Neemrana in Fort Kochi – A Tale of Two Hotels
During my visit to Fort Kochi last month, I stayed in 16th and 17th century bungalows that also hosted the likes of Vasco da Gama, governers of Portugese and Dutch administration, a French Admiral and a British Major.
About a month ago, universe conspired that I should take a holiday in Fort Kochi. I had scheduled a work-related visit to Cochin and my air tickets were all booked. Just as the dates approached–I still hadn’t planned my accommodation–I was invited by Neemrana to visit and experience their two non-hotel hotels in Fort Kochi. And two days before departure, all my work commitments in Kochi were cancelled, enabling me to enjoy an undisturbed beach-side holiday.
My first day at Fort Kochi was spent at Le Colonial, a 16th century bungalow that has witnessed much of Kochi’s recorded history. It was established as the governor’s residence when the then small fishing village was gifted by Raja of Kochi to the Portuguese. It continued to serve the same purpose more than a century later, even after the area came under Dutch control . Fort Kochi changed hands again and came under British rule another one-and-a-half centuries later, in the last decade of 18th century, and remained in their hands until the day of independence.
Now a boutique hotel since it last changed hands into Neemrana, Le Colonial has just seven rooms carefully decorated to reflect the days of it’s past. The rooms aren’t numbered, but named after personalities associated with the building. My room was named after Mahe de la Bourdonnais, who happened to spend a night here on his way from Pondicherry to Mahe.