Varkala Beach

As I entered deeper into Kerala you really notice some culture differences within India. South India in general is more laid back and you see more women walking about. Mumbai of course is the most cosmopolitan city of India and has adopted many western cultures. Though in Kerala it seemed that women had more rights/respect and the literacy rate for both men and women were the highest.

My final super long bus ride landed me in Varkala Beach. I spoke with some fellow travelers who had been here many years ago and like everything else, it changed a lot. From almost nothing to completely developed for tourism. Other backpackers liked Varkala, but I was a little burnt out on beach towns and not very impressed.

Varkala was set on a cliff along the coast so if you wanted to get to the main beach you had to walk all the way down to the water. I only stayed there for a few days because I had scheduled a two week yoga retreat down south. That’s right you heard me, Yoga Retreat.