Kerala
has a glorious history and culture which
is reflected in the various temples and
monuments of the state. The state has to
its credit various forts which are not only
of historical significance but are also
of great architectural marvel. The Palakkad
Fort of Tipu Sultan, The Bekal Fort in Kasargode,
the Kochi Fort and St Angelo’s Fort
are some of the monuments that one should
not fail in visiting. A huge number of monuments
are located in and around Ernakulam district.
They are Bolgatty Palace - Kochi, Dutch
Palace - Mattancherry, Bastion Bungalow
Kochi, Jewish Synagogue Mattancherry, St.
Francis Church Kochi.
Kerala is also home to a number of palaces
signifying the royal influence and also
a number of Bungalows due to the various
foreign settlements here. Bolghatty Palace,
Ernakulam, Alwaye Palace - Mananthavady,
Krishnapuram Palace - Kayamkulam, Mattanchery
Palace - Kochi, Hill Palace Museum - Thripunithura,
(Ernakulam, Arakkal Palace & Kannur
Fort - Kannur District, Koyikkal Palace
- Nedumangad are some of the must visit
palaces here. The famous Bunglows of monumental
status are the Vasco House, Thakur House,
Pierce Leslie Bungalow, Koder House, Bishop's
House, Bastion's Bungalow, Gundert Bungalow,
Mannadi, and Chittur Garumadam.
The Kerala population has traditionally
been very religious which is reflected in
the number of beautiful temples and other
places of worship of various religions.
The famous temples are the Chottanikkara
Temple, Guruvayoor Temple, Sabarimala Temple,
Vadakkumnathan Temple, Aranmula Temple,
Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple – Tiruvananthapuram,
Chuliyar Bhagavathy Temple – Kanhangad,
Lake Temple - Ananthapura, Mahaganapathy
Temple – Madhur, Triruchambaram Vishnu
Temple – Thaliparambu, Sri Mutthapan
Temple - Parassinikadavu, Glass Temple –
Kottamunda, Mahavishnu Temple – Thirunelli,
Sri Mahaganapathy Temple – Thiruvangoor.
There is a fair number of Muslim and Christian
population which results in a number of
churches and mosques like St. Thomas Church
- Malayattoor, St. Mary's Church –
Cheriapalli, Thazhathangadi – Valiapalli,
St. George's Church – Puthupalli,
St. Joseph's Monastery, Mannanam, Kaduthuruthi
Valiapalli, Vimalagiri Church, St. Thomas
Church – Pala, St. Thomas Church-Cherpungal,
Aruvithira Church., Cheraman Juma Masjid,
St. Sebastian Church and the Churches at
Muttuchira. The Jewish Synagogue is a symbol
of the early Jewish settlement in Kerala
and adds to the attraction of the tourists.
