Church of Our Lady of Hope, Vypeen

The Church of Our Lady of Hope, known locally as the Portuguese Church or Parangi Palli, stands at Fort Vypin on the southern tip of Vypeen Island, where Vembanad Lake meets the Arabian Sea, with Fort Cochin across the water. Raised by Portuguese missionaries and consecrated by Bishop Dom Andrea de Santa Maria in 1605, it ranks among Kochi's oldest churches and shows Portuguese architectural influence. It is a Latin Catholic parish of the Diocese of Cochin.

Its patron, Our Lady of Hope, is venerated as protector of fishermen and sailors, and its emblem is an anchor. The church's treasure is a six-foot Ecce Homo statue of the bruised Christ, carved from a single piece of rosewood and wrapped in a velvet cloak. It was given by the captain of a Portuguese ship bound for Macau, has been kept here for more than 400 years, and is venerated on the fourth Sunday of Lent.