With its lush green foliage, balmy weather and quiet streets, Thiruvananthapuram, previously called Trivandrum, provides a genteel and serene counterpoint to the frenetic chaos of India. The temple was recently in the news when chambers containing US$15 billion (Dh55bn) worth of jewels, gold and other religious objects were discovered.
An ancient coastal city with a history going back to 1000 BC, this capital of Kerala state attracted traders and kings through the ages, including King Solomon, who is believed to have landed here, attracted by the spices, sandalwood, pepper and ivory. The city is a gateway to the tourists who make their way up to Kerala’s famous beach resorts just up the coast.
A comfortable bed
With 137 spacious, modern rooms, and an outdoor pool and health club, the Vivanta by Taj (www.vivantabytaj.com; 0091 471 661 2345) offers a quiet respite in the heart of the city, and occasional sightings of white-clad Kerala brides and grooms who hold their weddings in the hotel. Each Vivanta hotel offers "motifs" or experiences that typify the city. In Thiruvananthapuram, the "essence of Travancore" includes museums and palaces that belong to the erstwhile royal family. Double rooms from US$150 (Dh550) including taxes and breakfast.
Varikett Heritage (www.varikattheritage.com; 0091 471 233 6057) is a charming homestay with a small ayurvedic spa, badminton court and indoor board games for when the monsoon rains hit. Owned by the Colonel Roy Kuncheria, whose family bought this 1850s Colonial home from an English woman, this elegant space has typical red Kerala floors and dark rosewood furniture. Kuncheria and his wife can organise shopping trips, cooking classes and even kathakali dance performances. There are two suites and one room, so book early. Double rooms from about $100 (Dh367).
The great virtue of the Residency Tower (www.residencytower.com; 0091 471 233 1661) is its central location on Mahatma Gandhi Road (MG Road) in the centre of the city. Besides that, it has spacious if functional rooms with all the usual trappings – fitness centre, swimming pool, wireless internet access and babysitters on demand. Average room rate is $100 (Dh367) but last-minute specials can occasionally be booked online the previous day for as low as $50 (Dh184) including a buffet breakfast.
Find your feet
The best part of town is the upmarket Jawahar Nagar area, with its winding streets, quaint boutiques and large bungalows. Visit the museum, which houses fabulous examples of Raja Ravi Verma, the painter-prince whose iconic images from Indian mythology grace many a poster and calendar in India. Adjacent to the museum is the sprawling 55-acre zoo with leafy lanes, water bodies and lakes. Within the same complex is the Napier Museum, which contains the work of K C S Panicker, one of Kerala's famous artists (www.keralamuseumandzoo.org).
Meet the locals
The Tagore Theatre hosts music and dance concerts from late September through January. The fort area is the older part of the city and is full of tiny shops selling jasmine garlands, brass vessels, prayer items, handloom saris and banana chips. If you have a tolerance for crowds, this is an area that offers a slice of life of yore. If you have local friends, the Trivandrum Club is a great place to spend the evening having drinks and eating fish cutlets.
Book a table
The Syrian beef, chicken roast, fish moily and prawns are all delicious at Villa Maya (www.villamaya.in/index.php), a renovated Dutch bungalow that serves Italian, Arab, Moroccan and Kerala cuisine in a spacious, tastefully decorated environment. A meal for two costs $20 (Dh73).
Ariya Niwas on Manorama Road serves tasty vegetarian thalis (or meal-on-a-plate) for about $2 (Dh7.34). Its Uthappam, dosa-crepes spiked with onions, green chillies and tomato are a speciality and cost about $1 (Dh3.67).
Locals go to Cherries & Berries (www.cherriesandberries.in) for pizza, milkshakes, sandwiches and pasta when they tire of their spicy home food.
Shopper’s paradise
The Fabindia store in Jawahar Nagar is housed in an old bungalow that reportedly belongs to the movie star Mohanlal. Its air-conditioned confines sell Indian clothes, scented candles and organic pickles. Thiruvananthapuram is known for its ayurvedic shops that sell oils, balms, soaps and shampoos. Tiny bookstores dot MG Road and sell the latest potboilers by Indian authors as well as classical Sanskrit texts on yoga and Ayurveda, translated into English. Pothys sells silk saris, salwar kameezes, stoles and fabric at reasonable prices.
Don’t miss
The temples of Kerala are clean and serene. Visit the Padmanabha Swamy Temple in the old fort area with its vast outer complex containing sculpted pillars and arches – this is the temple that gave the city its name (www.sreepadmanabhaswamytemple.org/cnr.htm).
What to avoid
Shankumugam Beach. The waves are treacherous and the touts are incorrigible. Far better to visit one of the resorts up or down the coast.
Go there
Etihad (www.etihad.ae) flies direct from Abu Dhabi to Thiruvananthapuram from Dh1,100 return including taxes. The flight takes four hours.
[ weekend@thenational.ae ]
Follow us @TravelNational
Follow us on Facebook for discussions, entertainment, reviews, wellness and news.
MATCH INFO
Manchester City 4 (Gundogan 8' (P), Bernardo Silva 19', Jesus 72', 75')
Fulham 0
Red cards: Tim Ream (Fulham)
Man of the Match: Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City)
DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin
Director: Shawn Levy
Rating: 3/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Xpanceo
Started: 2018
Founders: Roman Axelrod, Valentyn Volkov
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Smart contact lenses, augmented/virtual reality
Funding: $40 million
Investor: Opportunity Venture (Asia)
The biog
From: Upper Egypt
Age: 78
Family: a daughter in Egypt; a son in Dubai and his wife, Nabila
Favourite Abu Dhabi activity: walking near to Emirates Palace
Favourite building in Abu Dhabi: Emirates Palace
ROUTE TO TITLE
Round 1: Beat Leolia Jeanjean 6-1, 6-2
Round 2: Beat Naomi Osaka 7-6, 1-6, 7-5
Round 3: Beat Marie Bouzkova 6-4, 6-2
Round 4: Beat Anastasia Potapova 6-0, 6-0
Quarter-final: Beat Marketa Vondrousova 6-0, 6-2
Semi-final: Beat Coco Gauff 6-2, 6-4
Final: Beat Jasmine Paolini 6-2, 6-2
Tomb Raider I–III Remastered
Developer: Aspyr
Publisher: Aspyr
Console: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4&5, PC and Xbox series X/S
Rating: 3/5
Islamic Architecture: A World History
Author: Eric Broug
Publisher: Thames & Hudson
Pages: 336
Available: September
WWE Evolution results
- Trish Stratus and Lita beat Alicia Fox and Mickie James in a tag match
- Nia Jax won a battle royal, eliminating Ember Moon last to win
- Toni Storm beat Io Shirai to win the Mae Young Classic
- Natalya, Sasha Banks and Bayley beat The Riott Squad in a six-woman tag match
- Shayna Baszler won the NXT Women’s title by defeating Kairi Sane
- Becky Lynch retained the SmackDown Women’s Championship against Charlotte Flair in a Last Woman Standing match
- Ronda Rousey retained the Raw Women’s title by beating Nikki Bella
The specs
Engine: 6-cylinder, 4.8-litre
Transmission: 5-speed automatic and manual
Power: 280 brake horsepower
Torque: 451Nm
Price: from Dh153,00
On sale: now
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Fixtures
Opening day Premier League fixtures for August 9-11
August 9
Liverpool v Norwich 11pm
August 10
West Ham v Man City 3.30pm
Bournemouth v Sheffield Utd 6pm
Burnley v Southampton 6pm
C Palace v Everton 6pm
Leicester v Wolves 6pm
Watford v Brighton 6pm
Tottenham v Aston Villa 8.30pm
August 11
Newcastle v Arsenal 5pm
Man United v Chelsea 7.30pm
Uefa Nations League: How it works
The Uefa Nations League, introduced last year, has reached its final stage, to be played over five days in northern Portugal. The format of its closing tournament is compact, spread over two semi-finals, with the first, Portugal versus Switzerland in Porto on Wednesday evening, and the second, England against the Netherlands, in Guimaraes, on Thursday.
The winners of each semi will then meet at Porto’s Dragao stadium on Sunday, with the losing semi-finalists contesting a third-place play-off in Guimaraes earlier that day.
Qualifying for the final stage was via League A of the inaugural Nations League, in which the top 12 European countries according to Uefa's co-efficient seeding system were divided into four groups, the teams playing each other twice between September and November. Portugal, who finished above Italy and Poland, successfully bid to host the finals.
Frida
Director: Carla Gutierrez
Starring: Frida Kahlo
Rating: 4/5
The five pillars of Islam
Getting there and where to stay
Fly with Etihad Airways from Abu Dhabi to New York’s JFK. There's 11 flights a week and economy fares start at around Dh5,000.
Stay at The Mark Hotel on the city’s Upper East Side. Overnight stays start from $1395 per night.
Visit NYC Go, the official destination resource for New York City for all the latest events, activites and openings.
Sarfira
Director: Sudha Kongara Prasad
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal
Rating: 2/5
Fixtures
Wednesday, April 3
Arsenal v Luton Town, 10.30pm (UAE)
Manchester City v Aston Villa, 11.15pm (UAE)
Thursday, April 4
Liverpool v Sheffield United, 10.30pm (UAE)
Jeff Buckley: From Hallelujah To The Last Goodbye
By Dave Lory with Jim Irvin
The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 611bhp
Torque: 620Nm
Transmission: seven-speed automatic
Price: upon application
On sale: now
Dhadak
Director: Shashank Khaitan
Starring: Janhvi Kapoor, Ishaan Khattar, Ashutosh Rana
Stars: 3
THE BIO
Favourite book: ‘Purpose Driven Life’ by Rick Warren
Favourite travel destination: Switzerland
Hobbies: Travelling and following motivational speeches and speakers
Favourite place in UAE: Dubai Museum
Defending champions
World Series: South Africa
Women’s World Series: Australia
Gulf Men’s League: Dubai Exiles
Gulf Men’s Social: Mediclinic Barrelhouse Warriors
Gulf Vets: Jebel Ali Dragons Veterans
Gulf Women: Dubai Sports City Eagles
Gulf Under 19: British School Al Khubairat
Gulf Under 19 Girls: Dubai Exiles
UAE National Schools: Al Safa School
International Invitational: Speranza 22
International Vets: Joining Jack
Match info:
Manchester City 2
Sterling (8'), Walker (52')
Newcastle United 1
Yedlin (30')
Apple product price list
iPad Pro
11" - $799 (64GB)
12.9" - $999 (64GB)
MacBook Air
$1,199
Mac Mini
$799