Hey guys! Excited about the upcoming weekends? Planning a trip with your best friends? This series will take you through some of the best spots to visit in and around Chennai with our curated tips and fun anecdotes.
St. Thomas Mount
The first place on the list is one of the marvels of Chennai city. St. Thomas Mount, a small hillock around 6-7 km from Velachery Gate, is a perfect spot to visit on weekends. A shrine dedicated to “Our Lady of Expectation” (Mother Mary) was built on the Mount in 1523. The altar of this shrine was built where St. Thomas’ death is traditionally believed to have occurred. It’s popularly called Parangimalai in Tamil.
If you’re bored of the early morning cycle rides to Bessy Beach, this is an excellent alternative to catch a beautiful sunrise. Start at 5 am from the hostel. Wear appropriate attire – hiking shoes, preferably. Follow the route on the map (I traveled through Guindy – Kathipara Junction – Ramapuram to get to the Mount). Once you reach the gate, you’ll have to complete the rest of the journey by walking. The road would be very steep but worth the effort. After climbing, you can see some flights taking off and landing from the Chennai Airport runway. On the side, obscured by large trees, is a massive statue of Jesus sitting under a tree.
When you reach the church premises, an arch comes into view. As you ascend the steps, you will be welcomed by the Evangelical Entrance & Gospel Arch, beyond which lies the small but magnificent church. The artwork in the courtyard and the church’s outer walls are exquisite. Near the eastern side, you can see majestic sculptures of Jesus on the Holy Cross and St Thomas the Apostle looking towards the rising sun.
As the sun rises, the sculptures start to dazzle and gleam in the bleak rays of dawn. It certainly is a beautiful sight to behold. Witnessing the sunrise truly uplifts your mood and satisfies your hunger. From the viewpoint, you can see almost half of Chennai, from Vadapalani in the northwest to Pazhavanthangal in the southeast. You can also catch a glimpse of the metro rail in the background. The viewpoint is a place for photos.
My current DP on most social media handles is from this exact viewpoint at St Thomas Mt. Behind the courtyard, you can also see a pasture of green land probably owned by the Church. My friends and I loved our visit to St. Thomas Mount. It was the perfect way to start the morning and the weekend. Reminiscing about the entire trip is genuinely calming. We plan to go back and revisit it soon. I highly recommend this place to anyone new to Chennai.
Kovalam Beach
A fun Saturday morning trip would be to experience surfing at Kovalam Beach, a 25 km drive from IITM. If you want to surf or learn surfing, Kovalam is a great option. Kovalam Beach is best to visit in the morning or evening when the weather is cooler, but mornings are generally better if you don’t want a crowd.
A few things to remember:
- Carry towels, swimwear, fresh clothes, and goggles if necessary.
- If it is your first time surfing, you’ll probably not catch the wave immediately, so bring along basic first aid as a precaution. (For those who don’t fall, who are you guys?)
- Plenty of surf schools take surfing lessons and rent out surfboards for a few hours. Surf Turf, Murthy Surf School, and Appu Academy are popular.
- The cost comes up to Rs.1.5k per person for an hour. There are, however, discounts when you go as a group, so look out for those. Don’t forget to book your slot in advance; these places are especially popular on weekends.
How to get there:
Catch an ECR bus bound to Kovalam or Mamallapuram from Thiruvanmiyur Bus terminus. Alternatively, for all the cycling enthusiasts who have the energy to cycle 25km back after 2 hours of surfing, all I’ll say is, good luck! After reaching Kovalam, the surf school will guide you through all the steps.
2 or 3 hours later…..
You would be amazed at how fast time would have gone by. Some of you would still be stuck riding on waves, whereas those naturals would go deeper and ride waves effortlessly.
After the surfing session, you can return to the waves or spend some time in the water as the waves rush towards you, and you recede just as quickly. Change into clean clothes, have food, and relax with your friends. Don’t forget to take pictures. Time to return to insti unless you guys have anything else planned (which you will most likely cancel to go and doze off in your room).
Government Museum Complex
Located at Egmore, one of the busiest localities of Chennai, the Government Museum Complex is a historic, culturally significant, and beautiful place filled with fantastic features. This complex contains 6 buildings – Main, Front, Bronze Gallery, Children’s Museum, National Art Gallery, and Contemporary Art Gallery. The Connemara Public Library is a separate building separate from the above list. The Museum Theatre is a part of the Front Building.
- Connemara Public Library:
The Connemara Public Library is one of the oldest libraries in India. This is also one of India’s National Depositories, which means every book, magazine, and other publication is listed in the International Standard Book Catalog.
It is a beautiful place to sit down and read century-old publications such as the Parliament discussions of the 20th century, old texts from England times that were transferred to the library, and infinitely more. It is home to all types of books, from Zoology, History, and Philosophy to tons of books for learning various languages in India and around the world and whatever you wish to read. A separate section, like UPSC and NEET, is dedicated to competitive exam preparation.
There is a space for students and people to study inside and outside the building under the shade of the many trees in the complex. Even more impressive is its marvelous architecture, with animal statues based on Rudyard Kipling’s creations.
The digitalization of all the books is being processed at the Connemara public library to allow everyone to read online copies.
I was awestruck at the vast collection of books available, especially the old building, which had medieval architecture just added to the wonderful experience of immersing in books. I highly encourage you to visit the library to gain knowledge and experience the wonderful learning and leisure reading atmosphere.
- National Art Gallery:
The National Art Gallery contains various paintings, from traditional paintings such as the Tanjore paintings to Glass paintings. A separate section is dedicated to the great Raja Ravi Varma, who ushered in the Modern Art period in India. His oil paintings portray either everyday or mythological scenes. They are so colorful and beautiful to look at.
Finally, the last stop is the Contemporary Arts Gallery. This contains experimental art by artists such as Adhimoolam and Vaidhyanathan. There is a part containing portraits of British personnel.
Things to note for the Government Museum Complex:
- The entrance fee is 18 Rs, if you bring a camera that adds 500 Rs to the ticket.
- Carry enough water, for it can get really thirsty. (Telling this based on experience)
- There are multiple restaurants & eateries nearby the Museum for lunch, dinner, or snacks.s
- Travel Modes: You could book a cab or auto, or you could go reach Egmore Suburban Station, Egmore Metr,o or LIC Metro and hail a bus like 23C, 17E, or 17D to reach
- The duration of your tour of the place entirely depends upon you and the people accompanying you. I am a big bibliophile and history enthusiast, so I would probably take the entire day (or even more) to tour the vast complex. If you are just like me, you are in for a treat. But if you are there to appreciate the architectural marvel, it wouldn’t take long, maybe half a day max. All in all, something sparks one’s interest during one’s visit to the museum complex.
Thus, we come to an end to our long and winding trip through the museum. I hope this piece provokes you to visit and enjoy this incredible culture of our world. While writing this article, I was taken back to my memories of visiting the museum when I was in middle school.
Broken Bridge
Coming to this, it doesn’t seem to be much, but I tell you, it deserves special attention. Well, have you ever seen any Broken Bridge? Have you ever seen the magnificent view of Chennai, Adyar, and the ocean alongside a Broken Bridge?
This was built across the Adyar Mouth in the 1960s to aid fishermen in traveling between Santhome and Elliot’s Beach or our very own Bessy.
Its view is truly spectacular. Instead of always just going to Bessy, just move north along the same beach,h and after about 1-2km, you would easily reach the Broken Bridge. This place is fantastic because it is captivating both at sunrise and sunset.
A few things I would like to suggest are:
- Do not forget to check the weather forecast and go to the place.
- Beware of the nature of the spot since it can be less secure at times
- Go during the daytime to get the most out of the experience and also enable you to navigate
- Maybe the daring nature of the spot is what made it attractive and I hope it does the same for you
As we come to the end of this article, we hope to have piqued your curiosity to check out some of these spots if you haven’t already. Travel is more than just the destination – it’s about the journey, the experiences you have along the way, and the people you share them with. So don’t waste your time thinking – pack your bags, get your friends, and go on that trip (unless your financial situation is dire). And stay tuned for the next part of this series!
