Kochiness : November 2014

3 Fun Things To Do In Kochi

21:22 Mohammed Ibrahim 0 Comments

Usually we the people of Kochi have a little of pride that we live in the only metro of Kerala. To a certain extend this prejudice has proved to be true. Indeed Kochi is the best place if you wanna have some serious fun in this God's own country. There are a few things that only Kochi can give you, Yes our personal bests.

1. A Walk at the Marine Drive

A walk at the marine during the early morning or evening is peaceful and conciliating. You can treat your taste buds with the light snacks from the street vendors selling vada pav, pani puri, bhaji and such fries. You can watch the lovely couples passing by, the kids playing, the elders walking with their sticks, the poor running to earn a living and everything. You can watch the city in a moment and that makes this place special.

2. A Drive through Fort Kochi

Photo Courtesy: wikipedia.org

This is one different part of the game. Fort Kochi is a part of a handful of water-bound regions toward the south-west of the mainland Kochi, and collectively known as Old Kochi or West Kochi.
There are so much of attractions waiting you in this part of Kochi, in fact a very much different part of Kochi. The attractions here are hard to be listed but here are a few of them:

Indo portuguese museum
Chinese fishing nets
Fort Kochi beach
Promenade with fresh sea breeze
Dutch Cemetery
Southern Naval Command Maritime Museum
Cochin Thirumala Devaswom Temple
Sree Gopalakrishna Devaswom Temple (The Only Daivajna Brahmin Temple in Kerala)
St. Francis Church
Santa Cruz Basilica
Bishop's House
Fort Emmanuel
Jewish Synagogue
Mattancherry Palace

This will be a very different experience while you walk through the past, watching the present. Pick up some of your best friends to make this visit more happening. Make sure you have your camera charged to the maximum because this place has so much in stock for your lenses.

3. Go-Karting at the Speedway Kochi

Kart racing or karting is a variant of open-wheel motor-sport with small, open, four-wheeled vehicles called karts, go-karts, or gearbox/shifter karts depending on the design. They are usually raced on scaled-down circuits. Karting is commonly perceived as the stepping stone to the higher ranks of motor-sports.

This is one of the best picks for the boys as well as the girls who are keen to test their driving skills. Keep aside those illegal street racing and try your hands on this professionally built racing track. Speedway Kochi offers a 350m long track, which is comparatively small in size but has quite a lot of challenging twists and turns which would test your driving skills. We hope that they expand their tracks further for a longer driving experience. This is considered to be first of its kind in Kerala and has a huge response from the drive lovers of our town.

Plan your visit!

Bookings can be done by calling Speedway Kochi’s contact number – 9645962434.

The charges would be around Rs. 300-400 for an average ride.

We suggest you to make a call before you start to avoid unexpected problems due to over booking or huge response as it is a recently opened venue.

You can reach Speedway by passing through Kaloor onto the Infopark.

City Lights, featured

Kochi's Hottest Pubs

01:31 Mohammed Ibrahim 0 Comments

Kochi, the rising metro of India, is a town that is located in the southern part of this magnificent
country, in the state of Kerala. Being a state that has a very deep rooted moral standards, a pub is something not so easy to find in this part of India. But as the city is growing into a metro there are people from almost all parts of the country flowing into here. And this has influenced the culture of Kerala to a great extend. Obviously there are a few pubs and dance bars opened in Kochi. Even though you cannot compare them to the pubs that you have seen in Bangalore or Goa - these dance bars do offer some special treats. Here are our handpicked 5 Pubs of Kochi - This little city has so much to tell ;)

Image Courtesy: burrp

- Club 11 Hundred

The Club 11 Hundred is a dance bar located at the Ramada Resort, Kochi. The pub functions at the lobby level of the Ramada Resort. Located in the outskirts of the city, the pub offers perfect ambience and music to the party lovers out there in this little city. DJ Shekhar is the in house DJ and is a popular figure among the music lovers of the city.

Here are some reviews of the party freaks in Kochi - Extracted from: http://www.burrp.com/

"I simply adore this place. Located in the upscale Ramada Resort, this place is a sure treat to music and lovers of hard drinks alike. They have an amazing line up of Dj's that belt out all the latest tracks to keep you entertained. The juggling skills of the bartenders is very impressive. They serve divine cocktails. Ambience is dimly lit and spacious, just the way it should be. Finger food is too good."

"Its easily the best place to party in cochin........ Its a bit far from the city... but all in all a good place... PLEASE dnt compare it to clubs in bglr.... u'll surely be disappointed..... DJ Shekhar is the in house DJ..... Good music n the booze is expensive for cochin standards Eg: a pint a beer in 150...... SAT nyts is when the party happens...... sum weekends its really good... othrs nt so mch.... u shud check it out if u wanna shake a leg in twn :)"

Image courtesy: burrp

- Jules Bar
The Jules Bar is located at the Le Meridien Hotel, Kochi. This one can be classified more as an exotic bar rather than a pub. There are music sessions on selected days. There is no in house DJ but there are a lot of reputed visiting DJs at this place.

Here are some reviews - Extracted from: http://www.burrp.com/

"The Jules Bar has is designed to fit a cozy ambiance. A great place to chill out, they serve the most amazing cocktails; you got to try the Cochi Slammer. Jules, also serves a good selection of Indian and Foreign spirits."

- Gravity, Beaumonde The Fern
The Gravity is located at the Vivekananda Lane, Beaumonde The Fern, Ernakulam, Kochi. Like the other pubs mentioned in this post, this is also one of a kind pub in the city. The place offers light music and dance floors. There are in house DJs and party freaks throughout the night. Weekends are really busy and a visit on Saturdays are worth it.

Here are some reviews extracted from various sites.

"I love this place. I visit this place once a while. Nice food. Amazing cocktail. Fast and light music with a mind blowing dance floor. A bit expensive compared to other parts of Kochi but a visit isn't very much of a waste."

So these are the handpicked three of the various pubs active in Kochi. Drop us a comment if you have some better options. We appreciate your suggestions.

City Lights, featured, interesting

A walk through the MG Road

23:13 Mohammed Ibrahim 0 Comments

What happens when you take a shopping freak who is a fashion addict to one of the Kochi's most famous shopping streets? Things are pretty amazing. Read to know more ;)

It is a lane running between old buildings but newly painted, a block away from the Arabian Sea! Okay, weird geographical description, check out the map! Tourists from all over the world are a common sight here, wearing their newly purchased Saree and Dhothi.

The atmosphere is lively with the vendors trying to sell their wares to the tourists (at sky high prices) in broken English, and the flute sellers and drum sellers playing their music, and so many colorful and shiny distractions. You can find chat-walas, panipuri-walas, bhaji vendors and many other street vendors occupying their places in this busy lane of Kochi.

Everything in this part of the city is fast and busy. The vendors are busy selling their wares. The shop keepers are busy convincing their customers. The customers are busy bargaining. The pedestrians are marching quickly to their destinations. The tourists and onlookers are busy enjoying the wonderful scenery this amazing place is offering.

This part of the city is active even during the late hours. There are people returning home after a tiring day at their office, the school children, the college guys and girls hanging around and all sorts of people. The city gets completely lighted up, the advertisements shine brighter. The decorative lights are a common scenario. There are various street side vendors who open up only after the sunsets. The city is completely different as the sun sets.

The price of the wares sold here are usually moderate if you are a local. The shop keepers tend to sell their goods sky high if you are an outsider or a tourist. Most of the brands have their outlets in this part of Kochi. Levi's, Puma, Parthas and all the other leading outlets have made their footprint in this southern part of India.

MG Road is also a favorite spot for youngsters who wish to dine out. The chain of fast food restaurants are the longest in this lane. Be it the western brands like KFC, Pizzahut, McDonalds or the India supers like Masala Dosas and Vadas - MG Road is the best suggestion. There are restaurants and cafes that fit any budget open throughout the day and late hours of night. Have a walk through the lane and prepare your mind to treat your taste buds.