The unforgettable Chennai

It’s a little late to write about my visit to Chennai. But it’s never too late to write about something exotic, isn’t it?

Chennai or Madras is the capital city of Tamil Nadu of India. The climate there is tropical. This was my second trip in this city.

My father and I visited Chennai in January. The weather was warm, summery at that time. It was hot in the day time but cooler at night.

Chennai from the plane

A traffic free Sunday morning!

Greenery

Scorching heat at noon!

The streets are mostly crowded with motorcycles. People of different ages are riding their bike and going from places to places. Some are waiting at the bus-stop and some are taking the 3 wheeled taxis. Most of the people I have encountered were helpful and well spoken.

I have tried the traditional idli and dosa. The flavor of the food is umm…different. If you like coconut and thick gravy in your curry than you will love the food here. The distinctive flavor that is found in the food comes from the special “curry leaves”. It gives the food a zest which may come strong to some people who are used to less spicy food.

Idli (source-internet)

Dosa (source-internet)

The local desserts there come in diversity. If you have a sweet tooth and go to a “mithai” (sweetmeat) shop, you are definitely going to be baffled by the variety of the mouth watering desserts.

Inside a sweetmeat shop (source-internet)

The shops there are well organized and salespersons are really helpful. These have collections from classic south-indian katan sarees to trendy western dresses. January and February is the most suitable time for avid shoppers because this is the time when the shopping malls give 30-70% off sales. So I scored some pretty good deals.

Express Avenue at night (source-internet)

Express avenue-entrance

Inside the mall-every children loved this place!

Chennai City Center

City center at night (source-internet)

Marina Beach