[edit] Thalassery
22 km from Kannur. This town by the sea has remarkable facet imparted by the first British garrison and port in the area . Built in 1708, the square Fort erected by the British on a rocky cliff overlooking the waterfront dominates the town. The British sport, cricket, was first( in India) played here. Equally, the British comfort food, the cake, was first baked here. The main reason most tourists venture this far north, however is to experience theyyam , the extraordinary masked spirit possession rituals staged in villages across the region between November and May. The Indian circus originated here. It was legendary Keeleri Kunhikannan who trained the circus artists a hundred and odd years ago.
Thalassery was the linchpin of early British trade in pepper, cardamom and timber in the Northern Malabar and the site of many a skirmish between the East India Company and its European rivals, not to mention their local Indian adversaries, the Kolathiri Rajas. the busy fishing harbour and an antique Moppila Mosque -the stalwart Odathil Palli Masjid hold plenty of local milieu. It is designed in typical hybrid Malabari style with multi tiered copper and tiled roofs, turquoise painted slotted screens wrapped around its eaves and a gold covered conical dome crowning its apex. There are some enchanting homestays where you can enjoy traditional hospitality and some lipsmaking local delicacies.
Thalassery has long been an important centre of Kalaripayattu , Kerala's own martial art and at the CVN Kalari in the suburb of Chirakavu you can watch daily training sessions conducted in a traditional pit.( 6.30am to 9am daily)
