Chennai - Popular Travel Destination.

Shore Temple at Mahabalipuram

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Anna Samadhi

The millions cried as they saw their leader, they called "Anna" (Elder Brother) on his way to his last resting place replicated the mass base he had formed for a Tamil party committed to serving the Tamil people. Anna was buried on the Marina beach as a whole state wept and on the site there rose Anna Samadhi (Anna memorial) in shiny black granite. It is the heart of Anna Samadhi. Anna Samadhi enclosed by a well-maintained park, and entered through giant tusks is now a place of pilgrimage to where thousands come every single day.

Marina Beach

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Marina Beach:They say it is the second largest urban beach of the world. None has yet claim what is the longest, but it is certainly one of the brodest beaches any where. The famous Marina Beach is 13km. Long and very wide offering for excellent walks. Along the shore, there are lots of buildings built during the British rule. The South Beach Road runs past the Madras University, the Senate House, the Chepauk Palace (Nawabs of Carnatics, once held their court here). The Marina is a graceful promenade with flower beds along its lanes. It easily looks like the coasts of the French Riviera or Italy with its glistening sand beaches. Its width is up to 300 metres.

There is an Aquarium in the same area, there is one more interesting building called Ice House - a memento of the East India Company days. Here the Americans brought ice all the way from New England in USA and accumulated it for the comforts of the rich English businessmen during the pre air-condition days. The Santhome Cathedral was the house of the famous Tamil poet Thiruvalluvar who lived in the 1st century BC and wrote the Thirukural - the greatest work in Tamil literature. His poems are still recited respectfully in Tamil Nadu

Elliot's Beach: Elliot's Beach is one of the cleanest beaches in the city and situated towards the south of Marina Beach. It is a really calm and relaxing place. This beach is well known as 'Bessei' amongst Chennaities. As the beach does not offer much activity, it is perfect place for long walks.

Covelong Beach: It is one of the most excellent beaches on the Coromandel cost. It is sited south at a distance of 40 km from Chennai. The beach is positioned amidst picturesque surroundings and serves as the ideal retreat, away from the busy city life.

Stone Chariot

An exclusive bit of modern building in the city is the huge auditorium that draws its motivation from the great temple builders of Tamil Nadu's past. Dr.Kalaignar Karunanidhi (Ex-Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu) built this Kottam in 1976, the imposing memorial to the poet-saint Thiruvalluvar is a model of the famed Temple Chariot of Thiruvarur, and succeeds in remind the beauty of the centuries-old masterpiece. The life size statue of the saint Thiruvalluvar is placed in the 33 m tall chariot. The lower portion of this chariot has base-relief sculptures describing the 133 chapters of the sacred 'Thirukkural'. The Valluvar Kottam is accommodates the seat capacity of 4000 and claims to have Asia's largest seating capacity auditorium. The lovely, terraced roof garden has two large pools.

Visiting Hours : The memorial is open for public access on all days from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., except on Fridays and National Holidays.

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Once the olden port of the Pallavas, Mamallapuram plays host to a exciting festival of Dance. Exemplar of Bharathanatyam, Kuchipudi, Kathak and Kathakali performed against the wonderful backdrop of the Pallava Rock Sculptures.

Mahabalipuram Dance Festival is prepared during the months of January and February in the city of Chennai - Mahabalipuram in Tamil Nadu.

This affair witnesses performances on the Indian classical dances such as Bharat Natyam, Kuchipudi, Kathak, Mohiniattam, Odissi and Kathakali. The well-known artists from their respected fields gather for this cultural event that is also sponsored by theTamil Nadu Tourism Department as one of the major cultural attraction to these parts of India.

The four week Mahabalipuram Dance Festival is held at the venue of Arjuna's penance, a bass-relief sculpted on the face of two huge adjacent rocks, in Mahabalipuram. The glorious backdrop that is provided by the Pallava Rock Sculptures provides a visual touch to this cultural dance festival.

December Season or Chennai music and dance festival is a carnival of classical music and South Indian dances held during the period of mid December to mid January at Chennai. The festival is held at various venues around the city by various auditoriums. In addition to the auditoriums, well-known Temple premises and heritage buildings are being used as venues. The month long music and dance shows will have concerts of well-known artistes from various parts of India.

Chennai comes alive with the festival, which has now developed, into a cultural show with more than 2000 partakers in over 300 concerts. The festival also known as December Season also magnetize emigrant Indians and researchers from around the world. This season goes on till mid January when the season shifts to Tiruvaiyaru, near Thanjavur, where a week long music festival is held to commemorate the birth of one of the greatest Carnatic composers and one among the trinity of music - Thyagaraja.

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75 km from Chennai city, the Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary is the oldest retreat of migratory birds in India. Here, the birds have been protected by the local people for more than 300 years. The Sanctuary gets its name from a nearby village. A grove of 'Barringlonia acutangula' trees and relatively small lake which is submerged during rains constitute the sanctuary. A great number of aquatic birds - both migratory and resident - flock to this place. Peak time is immediately after the end of the rainy season. There is a Rest House and Observatory Tower in the sanctuary. The best time to see the birds is between 3pm and 6pm.

Chennai - Festivity

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Chennai Snake Park is a charming spot. It was set up by an American, Romulus Whitaker, as a conservation project. It is situated in the beautiful Guindy Deer Park. About 500 different types of snakes can be seen moving in the natural surroundings. Other reptiles on show are crocodiles, alligators, monitor lizards and chameleons. Over half million visitors come to this snake park every year. The entrance fee collections are used for the upkeep of the park, which also receives some financial support from the World Wildlife Fund.

Ravi Varma Painting Source: Wikipedia under creative commons license.

Cholamandalam Artists' Village is located on the East Coast Road, some eighteen kilo meters further south of the Chennai city. This place symbolizes an important arts centre in Tamil Nadu. Cholamandalam Artists' Village is constructed over eight hectares in the Injambakkam region which exists for an extension of Chennai city. The place contains a calm and peaceful environment, most suited for the artists occupied. You will find small cottages which provide the residential places for the artists of a typical community. Cholamandalam Artist Village is a substantial tourist destination in the vicinity of the admired metropolitan city-Chennai.

Two of the Art Galleries at Cholamandalam Artists' Village place on display the works of resident artists. The galleries feature great collection of paintings and sculptures that are on promotion. Every one of the resident artist has his own gallery and also a studio, wherein his personal offerings are housed. There is always a free air theatre predestined for performances by the artists. The Guest House, donated by the German Government, offers for your accommodation at Cholamandalam. The place is rapidly becoming a famous destination of cultural exchange..

Photo Source: Jungle Key

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Today, the old buildings in Fort St. George house the Secretariat of the Tamil Nadu Government and the Legislative Assembly. Within the Fort, a number of other early buildings stand out. Sr.Mary's Church, the first Angelican Church in India, is most interesting. It was at this Church that Robert Clive, who laid the foundations of the British Empire in India, was married in 1753. Elihu Yale, who later lent his name to a major University in USA, was also married in this church. Yale rose from a company writer to the Governor in 15 years. He stayed in Madras (Chennai) to augment his fortune and donated books worth 560 pounds to the collegiate School in Connecticut where his father had emigrated. As a token of gratitude, the University was named after him. It is now called Yale University. The Fort St. George Museum displays some of the fascinating items belonging to the early days of the East India Company. The Museum has everything from prints to terrified Europeans landing through the surf on to the beach to portraits of Queen Victoria and Edward VII.

Other interesting buildings in the Fort are the old Government House, the splendid Banqueting Hall now called Rajaji Hall. It was built for official entertainment of the Governor. The hall's structures drew inspiration from classical Greek and Roman styles.

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Thyagaraya Nagar (T Nagar) is a well known commercial area located in the heart of Chennai. Here Pondy Bazaar and Ranganathan Street are the main shopping areas. It is the main shopping center in Chennai with shops selling Clothes, Cosmetics, Electronic items, Jewelleries, Silk Sarees, Toys etc.

Tidel Park

Information technology and the trending world is fast-growing sector of industry at Chennai. The accessibility of educated manpower, premium quality of educational institutions, modern infrastructure, and reduced costs of operation, disciplined guys, international airport and major sea port is some of the causes which have made Chennai the destination for IT industry. Additionally Tidel Parks promoted by way of the Tamil Nadu Government, numerous private buildings have come up in many parts of the city and a few are likewise under construction. With IT is penetrating all areas similar to Government departments, educational institutions, banking, shopping, consumer applications, plus the potential for further gigantic increase of IT industry.

War Memorial - Chennai

Kollywood Actress Laksha

Chennai has a well known flourishing (Tamil) film industry. It is also called as Kollywood and it is the second largest film industry in India. Some of the most well-known figures of Tamil Nadu like M.G. Ramachandran (ex-Chief Minister), Sivaji Ganesan, M. Karunanidhi, (ex-Chief Minister), J Jayalalithaa (Chief Minister),Rajnikanth (Super Star) Kamal Hassan, Shankar, Mani Ratnam, Ilayaraja, AR Rahman (Oscar Winner) are now, or have at some stage of their career, been associated with Kollywood.