Princess Cruises - Day Tour Chennai India.

Chennai India- Day Tour to the Monuments at Mahabalipuram.

It is hard to explain why I feel so excited about a visit to our next port of call. For years I have heard about India – its temples, the vast number of people (1.5billion) who call India home, the happy disposition of these people, the school children, the wonderful array of foods, the traffic, its poverty, the wonderful colours of the saris worn by the women and the sacred cows that walk the streets and today I am actually going to see all these things plus more for myself.

Chennai, once known as Madras, is the fourth largest city in India and overlooks the Bay of Bengal in South-eastern India. It has many monuments from the time of British rule and is home to major Hindu temples. It is a bustling city full of cars, buses, tuk tuks, bikes and people going about their daily tasks everywhere. There is a sense of order amongst the chaos, as everyone seems to be able to dodge and weave around one another.

We were told that there is no social welfare in India - so people have to find something to do to generate at least a small income to survive. You therefore see people on the side of the roads doing every small business imaginable from sweeping, cutting keys, selling fish, mending a bike, sewing on an old sewing machine, digging a hole, fixing the road, operating small food stalls, selling fruit, selling corn they have cooked in a single pot, opening coconuts, making flower lays etc. – I found it just amazing and absolutely fascinating and even more incredible is that it did not matter how mundane  their task, most smiled, waved and looked really pleased to see you and to be acknowledged by you. All the people I saw looked clean both in their personal hygiene as well as the clothes they were wearing. All women were wearing beautifully coloured saris or colourful tops with matching long pants and flowing scarves – they looked so pretty and meticulously presented.

 The ships tour we have chosen to do will take us through parts of the city centre and then out of the city for a 1.5 hour drive to the UNESCO World Heritage Site - Monuments at Mahabalipuram.

Chennai has the second longest urban beach in the world known as Sandy Marina Beach and we are taken for a drive along this vast stretch beach. The sand is so wide that in most parts you cannot actually see the water. Unfortunately there is rubbish everywhere and the few bins around are overflowing. There are lots of food vans all the way along the beach and people sleeping in the parks along the road. Down the far end of Marina is an extremely poor area where many families are living on the beach in small shanties made of plastic, tin and tree branches. It was just so sad to see such poverty. Along the road there are women (dressed in their saris) selling (and fanning) small quantities of very small fish. You really do wonder who would come and buy them. There were over 10,000 people killed on this beach when the tsunami hit India on Boxing Day 2004.

Sandy Marina Beach.

 

Here, so many people live in poverty on the beach.

 

Selling the very few fish they catch each day to survive. No sign of any refrigeration only the woman fanning the fish.

 

Birds fly above and scavenge for scraps.

 

One of the many small fishing boats along this beach

 

One of the better looking dwellings.

People operating small businesses along the road. This picture was taken from the bus.

 

A lady threading flowers and selling fruit on the road side.

 

Our drive eventually takes us out of the city and into the more rural areas. Our scenic meander takes us through the Tamil Nadu state passing by rubber and coconut plantations and through many busy smaller towns, to the 7^th century village of Mahabalipuram. Here we view the incredible “Five Rathas” temples that have been carved from a single piece of granite. This is a very large complex with a very interesting history and lots to see. There is a large carved statue of an elephant and one of a lion as well as other monuments which feature Buddhist designs.

The Five Rathas Temple.

 

Another part of the temple complex. All were carved out of one very large granite bolder.

 

Me at the Five Rathas Temple.

 

Allan with the large carved elephant .

 Next we go to see the ancient site of Arjuna’s Penance. Here a giant 88 foot long stone panel with carvings known as base-reliefs, tells the story of the flow of the Ganges down from the Himalaya Mountains along with a collection of animal fables. There are two large elephant carvings surrounded by baby elephants, monkeys, deer, lions and lots of small Buddas. Next to here is a grassed park area with large boulders sitting precariously on top of the ridge. They look very much like the Devils Marbles in Aust. This park is full of Indian tourists all dressed in their finest clothes enjoying a special day at these sacred temples. They look colourful and beautiful.

Part of the carved panel at the Arjuna's Penance.

 

Street stalls at the temples.

 

Very Large Elephants on the carved panel.

 

Elderly Indian ladies dressed in their bright coloured saris.

Pretty scenery in the park.

 

One of the large boulders in the park.

 We then go to a very impressive 8^th century temple known as the Shore Temple which is on the shore of the Bay of Bengal. It was built during the reign of King Narsimha- Varman II and it is in the shape of a pyramid-structure made up of five layers. It is in a magnificent position on a point and from this site you get views out along to beaches on both sides.

There were many meticulously presented school girls visiting the Shore Temple at the same time we were there. They were all dressed exactly the same in their uniform and their long black hair was plated and then tied up in white ribbons.

Carved statues of cows surround the Shore Temple.

A view of the beach near the temple.

Our picturesque drive back is full of wonderful sites and as we enter Chennai again, we are just in time to see the thousands of school children come out from school. They all look beautiful in their beautifully presented school uniforms – coloured shorts or skirts and white shirts. The girls have their hair braided and tired up in ribbons. They all look the same – no difference between the well off and the poor. They love seeing a bus full of westerners passing by. They wave and gesture for us to take their photos and of cause I have to oblige.

Typical street scene along a busy road. This picture also has a sacred cow in it.

I watched this girl carry the metal container down to get water. As it is filling she carries the green plastic one back home.

All the school children we saw were excited to see us and all gave us a big wave.

 

These ladies are selling cold drinks. This is a well established business.

I consider our day in India to have been fantastic – I have loved every moment of it. We saw many sad things and a lot of rubbish piled up everywhere, but we also saw a lot of wonderful sites and many happy and smiling faces and what appeared to be contented people. I would have no hesitation in returning to India and doing a longer tour of this fascinating country.

 

O