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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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Destination: CHENNAI | Date of publishing: 10/10/2010

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.


- 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.


- 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.


- 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.


- 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.


- 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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