KOCHI

Kochi is a major port city on the west coast of India by the Arabian Sea and is often called by the name Ernakulam, which refers to the main- land part of the city. Kochi rose to significance as a trading centre after the port Muziris around Kodungallur was destroyed by the massive flooding of Periyar in 1341. It was the centre of Indian spice trade for many centuries, and was known to the Yavanas as well as Jews, Syrians, Arabs, and Chinese since ancient times. Portuguese navigator, Pedro Álvares Cabral founded the first European settlement in Kochi in 1500 making it the first of the European colonies in co- lonial India. It remained the main seat of Portuguese India until 1530, when Goa was chosen instead. The city was later occupied by the Dutch and the British, with the Kingdom of Cochin becoming a princely state. In 1947, when India gained independence from the British colonial rule, Cochin was the first princely state to join the Indian Union willingly. In 1949, Travancore-Cochin state came into being with the merger of Cochin and Tra- vancore. The King of Travancore was the Rajpramukh of the Travancore-Co- chin Union from 1949 to 1956. Travancore-Cochin, was in turn merged with the Malabar district of the Madras State.

Fishing techniques

The Paradesi Synagogue is the oldest active synagogue in the Common- wealth of Nations, located in Kochi, Kerala, in South India. Constructed in 1567, and it is one of seven synagogues of the Malabar Yehudan people or Kochi Jewish community in the Kingdom of Kochi. Enter the synagogue and the large main hall arrests your attention with display of rare antique objects that add to the grandeur of the place. The light falling through the large open windows make the sight of chandeliers and lamps more delightful.

The five-year education dance. They have really spesial eye and handmovements!