Kottayam

Kottayam is a city in south-central Kerala, sandwiched between the Vembanad Lake and the Kerala hill-country. Best known as a hub of trade and commerce, Kottayam is also a centre for education and literature, and as a centre of Kerala's large Christian population. The lingua franca in Kottayam is Malayalam, the official language of the state of Kerala. Travellers should not face much difficulty in getting by with English, as the language is widely understood, at least at a rudimentary level. Most sign-boards above shops are in English as well. On the other hand, conversing with the locals in Hindi is a far more difficult task and best avoided.