Driving down NH 17 from Kozhikode towards Kochi, Kerala unfurled all its natural hues. The flaming gulmohars in bloom seemed just that shade brighter, coconut trees and paddy fields again a wee bit greener…this is a landscape awash with colors of nature. So driving into the lime washed white walls and sloping tile roof of Brunton Boatyard (BB) 
was like entering a monochromatic world. It is well-nigh impossible to believe that BB is a new building. Its resemblance to the old colonial buildings of Fort Kochi is so close that only an ace architect or conservationist can pick it out. A giant tree in the courtyard rounds off the old world aura. The mysterious charm of this hotel forced me to dig a little deeper. This was originally a boatyard run by a European. And you can see why. Located on the water front, it is today a busy water way stretch between the port and the sea. There wasn’t much by way of a structure back then (over a century I presume). It was more of a shed workshop with tropical trees all around. The present structure was commissioned in 1999. But such is the meticulous job done by the Indo-German architect duo that you simply marvel and take in the haunting quality of the spaces. All the rooms overlook the bay. Watching freight ships and passenger boat ferrying people across the many islands of Kochi gives travelers an idea why this was such a coveted port down the centuries!
