My twelfth and final day in Kerala, India continued in Kozhikode, a city in Kerala, is located approximately 250 miles away from its state capital, Trivandrum. Where I went all-out on a fun challenge! Come along with me as I go on a 5000 rupee shopping spree challenge at Koyenco Bazar in Kerala, India!
I began my afternoon at Koyenco Bazar on S.M. Street. I had 5,000 rupees, which is about $66 USD. I wanted to buy some textiles, food, and souvenirs. You can also buy sweets, dresses, shoes, food, baked items, and more. We saw lots of dried fruits including figs and dates, as well as chocolate, and lots of halwas. I also saw bags of spicy snack mix, which I bought for 100 rupees/$1.33 USD.
The snack mix was crunchy and coated in a delicious masala. Across from that vendor is one selling footwear. Further along, I saw cleaning products, more shoes, sweets, and more. Then, we continued my 5000 rupee shopping spree at a shop selling lots of halwas called Galaxy Sweets.
They looked amazing and came in lots of different colors. I tried a few different varieties including chili halwa and a tender coconut halwa. I loved the gummy texture of the dried fruit halwa as well! The jackfruit was nice, as was the Kozhikode halwa. The dried fruit is the most expensive. I asked for a kilo of the honey halwa, which cost 240 rupees/$3.19 USD.
Next on my 5000 rupee shopping spree, we came across some Kozhikode paintings, including one of a Kathakali performer, which I bought for my assistant for 400 rupees/$5.31 USD. From there, I wanted to find another head cloth, so we visited a textile shop. Ebbin showed me one that you can wrap around your waist. You can fold it up to keep your legs cool, as you only wear underwear underneath it. White ones are more formal.
We also got a traditional white head cloth with a black border. I bought two—one to wrap around my head and the other to cover my head. It felt like the ones I wore in Morocco! In total, I spent 350 rupees/$4.64 USD there. Back out in the bazaar, I checked out a few jewelry shops, household items, knives, and more. I was finding this challenge hard, as I didn’t want to spend on things I didn’t need, and the stuff I did like and need was super affordable.
We found a handicrafts shop where everything looked pricier. They had carved elephants, carvings of gods, and a beautiful rosewood elephant that would have cost me 2500/$33.18 USD, which would have only left me with 1,000 rupees. I decided to wait to see what other stuff would have cost me before getting it.
We entered a building where they had lots of wooden elephants, camels, panthers, and more. The panther was 35,000 rupees/$464.48 USD, and I found a nice sculpture of a mother elephant and her baby for 2,700 rupees/$35.83 USD. Nothing was my style, so we moved on to a bookshop, where I bought two awesome maps of India and Kerala for 30 rupees each/$0.40 USD. It took me two weeks to find some good maps!
Next on my 5000 rupee shopping spree, we visited a Kalanthan’s E.P.K. Fruit Centre, where I got a mixed pineapple/orange juice for just 50 rupees/$0.66 USD. It was so pure and refreshing, I downed it in one gulp and got another! There, I spent 180 rupees/$2.39 USD, total.
Then, we saw a memorial to the most famous travel writer from Kerala. It included large plates of his writings and scenes from his travels. It was a big hangout spot with lots of seating. Then, we headed to Swamy & Sons Coffee Dealers, where I bought a kilo of their best coffee beans for 600 rupees/$7.96 USD. The woman there ground them and packaged them up for me. Then, we went inside a jewelry shop after taking off our shoes at the door. They had silver and gold. I wanted to find something for my daughters. I bought some beautiful silver anklets for 2250 rupees/$29.86 USD.
Then, I went to get a haircut! I couldn’t wait to have a massage and get rid of my beard. A haircut and shave there costs 200 rupees/$2.65 USD, while a head massage costs 150 rupees/$1.99 USD. He charged another 50 for the wash, so it came to 400 rupees/$5.31 USD total. I felt super refreshed afterward!
What an awesome 5000 rupee shopping spree challenge! Even with everything I spent, I still didn’t spend the entire 5,000 rupees. Of my roughly $66 limit, I only spent 4580 rupees/$60 USD!
Huge thanks to my boy Ebbin for making my final day in Kerala so much fun. Be sure to subscribe to him on YouTube and follow him on Instagram! Also, don’t forget to subscribe to my YouTube channel so you don’t miss any of my travel/food adventures around the world!
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