Jew Street

Kochi: Jew Street

One among the oldest parts of Cochin city is the Jew town or Jew street. It is a busy street in Mattanchery that extends from the Mattanchery Dutch palace to the Jewish synagogue that flaunts its history. The Malabari Jews(the Jews from the Arabian continent ) controlled a major part of spice trade worldwide till world war 2. After world war 2, when modern Israel was formed, a major part of the Jewish community migrated to Israel. Unfortunately the Jew town now barely has any jew left. Even now most of the shops on this street sell spices and a variety of colourful handicrafts and unique antiques which attracts a lot of foreign tourists to this place.In this town, you’ll find all sorts of things like locally made chandeliers, Kerala traditional handmade sarees and other articles of clothing, bathing soaps, scents, accessories, Bronze idols and containers, Indian lamps, paintings and other things offering the tourists an array of interesting options of souvenirs to take back home.Some archaeological items are also exhibited in different shops. Hence you’ll find a lot of tourists in this place. All men, women and children equally enjoy strolling down the street, checking out different shops and soaking in the history of the place. The food served in the counters here also satisfies the western taste which makes the travel experience more incredible.According to local reports, the best time to be in this place is from august to febraury. It is during these months that tourists from different parts of the world come to experience Kochi. This Jew town is one of the best places in Kochi to spend an entire afternoon. Autorickshaws are also available for hire all the time in and around this place.

It is around 10 km from Ernakulam south railway station and 42 km from the Cochin international airport.