Being a Malayalee, I have always gloated on the fact that I can call the 'God's Own Country' as my place of origin. Though I have spent nearly three decades in Delhi, I can still go on and on about how beautiful, divinely green and pristine is Kerala's natural beauty. And now am up to some more gloating as one more speck from my majestic homeland is taking over the world's imagination

Kakkathuruthu (tiny Crow Island in Malayalam) is a tiny land mass in Kerala's Alappuzha district that has been listed in National Geographic's 'Around the World in 24 Hours', a photographic tour of travel-worthy spots across the world.

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"It is a matter of pride for us to be listed by NatGeo, which is among the leading magazines in the world," said Kerala Tourism Minister A.C. Moideen.

The tiny island that can be reached only by boats, was captured by the magazine photographers during the time of dusk (around 6PM) when "the shadows lengthen and the sky shifts from pale blue to sapphire".

TOI

The magazine describes vividly, "the sunset in Kerala is greeted by a series of rituals -- Saree clad women head home in skiffs, fishermen light lamps and cast nets into the lagoon and bats swoop across the horizon snapping up moths."

"If dawn is awakening and daytime illumination, then twilight is transcendence, a final burst of vitality before darkness falls," adds NatGeo Expeditions.

TOI

The other destinations included in the magazine's list are the Northern Lights zone in Norway at 12 am, Hawaii at 5 am, Paris at 6 am, San Francisco at 7 am, Abu Dhabi at 8 am, Melbourne at 9 am, New York at 8 pm, Budapest (Hungary) at 10 pm.