Tranquebar, tamil nadu, danish fort
This is from when we visited Tranquebar in Feb 2006 where there is the Danish fort called Dansborg, and a crumbling 13th century Shiva temple known as the Masilamani Natha. We swam in the ocean and played cricket with the kids. The Dec. 2004 tsunami caused 100s of deaths in this town. The ocean breached here over 11 kilometers landward in some areas. This was one of the most devastated areas in India from the tsunami. To say the least, this was a very humbling and somber day for me.
the fishing village and some of the tsunami damage to the shore temple at Tranquebar
Fishermen and their families are among the lowest of classes in Indian society. It is a generational occupation handed down from father to son, and the Tamils here have fished with the same techniques since before recorded time. The fishing community here is right on the flats above the beach. Its an idillic yet hard and dangerous work.
That early morning we were in Kumbakoman, with the South Indian heat starting to really get to us. The ocean was about 50 kilometers away and T-Bone had heard of Danish fort on the sea. I really wanted to go swim in the ocean. So that was how we had decided to visit this place, Tranquebar.
A big goal of mine was to touch the oceans on both sides of India. I started the trip in Bombay on the West Coast. Considering that there are about 7 million people who don't own a toilet in Bombay and most of the world's largest city of 13 million's sewage flows directly into the ocean anyway. The thought of going for a dip in the sea off Ocean Drive in Bombay seemed kinda, well haha... shitty. So I kinda just touched the water there and washed my hands. Now I was on the East Coast of South India and going for a swim in the tropical waters of the Bay of Bengal next to a rural fishing village sounded, well... positively romantic.
As we started our little road trip a growing dread started to invade my mind. The catastrophic tsunami of 2004 had hit this town one year before and we actually didn't know what to expect or what we would see. There might be little damage, or the whole town could be in disastrous straits. We had no fore knowledge of how the tsunami had affected this area. It was our driver who spoke limited English that filled us in.
So here are some photos from that day.
The lonely parade ground and the Danish fort at Tranquebar. That's our white Ambassador taxi in the distance.
A bunch of kids were playing cricket and I spent a bunch of time playing with them and taking pictures.
The 13th century shore temple at Tranquebar and the fishing village beyond. The temple saw much damage and 100s of people lost their lives here when the tsunami hit.
mind humbling
The new fleet of fishing boats on the beach at Tranquebar. Life goes on...
the fishing village and some of the tsunami damage to the shore temple at Tranquebar
Fishermen and their families are among the lowest of classes in Indian society. It is a generational occupation handed down from father to son, and the Tamils here have fished with the same techniques since before recorded time. The fishing community here is right on the flats above the beach. Its an idillic yet hard and dangerous work.
That early morning we were in Kumbakoman, with the South Indian heat starting to really get to us. The ocean was about 50 kilometers away and T-Bone had heard of Danish fort on the sea. I really wanted to go swim in the ocean. So that was how we had decided to visit this place, Tranquebar.
A big goal of mine was to touch the oceans on both sides of India. I started the trip in Bombay on the West Coast. Considering that there are about 7 million people who don't own a toilet in Bombay and most of the world's largest city of 13 million's sewage flows directly into the ocean anyway. The thought of going for a dip in the sea off Ocean Drive in Bombay seemed kinda, well haha... shitty. So I kinda just touched the water there and washed my hands. Now I was on the East Coast of South India and going for a swim in the tropical waters of the Bay of Bengal next to a rural fishing village sounded, well... positively romantic.
As we started our little road trip a growing dread started to invade my mind. The catastrophic tsunami of 2004 had hit this town one year before and we actually didn't know what to expect or what we would see. There might be little damage, or the whole town could be in disastrous straits. We had no fore knowledge of how the tsunami had affected this area. It was our driver who spoke limited English that filled us in.
So here are some photos from that day.
The lonely parade ground and the Danish fort at Tranquebar. That's our white Ambassador taxi in the distance.
A bunch of kids were playing cricket and I spent a bunch of time playing with them and taking pictures.
The 13th century shore temple at Tranquebar and the fishing village beyond. The temple saw much damage and 100s of people lost their lives here when the tsunami hit.
mind humbling
The new fleet of fishing boats on the beach at Tranquebar. Life goes on...