Where have the spices gone....

I am fascinated by Kochi.....It has an old world charm. It speaks of Vasco da Gama landing and swooning with the aroma, redolent of spices.
It speaks of the gracious Raja who not only allowed Jews to settle in his kingdom but permitted them to build a Synagogue.
The antique shops always a pleasure for a quiet afternoon of browsing.
What intrigues me however are these majestic doors, beautiful doors leading to once prosperous warehouses laden with spices of such a variety.
What stories do these doors speak off? Surely they must be narrating tales of those glorious days when the spice trade was at its peak.
On one of my walks around, I stumbled upon an open door leading into a vast courtyard, which touched a river. The courtyard had its own wharf and I could imagine, coolies staggering under heavy sacks, crossing a plank, dumping those sacks laden with precious spices bound for distant shores.
On that day however, there was hardly any activity, the air was warm, scented with the smell of drying ginger did it have the spicy tinge of cardamom, it did.
On a wooden bench slept an old man and on the arm of a chair slept a tabby cat, what a picture of contentment a picture of peace....