I mixed Business with Pleasure of travel on this visit to Madras. The trip will remain close to my heart as this coincided with my Visa Stamping to the United States of America
A holiday in Madras in the month of May!! Unthinkable! But I had to be there to finish off an important work. Three weeks ahead of this mission, I invited some of my friends to join me, so that we could spice up the whole trip by seeing around Madras. Fortunately or unfortunately, only one of my pals Harsha could get the leave sanctioned. I did some research on the internet with regards to the hotels and the places to see around. The day arrived soon and we were all geared up.
May 30 – Wednesday
I woke up from my sleep at 4 am and alerted Harsha . Once he arrived at my place on his bike I drove to the Bangalore Cantonment Railway Station along with him and my Dad. We boarded the Lal Bagh Express at 6-40 am.
The Indian Railways is a fabulous network and the number of passengers that it carries every single day across the length and breadth of India is mind-boggling. Annually, I read, it transports over six billion passengers and is one of the largest & busiest rail networks in the world. Also it seems the IR is the world's largest commercial or utility employer, with more than 1.6 million employees, and is second only in total terms to the Chinese Army.
In order to savor the true experience of a rail journey , I feel it is better to travel second class. We get to see all kinds of people ranging from babies to the aged, beggars to the affluent, illiterate to the educated. There is non stop activity.
As the train chugged on the tracks along the mountains, my close buddy Harsha and I were thoroughly enjoying the experience listening to Hindi and Kannada film tracks.
This is the famous Katpadi Junction in Tamil Nadu.
We could hardly make out how the time flew. At 12-10 PM we were in the Chennai Central Railway Station.
It was a handicap not knowing the local language Tamil. In broken Tamil generously garnished with Hindi words we somehow managed to communicate with the auto driver. The specialty about autos here are that there is no concept of a meter here. We need to negotiate on the price before boarding it. For nearly an hour we scouted for an hotel in the sweltering heat with sweat trickling down from all parts of the body. Finally we checked into a very decent hotel on Mount Road at 2 pm. For his help in getting us to the hotel, the auto driver increased his price from 50 bucks to an absurd 200 bucks. After some arguments I shoved 130 bucks into his hand.
We freshened up and relaxed watching TV and having lunch in the room itself. I felt the water in Madras / Chennai is very soapy (Hard water). After the much needed rest we left our room at 5 PM and headed towards the Marina beach.
Marina beach is claimed to be the second longest beach in the world situated along a 12 km shoreline. The beach is adorned by a lot of statues of legends like Mahatma Gandhi, Kannagi, Thiruvalluvar, M. G. Ramachandran and C. N. Annadurai along the road side area.
The Police Headquarters is a resplendent white building which stands out . It looked like the White House.
I should say that the beach was crowded with people and a littered with a lot of papers and plastic. It is sad to see that such a wonderful beach is maintained so poorly. I could not see even a single dustbin along the beach or the roadside. Despite these problems the Marina is a must see place for any tourist in Madras.
This man here seems to be a King in his own world ignorant of the sun, people and the noise around him.
To sit on the beach doing nothing but watching the waves advance & recede again and again is an unexplainable feeling. It is very soothing to the mind and we can get lost and submerged in thoughts. The guy on the right is my friend.
Once darkness set in, we walked along the sands and the place was buzzing with people. Food carts were everywhere. We spent some time near the skating rink where tiny kids glided synchronously on the skates, which was a treat to the eyes
Roads in Chennai are very wide and the flyovers are present everywhere. This is one very good thing about the city. But the maintenance is not up to the mark.
We had dinner in one of the very few north Indian restaurants and strolled on the roads for sometime before retiring for the night.
May 31 Thursday
I got up much before my friend and got ready for my mission. An English romantic comedy flick was playing on the TV. After my exercises and bath, I had breakfast and left at 10-30 am. It was 2 -30 pm before I came out successful.
After lunch caught a bus to Beasantnagar. Traveling by bus is another experience. The specialty of the buses here are that the left side seats and the entire last seat are reserved for the ladies. The Beasantnagar / Eliot beach is the southern part of the 12 km coastline. Young girls enjoying the sea.
I had a great time riding the horse.
The two men here are enjoying the moonlight playing on the waves. It was a wonderful sight.
Close to the beach is the Velankani church.
The place was thronged by devotees.
At the end of a fruitful day we decided to catch up with a movie in the multiplex near our hotel. We watched ‘Life in A Metro’. The movie was good. More than this it was the experience of watching it in a different city with a different crowd.
The experience was good and almost like the cosmopolitan Bangalore Multiplexes. We returned to our rooms at 12-30 am midnight and by the time we closed our eyes it was 2 am.
June 01 – Friday
We got up at 5-30 am and made an early start. Our first stop was the Parthasarathy temple with its huge kalyani / stepped water tank
Nearby was the Ramakrishna math. It was very relaxing to take a stroll inside. As soon as we entered the premises the mind became calm and relaxed.
Another must go place in Chennai is the famous Saravana Bhavan, whose branches are there even in America . The food is very tasty here but a bit costly which can be pardoned as it is very hygienic and the place very well maintained.
We decided to skip Mahabalipuram as we could not tolerate the heat. So we paid a quick visit to the Spencers Plaza which is a famed shopping mall here. Unfortunately we could not go inside as it was not open. From outside view it was no where comparable to the malls of Bangalore.
We dashed to the Chennai Central and caught the Bangalore Express at 1-15 pm. Surprisingly the return journey stretched like a rubber band and the time hardly flew even though we engaged ourselves with magazines and music.
Finally we reached Bangalore at 8-15 pm. All in all it was very successful visit and we got to experience Madras.
