"Kozhikode in the spicy Malabar Coast"
Kozhikode means ´Koyil Kotta´ or Fortified palace. I first visted this wonderful city on the west coast of India during one of my Indian holidays from England and immediately fell in love with the place. When the chance came to return to India after 25 years in Oxford, I had no hesitation in choosing Kozhikode as my base. Chinese called it Kalifo, Arabs Kalicut and the Europeans Calicut. This costal city in the land of spices is seeped in history, culture, commercial glory, beaches, back waters and lush countryside.
Classic Kozhikode in North Kerala is the area which the legendary traveller Marco Polo described in 1320AD as the ´Great Province of Malabar´. In fact Chinese were the first to this place and and many eminent travellors followed. Ibn Batuta(1342), Abdur razzak(1443), and anthanaseus Nikiten(1468) are few of them. After 13thC, Kozhikode grew in importance as a port and the capital of the powerful kingdom of Samoothiris or Zamorines as Potuguese called them. This place was also Vasco da Gama´s (the discoverer of sea route to India) first halt in India.He set foot on the sands of Kappad beach north of todays city on 27 May 1498AD. This event marked a new epoch in the history of Kerala, India and perhapes the World and marked the advent of the European powers on the Indian sub-continent. Today kozhikode is an important centre for timber, tiles etc and hunting ground for that famous delicacy "Calicut Halva". Its also gaining reputation as a great holiday centre teeming with natural beauty and posseses a unique culture that offers warmth, friendliness and hospitality for the visitor as it has been doing since time immemmorial.
I found these areas really interesting:-
a) Mananchira Square- this serene square in the heart of the city,originally the Palace Tank of King Manavikrama, is an architectural marvel. The square is surrounded by Kerala style buildings.
b) Sweet Meat (SM) Street- is the busiest shopping strret with history behind and is named after the numerous sweetmeat stalls located here
c) Pazzhassi Museum - 5kms away from yhe city in east hill and named after ´Pazzhassiraja Kerala Varma´ who led the historical Pazzhassi revolt against the British in 18thC and is a treasure trove for historians and connoisseurs of art.
Other land marks include - Tali Temple(14C), Jain Temple, Muchunthi Palli (13C Muslim Mosque), St Mary´s church(1860), Kozhikode beach which is a very popular sunset point, Beypore Port where hundreds of years ago traditional mammoth vessels called"Uru´s´ were built. And the list goes on and on ...
There are good hotels and restaurants here to fit everyone´s budget.Taj Residency with ***** star ratings is at the top end. For Western Tourists there are a number of three and four * hotels available which can be arranged easily.
Finally I would recommend a visit to this exotic place in North Kerala for anyone interested in India. It shows the diversity of India and introduces the visitors to extraordinarily warm and hospitable people of Malabar. I look forward to seeing you here and and showing you all what malabar has to offer. Happy Holidaying!!Take care
Cheers,
Kris Kandath
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