OVERVIEW

Experience life in a local fishing village by interacting with the residents, watching them tend to their fishing tackle and participating in community activities. Upon your arrival, the village chieftain and elders will greet you during a ceremonial event known as a durbar, an Indo-Persian term for “ruler’s court.” It can be quite the spectacle as there is traditionally dancing, music and the pouring of a libation that honors the village ancestors. Feel free to mingle with the celebrants and learn a bit about court etiquette. Later, the villagers will invite you to their homes to demonstrate how they smoke fish and mend their nets. The nets purposefully have holes large enough for fingerlings to escape in hopes of keeping the fishing industry sustainable. For the same reason, fishermen take Tuesdays off and consider it taboo to do otherwise. Even so, life is changing as new offshore oil deposits fuel the economy.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Visit a traditional fishing village and mingle with the residents for a glimpse into their lives.
• Participate in a durbar, a festive reception with dancing, singing and drumming.

• Enjoy an insider’s look at the local fishing industry and how its traditions are changing. • Stop in a village home to see how a typical fisherman prepares for a day on the sea.

HELPFUL HINTS

• Dress in weather-appropriate clothing.
• Wear flat comfortable walking shoes.