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rivers and canals. Travelling the backwaters
is one of the highlights of a visit to Kerala. The larger boats are motorised.
But there are numerous smaller boats propelled by punting with a long
bamboo pole. The boats cross shallow, palm-fringed lakes studded with
cantilivered Chinese fishing nets and travel along narrow, shady canals,
where coir(coconut fibre), copra(dried coconut meat) and cashew are loaded
on to the boats. Along the way are small settlements where people live
on narrow spits of reclaimed land only a few meters wide. Although practically
surrounded by water they still manage to keep cows, pigs, chickens and
ducks and cultivate small vegetable gardens. Prawns and fish are also
farmed, and shellfish are dredged by hand to be later burnt with coal
dust to produce lime.
Todays most popular tourist attraction of Kerala,
the tranquil backwaters, were once the state's trade highways. Kerala
is her backwaters and lakes. They have dictated her history, shaped her
present and promise a future by virtue of offering incomparable beauty
and unique experiences. The most interesting area in the backwaters is
the Kuttanad region, called the rice bowl of Kerala, probably the only
place in the sub-continent where farming is done below sea level.
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