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CHENNAI
Date of publishing: 10/10/2010
Paragraphs:
Introduction, Travel Guide, Landmarks and Historic sites,
Museums, Beaches, Getting around, Bars, Tours, Theaters and
performance, Nightlife, Stores and shopping malls, Travel tips,
Packing list, Safety and Warnings
About
Introduction
- Introduction
Chennai, in the past known as Madras, is the capital of the great
state Tamil Nadu and one of the four metropolitan cities in India. It
is situated in the southern part of India. This city is only 350 yearsold and it grew up under the influence of an English settlement of
Fort Saint George, with the time it absorbed the towns and villages
in the surrounding. The British influence didn’t hinder Chennai in
keeping its traditional Tamil Hindu culture. The city has a wide
extension of about 180 square kilometres and is one of the most
important trading centres of India. Chennai is well connected by
road, rail and air to other important cities and is also a sea port. In
1639 Chennai was a little
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tiful cities of India.
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Travel Guide
- Travel Guide
Chennai has plenty of historical treasures as temples,
palaces, forts and shrines. The climate in Chennai is
rather hot and wet. The temperatures go from 37°C to
21°C in summer and from 32°C to 20°C in winter. The
annual average of precipitation reaches 1272mm. The
best time recommended to visit Chennai is from
January to April.
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- Kapaleeshwar Temple
Kapaleeshwar Temple is a Hindu temple situated in
Mylapore at Chennai in India. It is believed to have
been built in the 8th century by the Pallavas. It is
dedicated to Lord Shiva, called Kapaleeshwar . The
statue of his wife, Parvati, is also situated in the temple
and known as Karpagamabl. The temple demonstrates
a typical Dravidian architectural style, where thegopuram stands-out on the street where the temple lies.
It has two entrances. Apart from Shiva, the temple
houses other shrines that are dedicated to lords such
as Ganesha, Muruga and Sani Bhagvan. It also
contains ‘vahanas’ like elephant, bull, bandicoot, goat
and a golden chariot. The god and goddess, sitting on
the vahana are brought around the temple with the
devotees playing music and lifting the vahanas. The
deities are offered four pujas daily. Each year, a
number of festivals like Spring Festival and
Arupathimoover Festival are celebrated by thedevotees.
- Marina Beach
The Marina Beach is the second largest beach in th
world and also the biggest in Asia. It is spread along
the eastern coasts of Tamil Nadu in the city Chenna
the capital of Tamil Nadu. The stretch is of about 12
kilometers where various activities like swimming, su
bathing, fishing and wind surfing are offered.
Additionally, there are several parks and memorials a
Marina. Some of the best features of Marina Beach a
the magnificent view of the sunset, picturesque look o
old structures, lantern lit shops and stalls, horse rides
the silhouetted look of the fishermen boats and kids
busy in sand castle making. The sandy beaches and
the main road are bifurcated by a park stroll. Here, the
are statues of some reputed personalities of India like
Thanthai Periyar, Swami Sivananda, Kamaraj,
Tiruvalluvar, Bharatidasan, Bal Gangadhar Tilak and
Mahatma Gandhi.
- Ramakrishna Temple
The gateway of the Ramakrishna Temple is as per th
Dravidian style of temple architecture. The forecourt
the temple is similar to those of the monuments of
Mughals in Delhi like the Red Fort or Taj Mahal inAgra. There is a central lawn that is 30 feet in width
flanked by pathways that are 15 feet wide and made o
colored ceramic tiles. This entire structure is protected
by a decorated low parapet wall that has eight light
pedestals. The distance between the ground level and
the floor of the prayer hall of the temple is 10 feet. The
staircase that leads to
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the prayer hall is 16 feet wide and there are 24 steps
paved with marble slabs. The space underneath the
prayer hall and other parts of the temple is used as an
auditorium or as rooms. In this temple, the differentarchitectural elements and themes found in the
Ramakrishna, Buddhist and Hindu temples as well as
the cathedrals and churches of Europe are combined.
- Doveton House
The Doveton House in Chennai was constructed by
the famous architect Benjamin Roebeck in the year
1798. There are pillars in the front region and half moon
steps at the back of the Senate House which resemble
the colonial style and evoke the memories of the
White House, as it is similarly built. At the beginning,
the Doveton House was a residential building whereEnglish officers stayed on their visit to Chennai. Also,
the Gaekwad of Baroda was kept in custody here as
he attempted to kill a British resident in his state. The
name Doveton House was coined when Lieutenant
General John Doveton took charge of the building in
1837. After Doveton, this house was used as a prison
where British officials kept the prisoners in custody. The
last person to live here was a High Court Judge, Sir
Ralph Benson. In 1916, this place became the
Women’s Christian College.
- Santhome Cathedral Santhome Cathedral was originally built at Mylapore
in Chennai by Apostle St. Thomas. He advocated in
Chennai for 20 years from 52 A.D. onwards, but was
killed in St.Thomas mount. The current monument is
above the tomb of St. Thomas. Portuguese voyagers
had initially constructed a Roman Catholic cathedral
in the 16th century. In 1893, the British people
renovated it. This structure has a museum connected to
it. The length of the Cathedral nave is 112 feet and the
breadth is 33 feet. Between the central portion of the
church and the sanctuary, there exists a transept that
has a length of
104 feet and width of 25 feet. The intention of building
storey at the top was to grab the clock. The secondstorey is being utilized as belfry. In the Central Hall,
there are 14 wooden plaques. These demonstrate the
scenes pertaining to the final days of Christ. The tip o
the cross on the spire is at a height of 50 meters abo
the ground level.
- Fort St. George
Currently, Fort St George is used for the Tamil Nadu
Secretariat and the Legislative Assembly. This
structure resembles a mansion rather than a fort. The
are solid foundation walls and huge gates.This
monument has one of the oldest British churches in
India, called as the St Mary’s and this was built in
1680. In the northern compound, there is a lighthous
constructed in the year 1844. Another lighthouse was
constructed in the year 1971. In this fort, there is a
museum where there are portraits of the British high
officials of the past and some archives of the British
occupation in India.The significance of Fort St Georg
is that it marks the start of a new city, Madras in 1640
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- National Art Gallery
The National Art Gallery is situated at Pantheon Road
(Egmore) and is open to the public from 9:30 am to 5
pm on all days except National Holidays and Fridays.
To enter the premises there is a fee of 0.071 USD (INR
3), for photography the charge is 0.476 USD (INR 20)
and for videography the charge is still higher. In this
gallery, there are some panchaloka (made from five
metals) and bronze statuettes belonging to the 10thcentury A.D. that portray the dancing form of Lord
Shiva, Nataraja and his consort Goddess Parvati.
There are also some paintings belonging to the 17th
and 18th century that portrays Lord Krishna in different
postures as well as historical figures of the Mughal
rulers and Maratha or Rajput chieftains.Additionally,
one can also see some mica and glass paintings that
are basically from Tanjore. Formerly, this art gallery
was called as Victoria Memorial Hall as it was
dedicated to Queen Victoria.
- Birla PlanetariumBirla Planetarium is located on the Gandhi Mandapam
Road in the Kotturpuram suburbs of Chennai city and
is almost two kilometers from the Kotturpuram bus stop
and one kilometer from the Kotturpuram railway station.
This planetarium is an important part of Periyar
Science and Technology Center which is responsible
for the establishment of the planetarium. It is
constructed in the fond memory of B.M.Birla, the
leading industrialist and visionary of India. The
planetarium has a fully computerized projector. It has
an air conditioned structure that has a seating capacity
of 236 persons as well as seminar hall, sound studio
and a class room. There are audio video shows that
provide a personal experience of different cosmic
phenomena for those who desire to see the stars or the
meteoroids must visit this place on the second
Saturday of the month and see the night watching show
from 7 pm to 9 pm.
- Government Museum
The Government Museum is located in the heart of
Chennai over an area of 16.25 acres of land. It is
situated on Pantheon Road, Egmore. The working
hours are from 9:30 am to 5 pm. The museum has a
holiday on Friday, the Independence Day (15th Augus
the Republic Day (26th January) and Gandhi Jayanth
(2nd October).There is an entrance fee, camera fee a
video fee. In the museum there are six independent
buildings that have forty six galleries. The main
building galleries have sections for Archaeology,
Zoology, Botany, Geology and Numismatics. The
front building has sections for Anthropology and
Archaeology. The bronze gallery has sections like
Archeology, Numismatics and Chemical
Conservation. The fourth building is the children’s
museum which is comprised of Dolls gallery,
Civilization gallery, Science gallery, Transportatio
gallery, Technology gallery and kids corner. The
fifth building is the National Art gallery. This has fo
sub-sections – Tanjore Painting gallery, Decorative
Art gallery, Indian Traditional Art gallery and Ravi
Varma Painting gallery. The sixth building is the
Contemporary Art gallery.
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- Adyar Beach
Adyar Beach is also referred to as Elliot Beach and is
situated in Besant Nagar in Chennai. This beach is at
the end of the Marina Beach, which is the 2nd longest
beach in the world and has a number of tourists
attractions situated near it. The Velankanni Church
and the Ashtalakshmi Kovil dedicated to goddess
Lakshmi are both places of religious worship situated
nearby. Another prominent landmark is the Karl
Schmidt Memorial which is named after the Dutch
sailor who lost his life trying to save a person from
drowning into the sea. On the weekends the beach gets
crowded and it is difficult to even find parking space. It
is an important place where most youngsters or college
going people come to spend a nice time. There are a
number of eating joints and restaurants situated in the
vicinity where one can have snacks and drinks.
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- Chennai MRTS
The MRTS refers to a specific system of suburban rail
network in the city, where the tracks run on a raised
platform. Chennai currently has a suburban railway
network, where the services started from Beach to
Tambaram on a meter guage line. Since 1985 two more
services were started on a broad gauge from Chennai
Central to Gummidipoondi and Chennai Central to
Arakkonam.The MRTS stations are constructed so that
a full length Electric Multiple Unit rake that consists of 9
cars should operate. However, in the current situation,
there are only 6 car rakes on the line. The MRTS
project consists of three phases and out of these thePhase I and Phase II are already completed.The
Phase I has eight stations over a length of 8.55
kilometers and this route starts at Chennai Beach and
ends at Thirumayilai.The Phase II has 9 stations over a
length of 11.16 kilometers and this starts at Thirumayilai
and ends at Velachery.Currently, the Phase II extension
and the Phase III, which are
planned from Velachery to St. Thomas Mount and fro
St. Thomas Mount to Villivakkam respectively, are in
progress.
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- Bars and Nightclubs
Zara is a lively bar with a tint of sophistication. Drinks
and food is excellent here. Leather Bar possesses
leather interiors and is popular for its stylish crowd.
Pasha's in the Park Hotel is a trendy bar with an
energetic crowd.Besides these, Bike and Barrel,
Dublin, Geoffrey's and Durant's are famous spots in
Chennai. Bamboo Bar is a peaceful place.
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- Tour to Mahabalipuram
At day one of this tour, one reaches Chennai and
checks into the hotel. There are visit to other historic
places and temples. Once the tour service reaches
Mahabalipuram, the sight is breath taking. It is a wor
heritage site popular for its monolith temples and whic
dates back to centuries. There are also other
sightseeing places in Mahabalipuram like Arjuna’s
Penance, Five Rathas and the beach. One can bookonline to enjoy such tour service.
- Rejuvenate and meditate
The duration of this tour is 24 nights. The destinations
that are covered are Chennai, Mahabalipuram,
Thanjavur, Swamimalai, Trichy, Madurai Rameshwara
and Kovalum till Chennai.Through this tour one can
know Ayurveda effects and its positive encourageme
to the mind and soul. This tour provides journey to
different places of interest like temples, and sightseein
too. Through the tour, one can visit the Sterling
Swamimalai and learn proper way of meditation,
ayurveda and yoga.One can call for booking the tour t
Sterling Swamimalai
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- Kamadhenu Theatre
Kamdhenu Theatre presents some of the exhibits of
old Tamil films. This theatre stands proudly as a fading
Art Deco landmark on Luz Church Road. It was built
before 1947 on Lakshmi Vilas mansion. This mansion
was one of the Mylapore’s famed old garden mansions
which had long historical background connections to
Justice Bhashyam Ayyangar and many more people.
Though there are no cinema shows here, the theatre is
a land mark for its historical background.
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- Discos
There are few a numbers of bars and nightclubs in the
city. The concept of pubs is not common in Chennai.
However, there are a few spots in the city which are
worth visiting. EC 41 is one such famous spot in
Chennai. It is an open-air disco which remains open till
the late hours at night. The music is grooving and it
gets sizzling on Saturdays. Quality Inn Aruna is yet
another happening place. Come in your best dress and
enjoy yourself with the rocking music. There is no dress
code and the young crowd is trendy.
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- Where to shop
Chennai offers an unmatched shopping experience.
Tourists can buy traditional as well as modern stuff in
the city. Poompukar is a government owned
emporium. Visitors can buy bronze figures, wax figures,metal-ware, pottery, paintings and handicraft objects
here. Figures, carved in rosewood and sandalwood are
also displayed here. The ideal place to buy modern day
and branded stuff is the Spenser's Plaza. Numerous
shops and art galleries aggregate in this plaza. Fully
air-conditioned, this place is the best to hang out on a
hot sunny day. Booklovers can visit the
Higginbotham's book
shop. This is the largest and oldest book shop in the
nation. Allison's fabric is the shop that suits a foreign
tourist. This shop sells everything from Indian
handicrafts to silk fabric materials. Tourists can choos
any fabric they want. Cushion fabrics and window
screen are stitched within a day here. Aparna Art
Gallery is the place to buy authentic wooden carvings
- Abirami Mega Mall
The Abirami Mega Mall is the one and only destinati
in Chennai which combines world class shopping wit
some of the spectacular entertainment and with some
the choicest food courts. There is also roof top open
terrace with having car parking facilities too. This mal
offers in center promotions and daily and weekly
contests for the visitors like fun activities, inter schooldrawing competition, etc.
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- Information for visitors
Chennai city offers a wide range of attractions for the
tourists. Ranging from the natural surroundings to the
modern shopping centers, the city is packed with
everything.The beach in the city is the second longes
the world. Large numbers of tourists visit this beach
every day. This city has a historical significance aswell. Some of the temples and monuments are built
the 7th and 8th century. Besides these, the city
possesses some colonial structures. Chennai is rich
in art and craft. Tourists are often attracted towards t
handicrafts and handlooms, which are the key
features of the city.Numerous art galleries and
emporiums are spread across the city. The rich
heritage and tradition is exhibited through every objec
displayed in these art galleries. Chennai is blessed wi
tranquil natural surroundings. Tourists can visit
enormous numbers of gardens, parks and zoos inChennai. There are 3 amusement parks located in
different parts of the city.
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- Things to Carry The weather in the city is extremely hot and humid.
Hence, the packing list must contain the things which
will be helpful in such weather conditions. Light weight
and cotton clothes are recommended. Always carry
small backpacks with necessary things, while roaming
around the city. The backpack must contain water
bottles and juices. Hats, scarves, sun- screen lotion,
umbrellas and sun glasses are a must, when traveling
in the city. Carrying medicines for fever, dysentery and
diarrhea is advisable. Camera and video-cam are the
must carry things. The films for the camera areavailable in local photo shops. Most of the shops store
a wide variety of toiletries. However, tourists who are
allergic to scented soaps or powders; must carry their
own stuff. Try using open sandals instead of shoes as
the heat may burn ones feet. Also carry a decent
swimwear as Chennai is still a conservative city.
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- Safety and Warnings
The major thing, about which the tourists in Chennaimust take care about, is the weather. During the
summer and rainy season the temperature in the city
increases a lot. Tourists should not take this lightly as
dehydration is commonly seen among tourists. They
should always drink lots of water while roaming in the
city. The roads in the city are always jammed with
heavy traffic. Visitors who are exploring the city on foot
must walk carefully on the road. Drink packaged water
to avoid infections. Beggars have different strategies
out here. The beggars wear pressed neat clothes and
pretend to be the victims of pickpocket or any other
incidence. They ask for monetary help telling the
person how kind he is. They are often frauds, with no
real reason as such. Stay away from these people and
just refuse to give money. Tourists
may face a little trouble from the stray dogs on the
road.
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