Off Season at The Sea Side

We were a little unsure about what we were going to find in Kovalam, our guide book said that it had become a tourist hot spot but as we are now out of season in India we were hoping that we were going to find somewhere restful.

The bus dropped us off in Trivendrum which is a fairly sizeable town just north of Kovalam. We then got a tuk tuk to take us the last 16km to the beach. We stayed in the Southern part of Kovalam which is divided into two beaches, Eve Beach and Lighthouse Beach. The latter unsurprisingly has a lighthouse on a cliff at its southern tip.

We decided to head to lighthouse beach as this seemed to be where the majority of hotels were clustered and we were hoping to splash a little more cash and find ourself a decent room in a nice establishment.

There is a main strip which faces the beach made up of hotels and restaurants, the rest of the places to stay are set behind these in the forest/jungle. It is all very hickledy pickledy and there are just little narrow walk ways between buildings that you have to squeeze down. The one time that we actually wanted to spend a little more money, to treat ourselves it seemed that everyone we walked past was offering us cheap rooms. It seems the pack on our backs kind of marks us out as cheapskates.

We walked around for a long time checking a number of places, we even trekked up the hill to where the more pricey hotels were, but the rooms were really just too expensive. It seemed to us that there was just no middle ground. The one place that we really did want to stay, a hotel that I had read about in the guidebook was undergoing some kind of face lift so no rooms were available. They did however have an annexe on the beach so we went to take a look. The price was pretty low so we weren't expecting too much, however it turned out you got a lot for your money. The annexe consisted of a large room with sea views which contained a small kitchen at one end and then a lounge/dining area at the other.


Then there was one double bedroom, one single and a bathroom. It maybe wasn't exactly what we'd had in mind but it was clean and had some real character, plus the price was too good to pass up, all of that for £5.50 a night!

By the point of finally taking our backpacks off we were well and truly wiped out, so a rest was in order and some rehydration. Once our batteries were recharged we headed out for dinner and really began to realise how quiet the place was.In one way this was nice, I wouldn't want to be there in peak season but you also feel sorry for all the restaurant workers who are trying their best to encourage you into their eateries as you walk past. We picked one which had a good selection of fresh fish on offer. It was all laid out on a table at the entrance, so we both got to pick what we wanted and of course had the obligatory haggle over price. I had a fairly large crab which ended up being pretty difficult to eat as they didn't supply anything to crack it open with! Adam had a white snapper which he munched down happily.

The next day we did very little which is really what we planned to do. Our laundry situation was pretty bleak, hand washing hadn't achieved very good results, so we were hoping to rectify this. Unfortunately when we asked if there was anywhere we could take our clothes to be cleaned we were met with shakes of the head. That part of our plan for the day having hit a brick wall we decided to try and sort some things out on the net and do a bit more research into the next part of our trip.

It was really very hot in Kovalam, the sea breeze did not offer much relief and the thought of sitting on the beach did not really appeal so we decided to relax in the annexe and make the most of staying in a nice place. There was also something slightly depressing about the town, perhaps it was the deserted air which hung around the place, but whatever it was neither of us had much desire to wander around outside.

We headed to another fish establishment for dinner, I had tandoori tuna and Adam had another white snapper, much larger this time but it all went down the hatch. It was nice to get something different to eat. As much as we have enjoyed trying the Indian food, which really is nothing like what you get from your local takeaway, the chose available in the average roadside restaurant is fairly limited. I can safely say that I have had my fill of Masala Dosa for sometime!

We went back and got an early night, another bus ride awaited us in the morning. Having got an early start we went to settle the balance for the annexe and asked the manager where we could catch a bus to Kanniyakumari which is the town situated right at the tip of India, or the sacred toe. Thankfully one was going from Kovalam in about forty fives minutes so we didn't have too far to lug our packs.

A bit of waiting for the bus and a slightly longer trip than expected and we arrived where three seas converge.

More Soon,

Laura & Adam