The coastal town of Thalasseri (formerly Tellicherry), 20km southeast of Kannur, was a major cardamom and pepper export hub under the British East India Company. Its British-built fort – now filled with neat gardens of hibiscuses, frangipanis and palms – dates from 1708. Below, gazing out to sea from the clifftop, stands the restored neo-Gothic 1867 St John's Church, with its whitewashed walls, chandeliers and stained-glass windows.