Chennai City Travel Guide -
Tamil Nadu
General Information Of
Chennai
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Area 174.00 sq. km
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Population 3,841,396
(1991)
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Altitude Sea level
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Languages Tamil and
English
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Best time to visit
November to February
STD code 044
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Introduction to city
Chennai - In Tamil Nadu
Capital of the south-eastern state of Tamil Nadu, Chennai
is one of the four major metropolitan cities in India.
Today, it is hard to believe that a place that was till
1639 just a small fishing village would become such an
enormous and beautiful city. Situated on the shores of the
Bay of Bengal, Chennai is perhaps the most peaceful and
green metropolis in India. Chennai has a number of
attractions for the tourists to see. One of them is the
beautiful
Marina beach,
where the blue waters of the Bay of Bengal mingle with the
golden sands. The city also has its share of forts and
palaces reminding the tourists the glory of bygone eras.
Sightseeing : Places to
visit in destination - Chennai
Chennai was developed as a British trading post, and as
such, most of its attractions have a distinct colonial
influence. Stretched over an area of 13 km, Marina beach
is the second longest beach in the world. The St.
George Fort, built in 1653, is currently used as the
state government/’s secretariat. Santhome Cathedral
was built around 14th/15th century and is another colonial
structure worth visiting. Dedicated to Lord Shiva, the
Kapaleeshwar Temple
is the oldest temple in Chennai. Another important temple
in the city dedicated to Lord Krishna is Parthsarthy
temple.
Chennai Sightseeing :
Places to visit in destination Chennai
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Places to visit in the city Chennai |
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PARTHSARTHY
TEMPLE - Chennai
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The temple was built in the 8th century by the
Pallava kings of South India. It was renovated by
the mighty Vijayanagar kings in the 16th century.
The temple, situated in Triplicane, another beach in
Chennai and one of the major harbours during Pallava
time, is famed for the beauty of its gopuram (arched
gateway) and its architecture. The entire locality
is fashioned around the temple. |
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KAPALEESHWAR
TEMPLE - Chennai
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This temple was constructed in the 13th century and
is a living example of the architectural skills of
the Dravidians. Situated in the Malaypore area of
Chennai, the temple is the nucleus of the local tank
market and residential quarters around it. The main
entrance facing east is painted in red, blue and
yellow with Puranic legends sculpted on the sanctum
sanctorum. |
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SANTHOME CATHEDRAL -
Chennai
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Built over the tomb of apostle St. Thomas, the
Santhome Cathedral is an important pilgrimage
centre. According to legends, St. Thomas arrived in
India from Palestine in AD 52 and died after 26
year. The church was built after a millennium,
probably by the Persian Christians, and his remains
were moved inside. The church was refurbished in
1606 and made into a cathedral. Again, in 1806, it
was rebuilt as a basilica. There is a museum in its
premises with a 16th-century map of South Asia. |
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FORT ST. GEORGE -
Chennai
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The most powerful symbol of the British Empire in
its early days in India, Fort St. George was the
first piece of real estate for British in India. For
many, it is still unclear that why Sir Day (the
founder) choose this place to build this important
fort, leaving many other picturesque locations on
the vast coastline of the Bay of Bengal. The fort
has a grey granite exterior unlike the Mughal forts
that has lavish ornamentation and luxury. It housed
barracks for the British army, a parade ground, and
the oldest church of Chennai—the St. Mary/’s Church. |
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MARINA BEACH -
Chennai
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The beach extends from Fort St. George all the way
to Mahabalipuram. The beach looks spectacular at
dusk when the setting sun casts iridescent glow and
peddlers sell everything from ice creams to roasted
peanuts to balloons. You can also read your future
from the fortune tellers and palm readers who lure
the visitors by various means. Don/’t try to show
your swimming skills here as the sea can get quite
rough here. |
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NATIONAL
ART GALLERY - Chennai
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Built in 1906, the gallery is situated in a splendid
Indo-Saracenic edifice. The building was initially
known as Victoria Memorial Hall and was designed by
Henry Irwin. The eminent historian Tillotson
described it as one of /”the proudest expressions of
the Indo-Sarcenic movement/”. There is a good
collection of old paintings and sculptures including
Tanjore paintings on glass; Rajput and Mughal
miniature paintings; Deccan paintings from 17th
century; and handcrafts, metalware, and ivory
carvings from 11th and 12th century. |
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SNAKE
PARK - Chennai
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The Snake Park situated in the Guindy National Park
in the Raj Bhavan Estate has a large collection of
snakes and many other reptiles. |
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THEOSOPHICAL SOCIETY
- Chennai
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The Theosophical Society was founded by Madam
Blavatsky and Colonel Olcott in New York in 1875 and
moved its headquarters to Chennai in 1882. The
society is set in large and tranquil gardens with
several shrines of different faiths and a Serene
Garden of Remembrance. |
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KALAKSHETRA - Chennai
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Kalakshetra, located around 1 km from the
Theosophical Society, was founded by Rukmini Devi
Arundale for the revival of Indian classical arts
and crafts traditions. |
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GENGI - Chennai
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About 25 km from Chidambaram on the Tindivanam–Thiruvannamalai
road lies the town of Gengi. The major attraction
out here is a 700-year-old fort constructed by Kone
Chiefs. The fort runs over three hills of enormous
and steep boulders. It was occupied by Marathas,
Mughals, Vijayanagar Nayaks, the French, and the
British during different periods of history. |
Excursions : Places nearby
city - Chennai
While you are in Chennai on a planned holiday, be sure to
take some time off and visit the places around. There are
ancient temple towns like Mahabalipuram and
Tirupati (in Andhra Pradesh), traditional townships
and villages that specialise in crafts like Kanchipuram,
and golden beaches like Covelong. |
Chennai Excursion : Places
nearby Chennai - Tamil Nadu
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Places to visit nearby destination - Chennai |
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Covelong
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Just 19 kilometres from Mahabalipuram is situated the
picturesque beach resort of Covelong, a quiet fishing
village with the remains of a fort. Facilities for
windsurfing, swimming and water sports are available here.
If you are in Mahabalipuram, don’t miss out on a visit to
this place. |
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Kanchipuram
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 A
65-kilometre stretch of sun-scorched road connects
Mahabalipuram to the fabled city of a thousand temples,
Kanchipuram. There are 650 stone inscriptions in
Kanchipuram belonging to different dynasties. The temples
here reflect the maturity and efflorescence of Pallava art
and the ornate and often imposing embellishments were
produced later by the Chola, Vijayanagara and Chalukyan
kings. There is a solemn grandeur, a grandiosity of vision
and ornamental excess in the temples here. A disembodied
otherworldly stillness impregnates their vast inner
domains where time is a captive fugitive. The
Ekambaranathar temple, the Kailasanatha temple, Sri
Varadaraja temple, Sri Vaikuntaperumal temple… the names
stretch endlessly. The city itself is dedicated to the
presiding deity, Sri Kamakshi (one with eyes of love) at
the Kamakshi temple. In Sanskrit, the word Kanchi denotes
girdle, and poets have allegorically characterized the
city as a girdle to the earth. And so it was. A seat of
learning that attracted scholars from far-flung corners of
the globe. But what has now girdled the earth is the
gold-embroidered Kanchipuram silk sari that has been for
centuries a prized possession of the South Indian woman.
Shops dealing with silk and cotton saris and material line
the main street of the town and for a demonstration of the
skills of the Kanchi weavers, visit the Weaver’s Service
Centre on Railway Station Road
Kanchipuram is the only city in South India to have played
such a dominant, decisive and continuous role in the
history of the peninsula. At one time, it was the hub of
the empire, of pomp and panoply. Today, it is a small
place that time has forgotten. Royalty abandoned it long
ago and history shifted its allegiance to other more
dramatic arenas. And in the quiet interregnum of the
centuries when life thundered by elsewhere, the ancient
city, wrapped in nostalgia, too proud to change with the
times, withdrew from the mainstream. To become what it is
today. An Arcadian fastness of beauty. A dreamy detachment
and a quaint medievalism, the lasting impression of which
one consigns to memory. |
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Mahabalipuram
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Just
out of Chennai, roughly 55 km away, is the world-famous
town of Mahabalipuram. The Pallava dynasty of Southern
India, one of the major lines of kings to rule in India
after the Gupta period, made this lovely seaside village
their second capital. The place blossomed under the
creative forces of that time between the fifth and eighth
centuries. Today, the shore temple, the largest bas-relief
in the world called Arjuna/’s Penance and the famous and
beautiful mandapams are what identify this sleepy town. |
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