Kairali Healing Village featured in
Good House Keeping

The well-known women?s magazine of India Good Housekeeping
featured an article on Kerala in its April 2015 issue wherein Kairali The
Ayurvedic Healing Village was named as of the best wellness retreats in Kerala
for relaxation , Ayurveda, yoga , meditation and good food. Good Housekeeping
is one of the most popular women?s magazine in India that deals with fashion,
travel, lifestyle, wellness, recipes , relationships and health.

Kerala

It
Just Gets Better Each Time

Kerala is my favorite holiday destination in the
country. I love everything abut the place; the food, the people, the greenry,
te backwaters, the history and monuments, the handicraft, the massage and yes-
the hospitality?.Each time I return, I find myslef planning my next visit.

Fort Kochi, especially, is fascinating. Read up befor
you visit, I particularly enjot visiting Jewish Synagouge built in 1568 and the
oldest in the world; and the St Francis Church, built in 1503; here is where
Vasco da Gama was first buried. The sense of history is palpable. Top off with
a meal at the Brunton Boatyard Hotel housed in a hetitage bungalow. Soak in the
ambiance, browse through the beautiful photographs enjoy the great food.

In Fort Kochi, opt for a walking tour. WE did and
loved it! Our guide Shankaran took us to quaint places such as Ginger House
Restaurant, the first and only museum-restaurant in India. The antique shop is
split vertically down the middle by gaint traditional snakeboat. This leads to
another room set out with beautiful craved wooden dining tables and chairs- you
can sit and order a meal and even buy the table you dine on. The second room
opens to the waterfront with outdoor seating and a fuly euippped open kitcehn,
where we sat back , enjoying the placid waters and tucked into ginger fired
prawns and ginegr icrecream.

Shankaran took us to a fasinating many-stotied
showroom which stocks everything from authentic Ayurvedic procducts to rich
local sarees ? owned by a Kashmiri! The terrace framed mesmeric view of the
tranquil backwaters dotted with ships and boats under a picture-perfect blue
sky. At Fort Kochi, you may opt to stay at a turn-of-the-centuary bungalow made
into a boutique hotel where you experience
??real Koch??. Whereever you stay, don?t miss out on massage at one of the many Ayurvedic massage centers.

During a visit last year I stayed at Vivanta by Taj
Malabar, situated on the backwaters at the Willingdon Island. Each of the rooms
frame a fantastic view of Fort Kochi
across the waters, and is equipped with all luxuries you may wish for.Recently I
tried a city hotel, The Holiday Inn- great service, good rooms and foo, and at
relatively affordable prices. The hotel staff is the USP, the best of Kerala
hospitality. Ask the concierge to fix your walking tour guide (they got us the
gentle and knowledgeable Shankaran). The hotel has a charming bat and a couple
of restaurants ? don?t miss the breakfast
befor you head out for the day. If you feel like lazing in the hotel for
a day, take a dip in the second floor pool with an adjoining sauna, steam and
jacuzzi- a quite getaway space in the bustling hotel. If out for the day in
Ernakulum city, stop for lunch at broadway, serving the most delicious local
Thali.

A Sojourn At Kairali

The food across Kerala
is to die for but my best ever appam was the one we devoured at a roadside
dhaba on way from Coimbatore to Kairali
at Palakkad. No five-star appams I?ve ever had compared with the incredible
fluffiness and the delicious taste of this one, hot off tawa- served up with a curry
of your choice, it was simply divine. In Kerala, make sure you do not eat
anything but food of the land. My favourites; prawn and fish. But veg food in
Kerala is delicious too- try koottu, a delicious chickpea dish; and the jackfruit thoran for
sure.

Kairali, the ayurvedic
resort in Palakkad, is a different Kerala but one just enjoyable. And there?s
an added bonus: It ups your health quotient by leaps. You may check in for 2-3
weks of therapy advised by the Ayurvedic doctors at the resort or just spend
3-5 days of quite time focusing on well-being and soaking in the tangible calm
that pervades the place.

A drive up the hill
brings you to this charming resort dotted with cottages, not uber luxury but
functional and clean. Surrender to what the place offers: an early morning yoga
session followed by an Ayurvedic breakfast comprising food that tastes good and
are great for your system. After a swim or just sitting out and reading in the
verandah of your cottage, head to the Ayurvedic center where following a
discussion with your doctor , you will b taken for your massage therapy. The ?shirodhara?
therapy where soothing streams of scented oil is poured gently onto your
forehead, easing out stress- is simply out of this world.

Tuck into a light
lunch and avoid hitting the bed for a nap ? instead, stroll around the
beautiful tree- dotted resort and check
out the Ayurvedic garden. Don?t skip the
evening meditation even if on a three-night visit ? it?s truly recharging and
if there is a sudden downpour (as I experienced on the day of my stay), the
pitter-patter in the backdrop only enhances the feeling of being one with the
nature. Next- dinner and calling it a day. No alcohol allowed on the premises
and so you wake up energized and ready for another day of mind-body-soul
rejuvenation at the crack of dawn. And for those who like to dabble in a bit of
hocus pocus : the resort also comes with an astrologer.

My other Kerala favorites
: Thekkady, Periyar, Kumarokam? Gliding on the backwaters to the melodious
strains of Carnatic music being played live by the musician on board your boat;
the quaint churches and temples along the backwaters; stopping for tari- a local
beverage- fresh off a coconut palm in the local
backyard; driving along the winding roads through green paddy fields and
swaying coconut palms?.i could go on forever but I suggest you experience your own Kerala.

Published on : April 2015

Reviews