8 km)
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CGH Earth Communiqué
www.cghearth.com
SPICE COAST CRUISES
Float betwixt blue waters and green
landscape on a naturally made kettuvallam
(traditional riceboat). There is nothing to
interrupt your reverie except the breeze
playing in your hair and the water lapping
against the boat.
Facilities: Our kettuvallams are solarpowered and fitted with two ensuite
bedrooms, a living room. The crew
comprises a navigator and a cook.
One or more days along the backwaters
Getting here: 55 km f rom Cochin
International Airport
KALARI KOVILAKOM
Kalari Kovilakom, set in a 19th
century palace, was home to the
Vengunad kings of old Malabar.
This ayurvedic retreat balances the
indulgence of a palace with the
austerity of an ashram, and aims to
produce a glowing you.
Accommodation: 18 heritage suites
Dining: Ayurvedic vegetarian food
Therapeutic programme: Cleansing
and healing in the holistic Ayurvedic
traditions. Programmes start with
minimum 14-day stay.
Facilities: Ayurveda treatment rooms,
catering to 10 persons simultaneously,
Ayurvedic beauty therapy centre;
extensive gardens growing Ayurvedic
herbs, Yoga, meditation and chanting
hall, well-stocked library, expansive
kalari spaces for music and cultural
performances
Getting here: 105 km from Cochin
International Airport, 75 km from
Coimbatore Airport
www.kalarikovilakom.com
SWASWARA
Rediscover yourself through yoga,
meditation at SwaSwara, situated beside
the legendary Om beach in the small town
of Gokarna in Karnataka.
Accommodation: 24 self-contained villas
VISALAM
Chettinad, home
to the Nattukottai
Chettiars, a prosperous
banking and business
community, seems to
live and breathe history.
Experience a heritage,
art and architecture
untouched by time.
Visalam, in Karaikudi,
is reflective of the grandeur of the region,
juxtaposed against the almost yogic
simplicity of this community.
Accommodation: 15 heritage rooms
Facilities: Swimming pool, meditation
dome, ayurveda centre
Things to do: Yoga, meditation, Ayurveda,
boat rides, excursions
Getting here: 170 km from Goa’s Dabolim
Air por t. 200 km f rom Mangalore
Airport.
Dining: The famed Chettinad cuisine
Facilities: Swimming pool
Things to do: Experience the Chettiar
lifestyle. Excursions of the temples and
artisans’ workshops.
Getting here: 90 km from Trichy airport
and 105 km from Madurai airport.
For reservations, please contact: CGH Earth, Casino Building, Willingdon Island,
Cochin 682 003, Kerala, India. Phone:+91 484 3011711 2668221 Fax:+91 484 2668001
Email: [email protected]
www.cghearth.com
12
Earth Calling
www.cghearth.com
Lessons from nature
By Jose Dominic
instrumental in changing our company’s name from Casino
Group of Hotels to CGH Earth, so as to better represent the
THIS is not a new formula or prescription nonnegotiable core values we adopted: respect for the environthat I have uncovered. It is only a sharing of experiences from ment, community and the local ethos.
a journey that we, as an enterprise, have undertaken. I believe Our subsequent experience in Kerala substantially influenced the
there are some useful lessons to be learnt.
evolution of tourism in a state that hitherto was best known for
In 1988, when we were offered the contract to reconstruct and its achievements in the social sector. To quote Burton Stein, ‘Not
run the resort on Bangaram Island in the Lakshadweep Islands, only did Kerala launch an exemplary land reform programme,
we were a single hotel enterprise with extremely limited re- but it also devoted relatively large expenditures to basic educasources. The contract also stipulated, what appeared to be, severe tion and health care, making the state the most egalitarian,
regulations to conserve the fragile ecology of the coral atolls and best educated and healthiest in the Indian Union, though it
protect the interests of the island’s inhabitants. Added to this remained among the poorest.’ It is, therefore, no surprise that
was a further disability on account of poor access, an issue that when National Geographic voted Kerala as a ‘must see in a lifetime
continues to this day. To compound matters, there was the fact destination’, it also described it as a ‘Mount Everest of social
that both the destination and the ofdevelopment’.
fering were completely unknown in
We offered nature in its spectacular The success of the new models exthe market and our limited resources
and pristine form and the means perienced by CGH Earth, initially
left us with few options to market
to enjoy it without having to be a at Lakshadweep and later in Kerala,
the product.
as well as the entrepreneurial succause for its depletion. The proof cess, was a clear indication that
The solution we tried was the only
of success of this concept we there are new customers, in fact
one we could under the circumstances: to accept reality and find a
experimented with in Bangaram of several types, who need to be
customer who would find immense
is that every guest came back. factored in. Here I refer to the stavalue in the inherent uniqueness of
tistical research carried out by Peter
the offering. Thus, the advertised
Aderhold based on holiday traveller
facilities of the hotel came to be the absence of ‘facilities’, such as characterics he grouped his sample, surveyed in 1986, into two
telephone, television, newspaper, air-conditioning, room service, ‘baskets’. One he called the Sun: Sand-Surf (SSS) basket and
and many more. Instead, we offered nature in its spectacular and the other the Alert Independent Traveller (AIT) basket. While
pristine form and the means to enjoy it without having to be a the SSS is the mass market and AIT the newly emerging niche,
cause for its depletion. The proof of success of this concept we ongoing research provides clear evidence that AIT is the rising
experimented with in Bangaram is that, invariably, every guest star, clearly sufficient for destinations to hitch their destinies to
came back.
this growing niche. The success of the Kerala product and CGH
The approach we took was to ‘do just enough’, in the belief that Earth is a clear indication of the growing strength of the AIT.
luxury is not necessarily the reason for a tourist to visit a destina- Today, 18 years and nine more properties later, the Bangaram
tion. ‘Luxury’ was redefined to mean ‘quality of the experience’. experience continues to inspire us. Apart from the discovery that
Thus it became possible to have a resort at which the guest gladly less is more, this journey revealed a few more precious lessons.
paid more for less.
That sensitive tourism does not mean restrictions, or having to
In 1989, the Bangaram Island Resort could have been ranked as constantly watch yourself and what you do; in fact, our experience
among the most expensive hotels in the country. Yet, the most shows that ecological and cultural sensitivity can become a part
commonly heard comment was: Please keep it this way. Do so of the experience itself, making it all the more enjoyable.
even if you have to increase the price. The lessons we learnt from
Jose Dominic is the Managing Director and CEO of CGH Earth
Bangaram were not only the foundations of our growth but also
Earth Calling, a CGH Earth communiqué, is printed and published by Hotel and Allied Trades Private Limited, Cochin for CGH Earth, Casino Building, Willingdon Island, Cochin 682 003, Kerala, INDIA
Ph:+91 484 2668221 Fax 2668001 email: [email protected] www.cghearth.com