I wish all Indians a very Happy Independence Day....May we learn to appreciate this country a little more, and crib a little less....may we learn to give a little more and expect a little less...may we learn to truly understand how lucky we are to be free....

Vande Mataram!!

My South Trip - Part 1

I'm back...after a looong break. No, it wasn't intentional, but ever since I got back from the trip I've either been busy working or off sick. The first 2-3 weeks after my return, I was busy coping with the heaps of work that had just piled up, despite the best efforts of my colleagues. Then there was a bout of viral fever and now I've been hit by this stomach bug that does painful things to the insides....:-((

Ok, about my trip. In one word - incredible. I saw some wonderful places, had some amazing experiences...The plan now is to write a travelogue here, in bits and pieces. Since it was a study tour for travel agents, it involved a lot of hotel visits which I guess I'll leave out.


Delhi airport
It was a morning flight from Delhi to Chennai. Anyone who has seen the domestic terminal during the peak hours, will agree that it resembles a crowded railway platform. When will the AAI wake up to the fact that the terminals are operating way above capacity for a long time now, and measures have to be taken urgently?? The difference between Delhi and Chennai airports was remarkable.

Chennai
I've already written a lot about this city earlier, so this time I'll keep it short. It was a short visit anyway, we spent just a few hours in the city. Arrived in the afternoon and began our hotel visits straight away. Managed some sightseeing along the way - the famous Bronze Gallery at the Govt museum, and a drive past San Thome cathedral and Marina Beach. But mainly it was a day of hotel visits. We saw about a dozen hotels, of which the ones which impressed particularly ( in random order) - Taj Connemara, The Park, and Le Meridien. Finally checked into our hotel at 1130 pm. I think I was asleep before my head hit the pillow....

Kanchipuram and Mahabalipuram
We visited these places on consecutive days. Kanchipuram is a 2 hr 30 min drive from Chennai, and is the former capital of the Pallavas. It is basically known for 2 things - temples and silks. We saw two temples here. The first was the big Varadaraja Perumal temple. Our first South Indian temple, but we were to really become familiar with the style - tall Gopurams, huge paved courtyards, stepped water tanks, pillared halls...
Personally I preferred the other temple we visited, the Kailashnath temple. It's smaller, not crowded like the other temples, really clean, and the sculptures are amazing. No tall structures here, just a beautiful sandstone square with a sanctum, surrounded by a walkway on all four sides lined with sculptures. Amazing.
Some of us also bought some silk sarees, and since they gave us a 50% discount it was worth it!!

I've already written about Mahabalipuram in an earlier post, so will skip it this time. But of all the hotels we saw in Mahabalipuram, I must mention the GRT Temple Bay. It's just 5 minutes from the Shore Temple, and is definitely the best hotel in the area. All the rooms have a sea-view, the coffee-shop faces the sea and the Shore Temple, and they have a beautiful infinity pool.The Taj hotel ( Fisherman's cove) was also good but only if you take a sea-facing cottage.

From Mahabalipuram we went to Pondicherry. It's a 2 hour drive and very scenic. More on that, in the next post.