Welcome to Mullakal Carnival!
Hello you guys, welcome back to my new travel blog!
This time I visited a place called Mullakal in Alappuzha city. Every year they conduct a Grand Carnival/ Cultural/ Religious festival annually called Mullakal Chrappu (Carnival) in December. It's an 11 day celebration and as the days progess the celebration becomes huge as well and when I mean huge you will be see more shops, rides and definitely more people haha. Considering India being the most populated country on Earth now, these kind of crowd is normal to us lol. I didn't go alone because some things are better with company, right? It's December so it was a bit chilly at night so I was a bit reluctant at first but then I got a message on WhatsApp (Yes, WhatsApp is more popular here) from my college mate asking if I was interested in hanging out with them there. I obliged so I cycled there instead of using my BMW car (kidding) and met one of them at the front entrance of the carnival. I reached there first and I was waiting for the other one to show up. Turns out he was having second thoughts but he came anyway. After that we parked our vehicles safely and entered the place!
Enjoy the pictures :)
The light Tower
This is one of first things you see when you enter the place. It's beautiful and you have to see it with your own eyes. It changes it's colour and pattern on regular intervals. See that Bhima logo on it? That's a huge Jewellery brand in India and they are the ones who sponsored this Carnival so it's only natural to see their brand name in there hehe. You can also see the Hindu Deities crafted with lights on both sides as well. I already mentioned that it's a mix of religion and cultural festival so that's why it's there.
Beginning of the Entrance
They really did a great job decorating the whole place especially the top. Lots of lights and coloured paper decorations are all over the place. The left and right side of the street is filled with different types of shops. You will see that as you scroll down the post.
The undying flowers
That's a fancy name I just gave to these beautiful plastic flowers haha. Best for people who doesn't want to spend too much money and care because the real ones cost more and will die out without proper care. They all look great now but without proper maintenance, dusting I mean it's gonna turn brown real quick xd.
Pet show
While I was enjoying the view I saw this bad boy. My eyes were so fixated on him that I didn't see the board behind it. Yes, I did not know they were conducting a pet show there lol. I only saw that when I came back home while I was browsing through the pictures I took and on top of that it was cheap af (36 cents per person). Well, that's what I get for staring at that majestic creature but it was worth it hehe. Very surprised how he was so calm when there were so much people and noise around.
Balloons with some style
When I was little I never saw any balloons like these. A balloon inside a transparent balloon looks really good. On top of that there are led lights around them which makes them standout compared to the normal ones. Definitely something children would buy these days. Forget thate even I would would buy them for decorations xd.
Mulaku Bhaji (Chilli Sandwich)
This is one of the best Street foods a foodie might come across in India. People who love spicy foods should definitely try this. I love the taste of this particular chilli, it's not very hot unlike the normal ones. This combined with the deep fried masala mixed dough on the outside and Tomato chutney as sauce is one of the greatest things you will ever eat in your life. It's cheap so more for everyone hehe. I'm sure if you are from the Philippines then you know this in a different name called Dynamite. The only difference is our variant is without the stuffings inside the chilli.
Who wants cotton candy?
The marketing here insane xd. You gotta do what you have to do to sell them. Smart move by the seller there. These things has a huge fanbase all over the globe. I bet they all sold out by the end of the day.
Masala gram with veggies and Corn roast
I tried this one. It was phenomenal. They use steamed while gram, bunch of veggies that you see in the pic plus some crispy things made out of flour. They mix the whole thing with a bit of masala, lime juice and tomato sauce. It was really good and most importantly cheap. Infact when I came back home we made it on our own and it turned out great. It's a healthy snack you can munch on when it's cold outside.
This one I haven't tried. I'm basically banned from eating it by my mother because according to her it might worsen my already weak digestive system xd. Can't complain there, who wants to get suck during festive times, right?
Spicy popcorn anyone?
Another snack for people who are into spicy foods. I personally don't like popcorn anymore. I mean I like the taste but some pieces get stuck on my throat which makes me want to cough until I drink a lot of water. It's annoying especially when you are outside or watching a movie in a theatre. No one wants to hear me cough like a maniac haha. Am I the only one who has this issue?
Dynamic and stationary toy vendors
These guys just walk along with the crowd making some funny sounds with their toys. They usually stop at a place when they are either making a sale or when they are tired. Mota of them carry cheap musical instruments like flutes and harmonicas. People here like them both so they are sold pretty fast.
These stationary ones have lots of stuff to choose from. The best part is lots of them are easily affordable. I mean think about it, we have kids these days running around with gaming phones. This is nothing compared to that. All in all if you want it then you can afford. It's only the desire that matters now.
Affordable jewellery for the ladies
Sri Rajarajeshwari Temple
This event was conducted specifically to show homage to the deity Sri Rajarajeshwari of this Temple in Mullakal, Alappuzha. That's the front entrance of the temple. The shot's perspective was made this way on purpose. I personally don't think it's right to post the statue of the deity here without permission from the temple authorities and from a religious standpoint even though I'm not that much religious it almost feels like I'm dishonouring the deity by taking pictures.
Clay pots for sale
No idea where the parents went because the kid was alone here. I'm sure they are around hopefully. The pots look great but not for people who are clumsy hehe. Not sure about the price though. Didn't ask because most people use plastic vessels here because of the durability.
Street side bakery
Best place to buy sweets in bulk if you are into sweet foods. They will give decent discount when you buy like that. Also if you request them they will give you freshly cooked food right out of the pan. One of the advantages of eating from there is the freshness of food. Did I say it's cheap? Well it is hehe.
Home Decorations
Not sure about where the golden ones fit inside a house but I do like those decorative lights. I think I might buy one for a cousin of mine who likes to sleep with lights on. That would be a nice gift indeed.
Mini Tattoo vendor
If you are into tattoos but don't like needles and also don't want them permanently this right here is a good option for you guys. They use ink from henna tree leaves so it's going to vanish eventually. I speak from personal experience because my aunt had a huge henna tree in her backyard.
Herbs and Spices
These guys are always here on this spot whether there is a carnival or not. Either way they get sales but they get even more during this time. The smell around this shop is quite pleasant. We use most of the stuff here to make our spicy curry hehe.
Joy Rides!
The Spinner
I recommend not going in there if your stomach is full. I gurantee that you will projectile vomit when the ride is over lol. The base is already spinning on top of that the individual seats in there also spins. Connect the dots and think about what's gonna happen when you go in after having a great meal xd.
Kid's Ride
Saw some kids ride along the way. I tried both of these when I was their age. My parents used to bring me here during this time every year before highschool. After that I spent most my time here with my friends until college. Really brings back a lot of memories after seeing these moments.
The boat ride
You see I wanted to ride in one of these but apparently the ones who came with me were all scared to ride one so I had to cancel that idea sigh! I mean, I understand them, I rode it before and it was fun and very scary at the same time. One would think the ride is scary but the reality is getting a ticket while being in a never ending queue feels is what I'm actually scared to do because once you bought the tickets there is no backing out from the line. I know it's weird but these ride owners asks us to buy one as early as possible because they always run out of tickets.
Well of Death
Picture a Giant wooden well with no water, now picture a bunch of stunt men and women with cars and bikes riding on the side walls of the well showing badass stunts. How badass is that? They are iron willed for sure. These guys are really talented and deserve all the recognition in the world. We really wanted to go in there but again the queue was too long. It's fine because there is so much time left to comeback and see it in the coming days hehe. If you want to see what's happening in there then open YouTube and search Death well stunt. Tell me what you think after watching it.
Ferris Wheel
Another ride I wanted to try but couldn't because the guys didn't co-operate xd. The view from the top is superb from past experiences and another unwanted experience you feel is that weird uncomfortable feeling when the wheel spins our cabinet down. I have to control my breathing most of the time to reduce the discomfort xd but still worth it though. I wished they did more safety checks on these things because I'm seeing old and rusted parts all around it.
Decorative tower at the end of the street
This concludes my trip for now. I hope you guys enjoyed watching the pictures like I enjoyed my visit there. This event is not done yet. Let's say there is more to share and I will do that by the end of this month hehe so thank you so much for visiting this blog. Thank you for your time and I'll see you soon with my next blog :)
All images are shot by me otherwise credited