Royal Visit: Wheels-Up

That’s it. It’s all over. Just under an hour ago, their Royal Highnesses flight took off for the short hop to Colombo and what could be a more difficult Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting than is usual.

The day dawned beautifully for the Prince of Wales’ 65th birthday – divine intervention in God’s own country? 

Another day that will be remembered by the people of Cochin, my team and – I’m pretty sure – the Prince and the Duchess for many years to come. In the morning, the hotel presented a birthday cake with a beautiful iced picture of the couple. After a shortcake-cutting ceremony, and agreement that most of the cake should be shared with a nearby orphanage, the Chief Minister and his wife called upon the Prince of Wales.

They had an excellent discussion about Kerala, both its successes and challenges, and agreed that our two governments should continue to work together on sustainable urbanisation projects like that in Aluva. The Chief Minister and his wife had also brought gifts for their Royal Highnesses – an elephant for the birthday royal, and a beautiful traditional Keralan saree for the Duchess.

A one and a quarter-hour drive took us into the historic centre of old Cochin (we’d timed it at an hour, but once again the Royal Couple took the time to wave to the people lining the streets.

A quick tour of the Matancherry (aka Dutch Palace) to see the beautiful 17th Century Ramayana murals and the legacy of the Cochin royal family, including a sword handed to Maharaja Rama Varma, who was made the ‘Knight Commander of the most Exalted Order of the Star of India’ by the then Prince of Wales Albert Edward in 1876, Prince Charles’ Great Great Grandfather and later to become Edward VII.

It was a short walk from there to the beautiful and historic Synagogue, the last of what were 8 synagogues in Cochin serving a large and prosperous Jewish Community which had thrived in what was then Cranganore since at least 70 BC (some believe that there were Jewish sailors from King Solomon’s time more than 600 years earlier).

Their Royal Highnesses were received by Queenie Hallegua, herself a fourth-generation Jew who, with her late husband, had received Her Majesty the Queen during her visit in 1997.  There are now only 7 Jews still living in Cochin (including the oldest, the sari-clad Jane Cohen) – most have left for Israel or the US – and holding services is increasingly difficult.

But this – the oldest synagogue in the Commonwealth – remains a peaceful and powerful symbol of Kerala’s religious tolerance dating back to 379 CE, when the King of Travancore gave the Cochin Jews copper plates recognising their rights to raise tax, own property and to practice their religion freely, including by building synagogues, for “as long as the world and moon exist”. A magical and touching visit.

The final stretch was a walk along the very atmospheric – and crowd-lined – Jew Street, with random renditions of happy birthday – of varying quality – ringing out. Their Royal Highnesses saw traditional – and sadly near-extinct – lace-making skills by the wives of local fishermen. They also visited some antique stores to view Kerala traditions, and a ladies collective which trades in spices, tea and handmade cosmetics, and local clothing.

I won’t give away any secrets, but it’s probably fair to say that there will be some happy family members when they return to the UK.

A quick hop to the airport for a final farewell line-up by the State Government, and a thank you from their Royal Highnesses to the Chennai Team saw the Royal Couple board the Royal Flight. Once the flight took off, there was a strange moment when the team looked a little confused as to what was to happen next.

A very unsettling sense of anticlimax after realising that, after being a part of something so large, special and all-consuming, life was very quickly going to go back to normal.

Photos available on British High Commission’s Flickr channel.