Kerala Beaches
Kerala wakes up to some festival or the other every day
of the year and Keralites are addicted to the festivals. In short ‘
Keralisation’ of the festivals of different communities is the
unique feature of Kerala life.
Pathiramanal Beach
This little island known by the
same name as the beach, Pathiramanal, in the backwaters of
Kerala literally means the 'Sands of night' The island lies
between Thaneermukkom and Kumarakom and is accessible only by
boat. Surrounded by the Vembanad Lake, stretching from
Alappuzha to Kochi and the Kayamkulam Lake, the island and the
beach is home to hundreds of migatory birds, which take a rest
on their long journey from the cool climes of Siberia.
Legend has it that a young Brahmin dived into the Vembanad Lake
to perfom his evening ablutions and the water made way for the
land to rise from below which saw the creation of Pathiramanal.
The nearest airports are the Cochin International Airport,
about 85 km north of Alappuzha and Thiruvananthapuram, about
150 km towards the south. Alappuzha is the nearest railway
station
Kovalam Beach
Located 8 kms from Thiruvananthapuram city,
the Shankhumugham Beach is a favourite haunt of sunset watchers. The beach
is adjacent to the Thiruvananthapuram Airport and Veli Tourist Village.
An indoor recreation club, the 'Matsya Kanyaka', a gigantic 35 m long
sculpture of a mermaid and a restaurant shaped like a starfish are the major
attractions here. The long stretch of clean sand is located near the
airport. The water here, however, is not suitable for bathing.
Shankhumugham Beach is a popular city beach situated near to the airport.
This beach provides good facilities like an indoor recreation club,
children's traffic training park and a star shaped restaurant.
Thirumullavaram Beach
Thirumullavaram Beach is roughly 6km north
of Kollam, Thirumullavaram is a beautiful beach that's well linked by road
and with good facilities. This beautiful beach filled with coconut palms is
ideal for an early morning walk as one can see fishermen gliding into the
sea for the days catch. The beach has good bathing facilities.
VARKALA BEACH
Located at 54 kms from Thiruvananthapuram,
Varkala is a sea side resort and also an important Hindu centre of
pilgrimage. It's a beautiful beach that has a more than 2000 years old
shrine of Lord Vishnu. The 2000 year old Janardana Swamy Temple and the
Nature Centre are the two main attractions here. A dip in the holy waters of
this beach is believed to purify the body and the soul of all the sins hence
the name 'Papanashini (destroyer of sin)' for this shore.
|