Shopaholics Alert! Grand Kerala Shopping Festival

The Grand Kerala Shopping Festival is set to begin...

Event 1: Launch

Date : December 15, 2012 

Venue: Municipal Jawahar Stadium, Kannur

Event 2 - Global Village

The Grand Kerala Festival Shopping Festival offers visitors massive discounts, special deals, gifts in gold, lucky draws. Be There!

Date – December 22, 2012 to January 5, 2013

Venue – Grand Kerala Shopping Festival Global Village, Kochi

Highlights:

International Pavilion will showcase global tourism, handicrafts, industrial products and variegated art forms from across the world

National Pavilion will present state wise art forms and traditional products

Kerala Pavilion will be a glimpse into Kerala’s traditions from its Ayurveda to its folk arts, handloom and handicrafts

Brand Pavilion will focus on the associate sponsors of the Grand Kerala Shopping Festival. The pavilion will be an opportunity to test market, launch and display new products

For Kids there is an Amusement Park and there’s a Food Court as well, both together sprawling across 22,000 sq.ft.

Contact

gksf@keralatourism.org

Toll free – 1800 419 6767, 0-4444444444

Say it with Flowers – Kochi Floral Show

Feast your eyes on a tapestry of flowers and inhale the fragrance of buds in bloom at the Kochi Flower Show. Organised by the District Agri Horticulture Society, the flowers on display are an international bunch from various countries and not just flowers but plants, medicinal ones, too as well as bonsai and decorative arrangements. Don't miss it!

Venue

Ernakulathappan Grounds

Date

December 28, 2012  – January 3, 2013

Contact : 0484 - 2362738 or 9447188443

 

Vaikom Temple Festival - Vaikashtami

Vaika comes from Vaikom which is a reference to the revered Vaikom Mahadev Temple and Ashtami refers to the 8^th day of the Malayalam month Vrischikam (November-December - Sagittarius) according to the lunar calendar

On the banks of the Vembanad lake in Vaikom in Kottayam district stands the Vaikom Mahadev temple constructed of black stone on 8 acres of land. The temple is surrounded by four looming towers and has four big corridors or mandapams with spacious halls called prakrams

The Vaikom Mahadev temple is dedicated to the worship of Mahadev, Lord Shiva, the Destroyer in the Hindu Trinity

Lord Shiva is worshipped in three forms:

• Morning – Lord Shiva as Dakshinamurthy where He is manifest as the supreme guru and in his avatar of knowledge destroys ignorance. In this avatar Lord Shiva faces Dakshin, the south which is the direction of death

•  Noon – Lord Shiva as Kiratamurti which is the form manifest to Arjun, the Pandav prince

•  Evening – Lord Sambhashivan along with Goddess Parvati. Lord Shiva as originating from the ash tree

The Vaikashtami Festival spans 12 days during which the symbol of Shiva in the form of a 5m high Shivalinga is worshipped 

On the 7^th day of the Vaikashtami Festival, the idol of Lord Shiva in the symbolic form of Thidampu is borne forth in a spectacular procession and as it makes its way through the throng the crowds swell as it is joined by another grand procession bearing Lord Muruga (Subrahmanya) from the adjacent Muruka temple of Udayanapuram. Thus Lord Shiva meets his son Muruga in the temple and the short tryst ends with the farewell

The festival ends with the Asthami celebration, the most significant 8^th day of the festivities

It celebrates the day when Sage Vyaghrapada was blessed with the manifestation of Lord Shiva and his consort Parvati. In Tamil Vaiyaghra became Vaikom

This luminous moment is marked by the lighting of the ceremonial lamps called Ashtami Vilakku

There are night long performances by Kathakali artistes on the 8^th day of Asthami

Throughout the festival there are music and dance concerts making for a rich cultural experience

The significance of the temple lies in the history of satyagraha (non-violent agitation) for the restoration of equality in worship where nobody could be debarred on grounds of caste and the crowds that gather reflect this honorific event

Location

From Kochi move south 30 km and from Kottayam move up north 40 km

Train and local bus is the best way to travel but arrive early so as to avoid jam-packed local transport

Date of the Vaikashtami Festival

December 7^th is the likely date of the festival this year

Discount Travel with Rotary Tours

If you work with Wipro, Cognizant, Infosys, TCS, Accenture you get Half Ticket and an additional 10% off

On packages organized by Rotary Club of Kuttanad

Snapshot of a Rotary Trip: 9 days 8 night tour

2 days at Munnar; 2 days at Kovalam

1 day each at Kochi, Thekkady, Allepey and Kanyakumari

Itinerary:

1^st day – Arrive at Kochi, transfer to hotel, noon tour of Kochi, visit Fort Kochi, Jewish Synagogue, Jew Town, Dutch Synagogue, Chinese fishing nets, St. Francis Church. Overnight stay at hotel

2^nd day – Drive to Munnar. Transfer to hotel, day at leisure. Overnight stay at hotel

3^rd day – After breakfast, sightseeing in Munnar. Visit Eravikulam National Park, Mattupetty dam, old Munnar town and local market. Rest of the day at leisure. Overnight stay at hotel

4^th day – After breakfast, drive to Thekkady. Reach hotel at noon and take rest of day off or opt for a boat cruise down the Periyar river in the Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary (This is not included in the package cost). Overnight stay at hotel

5^th day – Transfer from Thekkady to Kumarakom/Allepey houseboat. All meals on houseboat. Full day and overnight stay on the houseboat

6^th day – Drive to Kovalam. Transfer to hotel. Overnight stay at hotel

7^th day – Day at leisure. On payment basis avail of the resort facilities like Ayurvedic massage

8^th day – Drive to Kanyakumari after breakfast. Check into hotel by noon. Rest of day at leisure. Overnight stay at hotel

9^th day – Transfer to Thiruvanthapuram to catch connecting train/flight back home

Package Cost:

Budget    - Rs.40,290 for two. Rs.4000 for extra person

Standard – Rs.44,660 for two. Rs.4500 for extra person

Deluxe    - Rs.65,240 for two. Rs.5000 for extra person

Luxury    -  Rs.86,235 for two. Rs.8000 for extra person

Mode of Travel: Indica. A/c Indica for Deluxe and Luxury packages

Bus tickets can be arranged on request

Other Offers

Rotary also offers discounts on houseboat packages such as 15% off on deluxe 5 days 4 nights tours and if you like them on Facebook there's a 5% discount!

Contact

Call 09349178898 or 09447776841

Evergreen Accomodation in Kootickal

Evergreen Estate Bungalow - Kootickal

It’s a plantation bungalow dating back to 1955 with an art deco pillar and timber gabled roof

Location 

Evergreen Estate Bungalow lies in the heart of the Mundakayam Valley. It nestles quietly amidst owner Anju and George Abraham’s 50 acre rubber, cardamom and coffee estate on the north eastern side hillock. The estate has been in their family since five generations. On the southern side, the Western Ghat range surrounding the nearby township of Kootickal creates an imposing backdrop. 

The rooms are spacious but simple, the bathrooms are contemporary and the service impeccable. There's a unique horse shoe designed table where food is served. 

A sit out at the back and a verandah out front opens out on a garden bathed in the scent of jasmine natural and peppered with birdsong 

Room Tariff with breakfast – Rs. 4250/- excluding taxes

On Offer:

• 1 hour cooking class of traditional Christian Kerala cuisine is Rs. 200/- per person

•  2 hour Tour to rubber and spice plantation and a detour to John Joseph Murphy’s tomb is Rs.500 per person

• There’s fishing, yoga and ayurveda packages as well  

Contact Address –    Mr. George Abraham

Pottamkulam House Kootickal

                              Kootickal Post Office No 686514

Call                    - +91 4828 284310

Make bookings online on Mahindra Homestays