Poovar lies very close to Vizhinjam, a natural harbor. Poovar has an estuary which connects with the sea during high tides. The 56km Neyyar River passes through Neyyattinkara taluk into the Arabian Sea near Poovar. It’s natural beauty enables it to be a quiet tourist spot.

Poovar was a trading center of timber, sandlewood, ivory and spices. It is believed that the trading ships of King Solomon landed in a port called ‘Ophir’, which is figured out as Poovar. Poovar has been one of the ancient Muslim settlements along the western coast of India.The Central Mosque here is believed to been built by Malik ibn Dinar and his missionary team, more than 1400 years ago.

Poovar Beach

Nearest Airport : Trivandrum International Airport – 20km, Nearest Railway Station : Trivandrum Central – 22km, Nemom – 12km, Nearest Harbor : Vizhinjam – 14km

Paraniyam, Near Poovar

Paraniyam is located around 24Km from Trivandrum, and 3Km from Poovar on the Poovar-Kanjiramkulam-Trivandrum Road.. The Paraniyam YMCA, Govt HSS and CSI Paraniyam Church are the major institutions here.

CSI Church Paraniyam

A Sadya is a big feast associated with a special occasion, such as a marriage, birthday, childbirth etc. A Sadya is traditionally a vegetarian meal served on a plantain or banana leaf; people eat sitting cross-legged on the floor. Sadhya can have up to 24 dishes served in it.

The dishes are plain boiled rice, many curries, papadum, plain yogurt or buttermilk, banana or plantain chips, and two or more sweet dishes. The curries are made of different vegetables and have different flavourings. They can be made of yogurt, bitter gourd, mango, jaggery, etc. The reason for including so many dishes in the Sadya is to ensure that the diners will like at least two or three dishes.

Coconut, being abundant in Kerala, is used in almost all dishes. Coconut milk also finds various uses in cooking. Coconut oil is used for frying.

There is a specific place for each item on the plantain leaf. For example, the pickles are served on the top left corner and banana on the bottom left corner. Thus, the waiters can easily identify the requirement of the diner by just looking at his leaf.

There are variations in the menu according to the place and the religion. Some communities include non-vegetarian dishes in the sadya. Although custom was to use traditional and seasonal vegetables, it has become common practice to include vegetables such as carrots, pineapples, beans in the dishes. Onion and garlic are not typically used in the sadya.

The sadya is usually served as lunch. Preparations begin the night before, and the dishes are prepared before ten o’ clock in the morning on the day of the celebration. On many occasions, sadya is served on dining tables, as people no longer find it convenient to sit on the floor.

All the dishes are served on the plantain leaf; it requires a special skill to eat the food. The whole palm and fingers of the hand have to be used in the form of a ladle to lift the food from the leaf and eat it without spilling it.

Traditionally, the people of the neighbourhood spent the night helping the cooks in works like scraping coconut and cutting vegetables. These people also volunteered to serve the food to the guests. This lent a personal touch to the occasion. Enterprise and urban demands on time and space have now made it possible for the work to be contracted to professional catering services.

The meal is always followed by vettila murukkan, chewing of betel leaf with lime and arecanut. This aids in digestion of the heavy meal and also cleanses the palate

Courtesy: Wikipedia

Posted in Culture Tagged: banquet, Delicious, feast, Kerala, lunch, Malayalam, Sadya