Chinese Fishing Nets

Chinese fishing nets(Cheena vala)are a type of stationary lift net in India. They are fishing nets that are fixed land installations for fishing. While commonly known as Chinese fishing nets in India, the more formal name for such nets is shore operated lift nets. Huge mechanical contrivances hold out horizontal nets of 20m or more across. Each structure is at least 10m high and comprises a cantilever with an outstretched net suspended over the sea and large stones suspended from ropes as counterweights at the other end which is operated by a team of up to six fishermen. While such nets are used throughout coastal southern China and Indochina, in India they are mostly found in the Indian cities of Kochi and Kollam, where they have become a tourist attraction. This way of fishing is unusual in India and almost unique to the area, as it was introduced by Chinese explorers who landed there in the 14th century. Indeed, one interpretation of city name Kochi is ‘co-chin', meaning like China

Church of Saint Francis

St. Francis Church, in Fort Kochi (Fort Cochin), Kochi, originally built in 1503, is one of the oldest European churches in India and has great historical significance as a mute witness to the European colonial struggle in the subcontinent.The Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama died in Kochi in 1524 when he was on his third visit to India. His body was originally buried in this church, but after fourteen years his remains were removed to Lisbon.