Sherlys Ente Kumbalangi is a boutique 5 bed room home stay set on the Cochin Backwaters in a Village called Kumbalangi. Kumbalanghi is declared as the first model fisheries and tourism village of India which has its own tradition and culture. The cosy rooms and beautiful architecture makes it the perfect spot to relax and experience the love and warmth of Cochin.
Explore Kumbalanghi
COIR MAKING
Here coir is made in the traditional way in which ripe coconut husks are soaked ,retted and seasoned ;and then the village women beats the retted husk with wooden mallets to separate the fibres after drying it in the sun for 2-3 hours.. We provide our guests a unique opportunity to get acquainted with the traditional way of de-fibering, (separation of bristle fibres called golden fibres being accomplished by hand by the villagers). And one can also get introduced to loom, the only equipment used in traditional coir making. It is really interesting to watch how the villagers hook the fibre in the spinning loom, walk backwards…with their magical fingers making coir out of the fibre. Coir yarn thus made is used to make carpets. Carpets are made directly from coir fibres as well.
DEHUSKING COCONUT AND SEASONING THE HUSK
Step 1 in coir yarn processing is dehusking the coconut and keeping the ripe coconut husks in fresh water for 3-6 months wherein it gets seasoned normally. This process makes the fibre soft and strong, and the coir rope made from them last longer than modern coir and is also used to make coir mats.
COPRA(DRY COCONUT) PROCESSING
The coconut, cut into two pieces and sun dried to extract coconut oil. The entire process will take three days before extracting coconut oil. Separating the copra (dried coconut) from the coconut shell is an interesting village activity done by skilled villagers who do it in a very relaxed and jovial mood.
CRAB FARMING
Crabs usually found in the brackish water of Kerala are
Green crab
Red crab
Green crabs have a very good market in the Far East especially in Japan, Singapore and Malaysia. Crabs are exported live. In our Island, there is a well-maintained crab farm where the fattening of the crabs are naturally done.
Our Guests can enjoy catching crabs weighing 500 gms to 3 kgs from the farm with the help of extremely co-operative, loving and lovable villagers.
CLAM MEAT PROCESSING
Clams are shellfish found in the brackish waters. For many of the inhabitants of the Island, clam meat processing is their livelihood. Usually we can find families carrying out clam processing as a happy family affair with the entire family taking part in the same. Men collect the clam fish from back water. Ladies steam the clam shell to separate the meat from the shell. Both men and women go to the market to sell the meat and the shells are used for making white cement, cement based paints and fertilizers.
CHINESE FISHING NETS
Chinese nets were introduced by Chinese during 15th century. Here, at Kumbalanghi Island, Chinese nets are operated usually during the night. Electric lighting is used to attract the fishes and prawns. Usually two persons operate one net and it is an interesting experience watching them do it in a very natural and interesting manner.
NET MAKING
As many of the villagers find their livelihood from fishing, knitting the net is also identified as a profession and the guests can get themselves acquainted with the way the villagers are engaged in making the net and their repairing. Cost of constructing a new net varies from INR 60,000 to INR 1,00,000/
WEAVING COCONUT LEAVES
Coconut leaves are weaved by village women and watching them doing it with great expertise is really interesting. Weaved coconut leaves are used for thatching roofs and for fencing. For this, green coconut leaves are first seasoned in brackish water which will increase the life of the weaved leaves.
COUNTRY BOATING
Country boats are made up of wood from trees like Wild jack tree, Teak etc. Wood is first split into planks of thickness 3⁄4 to 2 inches. These planks are then joined with coir yarn with a coir fibre filling. Oil extracted from Sardine fish , Neem , Cashew nut shell etc are used to make a protective coating. Big boats are used for transporting goods and people. Small boats are used for fishing. Guests, while enjoying boating, can avail the opportunity of having a close watch of different fishing methods as well.
CASTING NET
This is a traditional method of fishing. Here, the conical shaped nets fitted with lead weight at the bottom are spread into the water with one yarn in the hand. The weight fitted at the bottom will keep the fishes inside the net.
GROPING FISH
This is a skilful method of fishing done by ladies using fingers. Here, a group of ladies move in a line and grope fishes from the backwaters.
BROOM MAKING
Mid ribs of coconut leaves are taken out and tied together into brooms which are used to clean rough grounds and floors.
BASKET MAKING
Basket making is a dying art, only few craftsmen know how to make traditional baskets which were also used by the villagers over here to separate clam meat and shell.
Location : St. Mary’s Road, Azhikakam, Kumbalanghi Kochi – 682007
Phone : +91 484 2241800, 94479 56758, 98470 56756
Email : homestay@sherlysgroup.com
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