Spanning three states blessed with diverse scenery, cultures, textiles and traditions, our South Indian Threads tour will give you a taste of authentic Indian life and culture as well as introducing you to a wealth of textiles and decorative techniques that are a feast for the senses.

Discover tropical forests and backwaters, historic Portuguese ports, sculpted mountain tea gardens, secluded beaches, bustling towns and cities, rural villages unchanged in centuries and spectacular historic temples and palaces. This tour is designed to give you a dazzling snapshot of this undiscovered part of South India and its highly skilled textile artisans.

On this tour you’ll experience authentic South India and be welcomed by her friendly, hospitable people.

• You have an adventurous spirit

• You love textiles.

• You want to learn more about handloom weaving, natural dyeing ,block printing and hand spinning and traditional Keralan crafts.

• You would like to support the skilled, local artisans make a living from these traditional crafts by joining our tour.

• You're happy to go off the regular tourist trails and spend time with local people.

• You're happy to eat simple traditional Indian food.

• You're OK with not having a glass of wine with dinner in the evening, although a beer is often possible!

• You have good mobility, can climb uneven steps and are happy to walk on unpaved roads, paths and tracks at times.

• You are happy being part of a small group and travelling in an air-conditioned extended mini- bus with two journeys of 4-5 hours, with breaks of course!

• You love shopping for fabrics!

Breakfast throughout the whole tour.

• Lunch included on days: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 15, 17, 19, 20,21

• Dinner included on days: 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21

FLYING TIME

Outward journey: London - Kochi via Gulf hubs - 12 hours flying time plus Gulf transfers.

Return journey: Bengaluru - London (Direct) - 11 hours flying time.

INTERNAL TRAVEL

Air conditioned 26 -29 seater coach depending on group size.

Longest journey time approximately 5 - 6 hours.

TRAIN

One, day time 2 .5 hour journey from Shoranur Junction to Kannur.

Welcome on arrival at Kochi International Airport and transfer to your hotel for a four

night stay in historic Fort Kochi. Enjoy a free day to rest, acclimatise and to explore the atmospheric and picturesque old streets and harbour of Fort Kochi. The glorious

faded architecture is evidence of the various European traders who occupied Kochi in the 17th and 18th centuries. You'll find excellent cafe's, art galleries, boutiques, and the unique Chinese fishing nets, within walking distance of your hotel. Tonight we invite you to an inclusive welcome. dinner at one of Fort Koch i's excellent harbour

front restaurants.

Explore eclectic and historic Fort Kochi with our included tuc tuc tour, or choose to wander independently through the old colonial streets enjoying the cosmopolitan atmosphere of delightful boutiques, cafe's and places of interest. Enjoy a traditional Kathakali theatre performance in the evening.

Our first textile expedition takes us by ferry from Fort Kochi to Vypin Island. There we'll hope to see street starching of cotton warp threads depending on the weather, then visit the weaving co-op where the yarn is lovingly hand woven into cotton shirting and sarees for the local area, giving a great glimpse into the handloom weavers way of life. Enjoy an inclusive Keralan lunch and then browse for Khadi cotton

and handloom fabric at the nearby Khadi shop in the afternoon. Enjoy dinner at a recommended restaurant or be free to choose your own.

Take a six hour rice boat trip on the serene local backwaters south of Fort Kochi. Float silently through the lush vegetation of the lagoons in a sustainable, motor-less rice boat, and enjoy a delicious Kerala style lunch on a banana leaf in a local waterside village, with a demonstration of local crafts. In the afternoon, experience life along the smaller waterways in a local, punted 'Snakeboat'.

Experience a wonderfully scenic drive up into the mountains of the Western Ghats to the old British hill station and tea-growing centre of Munnar. Your hotel for three nights is set in the contoured greenery of the tea gardens above a waterfall. Enjoy a walk through the woods to the waterfall or enjoy a swim in the heated infinity pool set breathtakingly high above the valley below.

The first day of our one and a half day workshop with Aranya Natural at the

natural dyeing and printing workshops of SRISHTI. Using natural dyes they create

beautiful textiles and garments with decorative techniques such as wax resist

block printing, clamp and tie dyeing. Try your hand at wax resist block printing today

using indigo and start your eco printing project in the afternoon in our hands-on

workshop. Return to your scenic hill top hotel for dinner this evening.

Experiment with eco-printing with wild flowers collected locally and native leaves today to complete your creative natural dyeing projects at Aranya Natural. We'll create an eco printed silk stole and see the results of our wax printed indigo scarves from Day 1. Finish off the day with a visit to the extensively stocked on site store to see their beautiful naturally dyed fabric and clothing collection. Dinner will be at your hotel this evening ready for an early start in the morning.

Today we'll explore the world of tea. Munnar is renowned for its high quality high altitude tea, including having the highest tea estate in India. The Munnar tea estates are mostly owned by Tata, one of the biggest corporations in India.

Our knowledgeable local guide will take us through the tea growing, plucking and

processing in one of the large tea estates. We will also hopefully accompany her to one of the workers villages to see how the teapluckers live.

A travel day through the most diverse and stunning scenery so far, winding up through Munnar's sculptural tea gardens into the mountains that divide Kera la and Tamil Nadu and down into the Chinnar Wildlife reserve and Adimali Tiger reserve of Tamil Nadu. There is the possibility of spotting some wildlife, if you are lucky! You'll arrive at your hotel resort in Pollachi in the late afternoon for a two night stay.

Today we'll visit one of two small villages near Pollachi to meet the last of the silk weavers in that area in their homes where they weave the most beautiful brocades and Pochampally style Ikats. One of these villages now has a Geographical Indication for the weavers unique saree style, which may help to improve the future of the weavers there. The designs come from outside the village, but the skill is in the weaving, which these villagers still retain.

A short drive back into the lush paddy fields and banana plantations of Kerala takes us to a remote village where we'll visit a women led weaving co-op to see them weaving traditional Kerala 'Kasavu' saris and Mundu, the male version, with a

modern twist. led a by a young designer who has designed the traditional Onam 'khadi' gift to the prime minister for the last two years.

They also have a toy making unit next door where traditional toy Kerala temple drums are made by hand by the women's empowerment group. Another hour takes us to our countryside heritage property near Ottapalam for a two night stay.

Today we'll continue the cultural theme when we visit Vellinezhi, a village lost among the paddy fields that is the spiritual home of the most refined form of Kathakali. Here, a family of skilled seamstresses, wood carvers, gilders and painters

make the ornate wooden ornaments and costumes of the Kathakhali performers. It takes one month to make one costume for a Kathakali performer!

This morning we take the train on a scenic route to our secluded beach house near Kannur in North Kerala for three nights. Our resort serves delicious traditional Kerala home cooking. You'll have time to unwind before we explore the rich cotton weaving

heritage of the Kannur area. Experience the famous and unique North Kerala ritual of Theyyam during our stay in Kannur, where dedicated performers in magnificent colourful costumes and makeup, actually manifest as the various local Hindu gods as they re­enact traditional stories and perform feats such as fire walking.

Explore one of Kannur's thriving co-operative hand loom weaving workshops this morning. in Kannur. Enjoy a traditional Kerala lunch after which we will delve into the rich cultural life of the region at the Kera la Folklore Akademi based in a stunning traditional Kerala palace. Alternatively, enjoy realaxing at our secluded beach resort to the music of the waves!

A flexible day to explore the local area. Thalassery is nearby with its British fort

and many associations to the black pepper trade. Shopping opportunities for fabrics, handloom, hand woven bed linen and sarees, in nearby Kannur,

Alternatively, enjoy another glorious day on the beach or take a motor boat ride on the nearby backwaters, (optional extra!).

We journey over the mountains that divide Kerala from Karnataka, taking you o nto the next stage of your exciting textile adventure, to the city of Mysore . This city of the plateau enjoys a less tropical climate than Kerala with pleasant temperatures around 30F in February. For centuries a city of the Wodeyar dynasty of Maharajahs, Mysore retains the unspoilt charm of a bygone age as many of the buildings have survived and give the city a flavour of its majestic past. In the early evening, enjoy an evening stroll around the vibrant and colourful Devaraja flower and spice market, sampling unique Mysore culinary delights en route, with a knowledgeable local guide.

We'll explore Mysore today and start with a visit to the government silk factory, famous for weaving the lustrous Mysore pure silk saris. There'll be a chance to shop for silks and gifts in the city before visiting the Maharajah of Mysore's opulent palace. Tonight we'll take a look inside a former royal palace, now a hotel, built as a guest house for visiting royalty and Governers of India during the Raj, on our way to an inclusive dinner at a delightful garden restaurant nearby.

Travel one hour to a once thriving Gandhian village industries centre, opened by Gandhi in 1927. Here, local women are trained in spinning and weaving to produce simple Khadi cotton items in a bid to keep the centre alive. A new Gandhian style visitor centre and museum is now being funded here to reflect the centre's historic importance. There's always a very warm welcome for visitors. On the way, we'll explore the temple town of Nanjangud with it's ornate temple gopura and bustling bazaar street full of rural Karnataka life. Our guide for the day is local to the area and full of knowledge about the culture and way of life here.

A free day to explore and enjoy Mysore at your leisure. Take a tour of the famous Devaraja Market, wander the old streets or learn to cook traditional Karnataka dishes with a Mysore resident cook on our optional 3 hour cookery class* Or try your hand at spinning cotton on the petti charkha with an accomplished spinning teacher on an optional 2 hour class*. Later we'll meet up to see the Maharajah's palace light up with 100,000 light bulbs.

* Depending on availability.

Today journey from Mysore back to Bangalore and stop for a visit to the Janapada Loka Parishat, an extraordinary open air folk museum covering 15 acres. The vision of one civil servant who wished to preserve what he could of the rural traditional life of Karnataka. Among the 5000 exhibits are reconstructions of traditional houses and village scenes. lifesize figures representing the folk arts and crafts of Karnataka.

Enjoy an inclusive dinner in Bangalore this evening.

Today you can try your hand at block printing in our full day workshop at Tharangini

creative printing studios in a beautifully green district of Bangalore. Our hostess will start the day by explaining the background to the history of the studios and its collection of of over 4,000 historic and modern wood blocks. We'll learn about the

creative processes involved in block printing, with and without the discharge process. This is followed by a technical demonstration and then it's over to you to experiment with your choice from the huge library of blocks available. You'll have two beautiful block printed pieces to take home with you.

The end of our South Indian Threads Tour. We hope you enjoyed your textile journey with us. We are so happy that you chose to travel with us and allowed us the privilege of introducing you to the quiet joys of textiles in South India. Thank you for your contribution to raising the value of hand made fabrics in India by joining us on our adventures. An inclusive transfer to Bengalaru International Airport is available for those who are returning home today. We look forward to welcoming you

back soon for another exciting Textile Travels experience. Namaskar!