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Travelers Reviews

	Hunt for the Elusive Orange Cinnamon Cherry Divecha

I often wonder, if the Gods live in Kerala, where do they go to de-stress? Goa? Or do they head to the congregation of the clouds and the hills? Food for thought, eh! Well hang on to that thought as we relish godly servings of payasam, vattayappam, pickles, avial, ona koothu, meen kudanjathu while driving through the central half of Kerala on the hunt for orange cinnamon.

The Gods have probably made their home here only because it is India’s most literate state and of course the fact that they still follow the matriarchal system! Nevertheless, each trip here is an experience.

Take this trip for example when I, in my bumbling days set out to discover ancient arms, ammunition and paintings at the Dutch Palace in Mattancherry. This place has so many memories. Photography is strictly, and I mean strictly, prohibited here. The last time, I managed to capture this amazing picture of Krishna with his eight hands enjoying his fiefdom with ten gopis around him. Was I excited having managed to take an awesome shot—without the flash going off—hoping to go home a few dollars richer! Little did I realise that my back was being watched by an old, wrinkled, six foot, 90 kg amma and her feather thin help-at-hand. Hands on her hips, eyebrows angled at the strangest of degrees, she was there at the stroke of the shot, all ready to snap the camera out of my hand, pull the reel off and destroy some ‘award winning pictures’ as I would like to think they were!

Enjoy the beauty that adorns the palace walls. It has some of the most amazing 17th century murals from the Ramayana.

Then there was this time when I stepped into the world of the 450-year-old Jewish Synagogue at the far end of Kochi and lost a few hours tracing the intricate white and blue patterns etched out on the tiles.

Beautifully maintained, one really doesn’t believe the scroll that reads ‘completed in 1568’. Scrolls of the Old Testament and copper plates bear records of the grants of privilege made by Cochin rulers. Enjoy the beauty of the Belgian chandeliers that hang in blue, green, pink and white colours, each one with intricate glasswork. The ancient blue Chinese handcrafted willow-patterned tiles that line the floor command a fair amount of attention too, the print on each tile is different and there are some 1,000 tiles lining the Synagogue.

Talk of Kerala and people will talk of having been to this place and that and to have stayed in a coffee plantation or a spice farm, but can any other experience beat this? There you are softly ambling on a rice boat, across one of 41 west-flowing backwaters, sipping your hot cuppa of coffee while you nibble into steaming waddas. It’s barely 6 am; the sun’s playing peek-a-boo with the tiny little clouds that are courting him. You can hear a school of dolphins dance with the waves, screaming in delight at the far end of the river. You’re sure they are popping in and out of the cold waters showing off their skills.

The first time you watch a fin pop in and out of the water you skip a heart beat, it’s such a glorious sight.

I love waking on these boats when they are sailing across a little river that’s fringed with villagers’ thatched hut homes on both ends. The womenfolk are up and about busy with their daily chores, men are working on their palms, either creating boats from them or making rope or creating household wares or plain stripping coconuts off these tall trees to sell in the market. Try the coconut water here, it tastes different.

A two-day stay on one of these riceboats is enough to sponge all the aches, pains, tensions, stresses away and get ready for your city life all over again.

Which reminds me, weren’t we on an orange cinnamon shopping spree?

We’ve got to head straight to Thekkady, well Periyar to be precise, and meet the black singing mangrove stumps that welcome travelers to Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary. This sanctuary is described as the most beautiful wildlife place for elephant sighting. Monkeys, turtles, hyenas, wild boars, otters, barking dogs, deer and lots and lots of birds like the brown and white fish eagle, egrets, herons come dime a dozen but to get up close and personal with one of the Asian tuskers, now that’s a matter of luck.

I’ve never seen one, but I’ve seen pictures of a friend, who got a bit too close for comfort with his open jeep meeting the elephant head on. Trust me, neither took pleasure in that meeting.

My trip to Kerala was essentially not about checking out the 330 different species of butterflies that dance at sunrise; catch the elephants dressed in wares that flatter the humble two-legged species; enjoy the show put on by men with painted faces who dress like women to dance to godly tunes; to study the 500 different species of birds that build their nests only to flutter their wings and add colour to this beautiful sun-kissed, palm-fringed southernmost state of India. That’s all touristy stuff. My journey to Kerala is to look for orange-coloured Sri Lankan cinnamon that I’d once bought in Thekkady. It’s simply awesome, in fact the best I’ve tasted, and yes, I do go out of my way, state and country, to please my gastronomic necessities.

Here I am in Thekkady, the woody aromas beckon me to a store with flashy orange and green signage. Come on, let’s step in…let the aromas sink in, do you see what I do…is this just an orange dream, or do I really find my orange coloured cinnamon? The aromas from my kitchen will do the talking for me…join me as I satiate my senses with authentic Kerala chicken stew cooked with plenty of Sri Lankan cinnamon.

Chicken Stew Ingredients Chicken - 1/2 kg
Onions - 3 nos (finely chopped)
Green chillies - 6 nos (slit open length-wise)
Garlic paste - 2 tsp
Ginger paste - 2 tsp
Grated coconut - 2 cups
Tomatoes - 2 nos
Poppy seeds ( khashakhasha) (ground) - 1 tsp
Cinnamon ( karugapatta) - 4 small pieces
Cloves (grambu) - 4 nos
Coriander leaves - 3 stems
Oil (preferably coconut oil) - 4 tsp
Lemon juice - 1 tbsp
Salt - As required
Method

Extract 1 cup of thick coconut milk and 2 cups of thin coconut milk from the grated coconut.
Heat oil in a pan. Add cinnamon sticks, cloves, onions and green chillies and stir fry till the onions turn brown.
Add ginger and garlic and stir for a little while.
Add the chicken pieces and stir further.
Add the thin coconut milk, chopped tomatoes, poppy seeds and coriander leaves along with enough water and salt. Cover the pan and allow the contents to boil.
When the chicken is cooked and 3/4th of water is dried up, add the thick milk of coconut, lemon juice and boil well.

Having dabbling in journalism, media relations, dot.com and even radio, Cherry Divecha now runs a successful only-grills restaurant in Goa— Skie Grille. She continues to write on food and travel, her first loves.

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