Kathakali, Backwaters

When you go to Kerala, people say, “oh, you should see a Kathakali show while you're in Kerala” and “oh, you have to see the backwaters while you're here.” I guess those are the two big things that tourists do when they come here. Well, now I can say I've done them both. Kathakali is a kind of traditional dance full of super subtle movements that no one really understands. It's kind of interesting for a few minutes.

There's a bunch of characters with different distinct makeup and costumes. The most popular one is this King guy with a green face and a white beard. Apparently he was the first King of Kerala about a million years ago, and a right just ruler he was. Clare and I saw a show when we where here before and i think it was the same story, about an epic struggle against dozing off, but this one was the short 1 hour version instead of the usual 3 hour one, so it wasn't too bad.

The actual story was that some demon transformed itself into a lady to try to tempt the good king, but he discovered the truth so he killed her, basically. Here's a video of the King getting mad:



We also saw the backwaters. It was really relaxing and peaceful. There are all these tiny fishing and rice-farming villages connected by a series of waterways, and they have these houseboats you can take and float along and see the scenery. It was really good.







So I say, if you're ever in Kerala, you do have to see the backwaters, but you can just watch the above Kathakali video and save 100 rupees.