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Chennai Sightseeing
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Kapaleeswarar
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Kapaleeswarar, an ancient Shiva temple, is the biggest temple in
Chennai. A masterpiece of Dravidian style and displays the architectural
elements - gopurams, mandapams and a tank. There are some
fragmentary inscriptions dating back to 1250 AD. |
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Sri
Parthasarathy Temple
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Sri
Parthasarathy Temple, devoted to Lord Krishna, was originally built by
the Pallavas in the 8th century and renovated in the 16th century bt the
Vijayanagars. It houses the five 'avatars' of Lord Vishnu, and has a
small temple shrine dedicated to Vishnu's consort, Vedavalli Ammai. It's
one of the oldest surviving temple in Chennai. |
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The
Santhome Cathedral Church
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The
Santhome Cathedral Church built in 1504, then rebuilt in neo-Gothic
style in 1893, this Roman Catholic Church near Kapaleeshwarar temple is
said to house the remains of St. Thomas the Apostle. |
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St. Thomas Mount
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St.Thomas is believed to have lived in Little Mount Shrine (a tiny cave)
when he came to India around 58 A.D. Known locally as Chinnamalai, the
cave is entered via the Portuguese Church that was built in 1551. |
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Fort St.
George
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Fort St. George was built in the 1640 A.D., the first bastion of British
power of India, the fort has undergone much alteration. The fort is now
used by the Tamilnadu Legislative Assembly and the Secretariat office.
The 46m high flagstaff at the front is actually a mast salvaged from a
17th century shipwreck. |
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St.
Mary's Church
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St.
Mary's Church built in 1678-80, was the first English Church in Chennai,
and is the oldest surviving British Church in India. There are reminders
in the Church of Clive, who was married here in 1753, and of Elihu Yale,
the early Governor of Chennai who later founded the famous American
University bearing his name.
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The
Fort Museum
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The
Fort Museum has a collection of objects from the tenure of the East
India Company in Chennai including letters from Robert Clive. There are
many contemporary paintings too.
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The Snake park
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The
Snake Park with its lizards, crocodiles and turtles is more interesting.
It is well maintained with generous enclosures. The Snake Park has a
wide variety of reptiles. The next compound is the Children Park, which has a small collection of animals and birds and a
big play area for children. |
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Kalakshetra
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Kalakshetra devoted to the revival of classical arts, was founded by
Rukmini Devi Arundale in 1936. Classical dance, music, traditional
textile designs and weaving are taught in natural surroundings. |
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The
Theosophical Society
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The
Theosophical Society, is set in a tranquil spot on the banks of the
Adyar river. There is a huge banyan tree, with its branches spreading
over an area of 40,000 square ft, where discourses are conducted. |
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Valluvar Kottam
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The Valluvar
Kottam, on the corner of Kodambakkam High Rd and Village Rd, honours the
acclaimed Tamil Poet, Thiruvalluvar, whose classic work - one thousand
three hundred and thirty kurals (couplets) - are reputed to be
about 2000 years old. Established in 1976, Valluvar Kottam replicates
ancient Tamil architecture with the 1330 verse Kural inscribed on
panels. The outer structure in stone is a replica of the temple car of
Thiruvarur in Tamilnadu. |
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BM
Birla Planitarium
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Situated in
Kotturpuram in Chennai, the B. M. Birla Planetarium houses a modern,
fully computerised projector, which depicts the heavens on a
hemispherical dome. |
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National Art Gallery
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The National Art
Gallery situated in Egmore were established in 1857. There are sections
on geology, archaeologym anthropology, numismatics, botany, zoology and
sculpture, besides a collection of armoury. |
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Government Museum
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Well worth
visiting, the Government Museum is on Pantheon Rd, between Egmore and
Anna Salai. The buildings originally belonged to a group of eminent
British citizens, known as the Pantheon Committee, who were charged with
improving the social life of the British in Chennai. The main building
has a fine archaeological section representing all the major
south Indian periods including Chola, Vijayanagar, Hoysala and Chalukya.
It also houses a good ethnology collection. The bronze gallery
has a superb collection of Chola art. One of the most impressive is the
bronze of Ardhanariswara, the androgynous incarnation of Shiva. |
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Marina Beach
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The stretch of
beach known as the Marina extends for 13km. South of the pitiful
aquarium is the Ice House, once used to store massive ice blocks
transported by ship from North America. It later became the venue from
which Vivekanand preached his ascetic philosophy. |
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