Holidaying in Kerala India

It is July and some people are already planning for the December holiday. Well, at least I am. We have not really decided on where to go but one consideration is to go back to Kerala in South India. I was holidaying there way back in 2005 – spent about 10 days there and thoroughly enjoyed the trip. I think Kerala was named as one of the top 50 destinations in the world by National Geographic and truly lived to the accolade.

Most Asians / Malaysians who visit India would typically cover the New Delhi/Agra/Jaipur route. Not many seems to know about Kerala - It is a pity because the place has so much to offer. When we were there way back in 2005, we could hardly see any Asians there. We saw a few Japanese backpackers but there were definitely no Malaysians. The local shopkeepers were all so curious to find out our nationality when we told them we’re not from Japan/Korea :-) My memories of the place:
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Getting to Kerala
There was no direct flight to Cochin then – Cochin’s the gateway to Kerala. And the cheapest flight we could find was via Sri Lankan Airlines, with 2 stops i.e. KUL-SG-Colombo-Cochin. We have never been to Sri Lanka but it was good that we at least managed to visit the airport. J The airline’s actually quite good – good service and delicious in-flight food.
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Cochin town – We arrive at this small lovely, seaside town in the evening. Being my first time in India, I was a bit apprehensive about the place initially. As I spent more days there, I begun to like it more. It was pretty easy to go around by foot (although one may get stares now and then). And then there’s the old Ambassador taxi cars (which were probably more than 25 years old) and the ferries (ferry ride was actually quite pleasant, and not that crowded). There’s quite a lot to do in the town itself:

Mattancherry --- visit the historical sites –the Jew town, synagogue, church; One can spend the whole afternoon there esp if you like to shop as well. Lots of small little shops selling local handicrafts/souvenirs although it can be more pricey than the normal shops in town. For e.g., I found the kurtas cheaper in the town area (shops where locals frequent);

Fort Cochin – I personally liked staying at Fort Cochin (we stayed at a premium quaint guesthouse called Chiramel Residency) better than the other side of the lake as there’s less traffic, with a more laidback feel. Anyhow, it is quite easy to go to the other side of lake via ferry. Business districts are also on the other side and get a better feel of local life on the other side of lake. What can one do at Fort Cochin? Take leisurely walk in the evening to look at the churches nearby, the fishermen fishing using the traditional Chinese fishing nets. Lots of street vendors selling catches of the day. Or just go for a ferry ride to enjoy the sunset and scenery. Or drop by one of the luxurious hotels for tea and enjoy the hotel seaview / garden.

Kathakali performance – watching the performers putting on their make-up is itself interesting (yes they do that in front of the audience before the performance begins). Their makeup is as (if not more) elaborate than that of the Chinese Opera performers. Admission ticket to performance is not cheap and one has to book early (cos the place gets filled up quite fast). Performance lasted about 2-3hours

Walk around downtown – get a taste of the local food, lifestyle, culture by walking around town on foot. To MG Road etc. We went to the bank to exchange some money, and change our flight home – English is widely spoken – so no problems at all
Food – Seafood is cheap. Also went to one of restaurants at Fort Cochin which mainly caters to tourists - one can get “Chinese” food here as well. Dec’s not the mango season but other local fruit juices (pineapple) are just as tasty…just be a bit careful with food/drink intake as one may develop diarahea (I didn’t get one until days later)
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Alleppey backwaters - this was the highlight of our trip. Absolutely stunning scenery and great experience. Strongly recommend touring the backwaters in an overnight houseboat cruise. We initially wanted to do the 3D/2N trip (from Alleppey to Kollam) but as it was the peak season (Xmas), most tour cos. only offer overnight trips (starts at about 12 noon till 9 am next morning). Despite the peak period, we manage to get a good rate for an overnight cruise i.e. Rp 5000 for 2 persons. Non-a/c room, two to a room with attached bathroom(one really does not need air-con) Some houseboats have air-con with 2-3 rooms per boat. Price is inclusive of tour guide, lunch, tea and dinner.

I must say the houseboat food (lunch/tea/dinner – banana fritters for tea, rice with seafood/vegs for dinner) was really yummy and service’s great (there will be 3 local workers in the boat i.e. a guide, the cook and a boatman, but they mostly leave us to ourselves to enjoy the view). Enjoy the beautiful view as one cruise down the endless network of little canals, rivers, lakes during daytime. Occasionally you would pass by the small villages where one can see women do their daily washing / cooking near the river banks and children take their baths. At night, the houseboat will stop in the middle of a lake – one can sleep at the open deck under the stars (ok, not for long cos then the mosquitoes may get to you) or on the comfy bed in the room

Getting to Alleppey itself is an interesting story… In order to save cost, we decided to take a train from Cochin to Alleppey. To get to the train station in Cochin, we took a local bus. The bus ride was really scary as the bus was quite old and the driver, very aggressive (perhaps worse than Malaysian drivers). The bus was like within inches from an oil tanker. On the other hand, the train ride was pleasant, not as crowded as one would imagine in the movies (ok, definitely no one sitting on the train roof-top). Train was quite punctual (unlike another friend’s experience in New Delhi, where the train was delayed by more than 5 hours). Due to a miscommunication, we did not manage to get first class tickets and joined the locals in the normal carriage (Non-a/c) with open windows. It’s not bad at all – not as crowded as we would imagine. A breezy ride. Just be aware that the train does not stop for a long time at the train station in Cochin and there’s no announcement – we practically had to chase after the train (it started moving before we can embark).
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Varkala – A popular beach resort; but the good thing is it is not that crowded (as say, Goa according to another backpacker tourist). Stayed at one the budget guesthouse (clean, cheap and convenient) located at the cliff-top – the cliff-top is a touristy place with rows and rows of hotels/guesthouses, restaurants and small shops catering to the tourists. The good thing about staying at the cliff top is that it is so convenient – one can walk down the flight of steps to the long stretch of beach at the bottom of a cliff, chill out at the beach and then conveniently walk up for a drink/meal or to one’s room to answer nature’s call. One can practically spend weeks here – yoga in the morning (some foreigners were doing the sun salutation at the beach during sunrise), go sun-bathing in the afternoon, ayurvedic massages in the evening and shopping at night. Or just take cab ride down town and visit the famous Janardan Swami Temple
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Periyar – Wildlife reserve. Hired a private car (with driver) from Varkala to Periyar. Personally, I think Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary is over-rated and a disappointment. We thought it would be more convenient to stay in the Sanctuary itself but quickly regretted staying there and moved out after one night. We stayed at the Periyar House (inside the Sanctuary and run by the government) which costs some Rp 1100 per night. This hotel is considered an economic place in the Sanctuary but for that kind of price, one can get far better place outside. The room, although spacious, looked old. And there’s definitely nothing to do in the evening/at night except to watch TV or unless one goes outside the Sanctuary. But to go out to town for dinner/to shop, you have to pay when you re-enter the Sanctuary.

We went for the day-trek package (you need to pay for gears and guide) but did not manage to see any wild animals except a few elephants from afar (no tigers, wild boars). After trekking for hours, one will reach the hilltop – the view’s magnificent.
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Shopping – good buys in Kerala include pashiminas and kurtas. Bough kurtas for my nieces/nephew for less than RM5 each and they looked so cute in them.. I managed to get adult kurtas for between RM10-15. Other good buys include embroidered wall hangings (which can be used as a sofa throw) and cushion covers. Souvenirs like fridge magnets are hard to find, even in touristy places like Mattancherry and Varkala

A tragic death and MACC

It was shocking and extremely sad to read about Mr Teoh Beng Hock’s death yesterday. Watching the TV news, I initially thought he had committed suicide (by jumping off the MACC building in Shah Alam). But later after reading more blogs/news reports /comments made by his family/friends/colleagues, it is not so clear now….mystery of death remains

I had earlier mentioned about the possibility of joining the MACC (in name of national service) when it was first set up. I thought an MACC job will just be the typical office work with piles and piles of paper work like following paper trail, scrutinizing accounts, names and networks etc., a job like that of an auditor. Didn’t know and never imagined that it will involve questioning witnesses, suspects etc until wee hours in the morning….and certainly never imagined a death would be associated with the agency

And just before that tragic day, the Sun newspaper had published an interesting piece on MACC …

Doubts over MACC’s partiality by Terence Fernandez
ON June 10, Citizen Nades and I were seated in the office of Daniel Li, the deputy commissioner of Hongkong’s Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC). What was to be a courtesy call on the island’s No1 graft fighter turned into a counselling session where we poured out our frustrations over the implementation of the Malaysia Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Act which Li had helped to draft.
"Surely it can’t be that bad," Li said, pointing out the various provisions that have been included in the Act including the five committees to oversee the activities of the commission.
He raised his eyebrows when we told him that certain provisions, such as having assets disproportionate to one’s income, were omitted……
(to read more go to: http://www.sun2surf.com/article.cfm?id=35877)

Testing your business ideas

Recently, another friend told me that she is thinking about starting her own business and should her business turns out to be successful, she will gladly quit her job. I am sure most people (including myself) have had such thoughts before but may be hindered because they don’t know how / where to start, they lack capital etc. Though I will share some tips with everyone:

Firstly, to start a business, one needs an idea. However, a good business idea is only the first step and it takes a LOT more than a good idea for entrepreneurial success. But that’s a topic for another day.

So, what is the “right” business idea? Well, if you don’t have one, try googling for a list of ideas (try key search words: “business”, “ideas”, “start”). Here’s a sample list:
www.nichegeek.com/10_totally_stupid_online_business_ideas_that_made_someone_rich
http://www.business-idea.com/
http://www.coolbusinessideas.com/
www.bizymoms.com/ideas.html

As you will see, there is definitely no shortage of ideas and most are not new. My personal belief is that one doesn’t need to have a novel idea in order to build a successful business – a good example is Jobstreet, a very successful Malaysian company which provides online job listing services. But JS did not pioneer the idea of a career website/job board. The idea was conceived by US-company called Monster way back in early 1990s, I think. JS successfully applied this idea in Malaysia and later expanded to other parts of Asia.

Say, you have now made a shortlist of promising business ideas or you believe you already have a great business idea. Before you invest all your resources (time, money) into the idea, it is good to put the idea to test…you know, to see if it is worth pursuing. Basically this involves answering the following major questions:

Is there a market for your product/services?
Do you have the capability (knowledge, skills, experience) to run the business?
How much can you potentially make?
(for a more comprehensive list, check this website: www.cfquesnel.com/.../Testing%20Business%20Ideas%20-%2008.pdf

Do your research. Where do you get information about the marketplace etc? Every where. Examples:
(a) Internet -- cheap and convenient. Say you want to set up an organic restaurant in Klang Valley. You can check out competition by googling using search words such as “restaurant”, “organic”, “Malaysia”. Or you may check out if there’s any successful organic restaurant in this world and if yes, what are their key success factors. Or you may try to get an idea of the size of the local organic food industry by googling usig search words such as “market”; “size”; “organic”; “Malaysia”.
(b) company annual reports - you can get reports of listed or non-listed cos. in Malaysia by paying a small fee to Suruhanjaya Syarikat Malaysia http://www.ssm.com.my/). You can get free copies of the annual reports of listed companies (in any parts of the world). E.g. if co is listed in US stock exchange, you can go to http://www.sec.gov/ to download these reports. By reviewing the co annual reports, you can, for example, get an idea of how much a competitor makes per year.
(c) surveys/focus group studies – you can conduct a small survey amongst friends/acquaintances and to find out they wants/needs; to see if they will buy your products/services etc.
(d) cold calls – Say I wanted to estimate the cost of running my organic restaurant business. I would google for the list of organic food suppliers and then call a few of them to ask for a quotation (even though I have yet to set up my business). I will call a real estate agent and asked about rental at my short-listed locations. Some may not respond, but you’ll be surprised that you may get a few helpful ones
(e) market research reports – usually you have to pay $$$ for these. Unless you have the extra cash to spare, then I would suggest skipping this
(f) contacts within industry – you may have a friend who has worked in the food industry / managed a restaurant before. Try contacting him/her and get as much useful info as possible. For e.g., what are the peak hours? How many staff do you need? What’s typical staff turnover and the main reasons for staff turnover? Who are the suppliers and what’s typical payment terms?
(g) observation – say, you want to set up this restaurant at Bangsar. You can spend time at a similar restaurant there to check out the customer traffic during a weekday vs. weekends. Observe -- the average spend per table etc. the average time spent by customer; etc.

Armed with information collected, you can now make a better decision as to whether or not to pursue your idea. It is best if you can also get an objective, hard-nosed person to critique your plan (if possible). Why? Because most people want to believe that their ideas/plans will succeed so much so that they are sometimes blinded to extent that they are not able to see the pitfalls/ flaws of their ideas.

However most people believe that sharing ideas is risky – what if someone steals my idea? Firstly, the risk can be mitigated. For e.g., if you are extremely worried that your well-thought idea/plan may be stolen, then share your ideas only with people whom you know well and trust. Also, don’t share everything – e.g., say, you have done a lot of research on a potential business idea/plan and now have a good understanding of the marketplace, competition, supply chain, cost structure etc. Don’t tell everything that you know…One can still get good feedback by sharing only 40-50% (the gist) of what you know.

Secondly, if it so happens that someone has stolen your idea, it is not the end of the world. You can still go ahead with your plan as long as you know that you can be better than your copycat competitor. Remember, it takes so so much more than just a “great” business idea to build a successful business – ultimately, it’s all about execution and a bit of luck.