Some places on this beautiful earth are best done on foot, what we at strolling earth call "street strolling". When you "street stroll" you experience places as locals do and you always find the most fascinating hidden wonders down some quintessential concealed alleys, out of site from the average tourist.

However our journey to Kumarakom, India is ‘street strolling’ with a difference. Kumarakom, is part of the Kuttanad region, a vast waterland area made up of many islands and canals. To really explore the backstreets of the Kumarakom Backwaters the ‘street stolling’ and exploring must be carried out by boat.

Many people who visit this region hire the increasingly popular houseboat, however, to truly experience the inner workings of the canal communities your exploration of the backwaters should be done on a local fishing boat. Exploring by fishing boat, provides you with the opportunity to discover smaller canals where you will witness the real Kumarakom, children swimming in the canals, babies enjoying their morning baths, women completing their daily laundry. Teenagers will be seen with buckets collecting the water for the house before meeting up with their friends for the journey to school.  It is by wandering the canals of the backwaters you will observe that although the villages are not rich with possessions, they are rich with community and spirit.

Read more and access our journey map