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| General Information about CHENNAI |
Chennai :
Area :1,180 sq. km.
Language : Tamil (local language), Hindi, English.
Altitude : 6 mtrs.
State : Tamil Naidu.
STD Code : 44. |
About Chennai
Chennai, (formerly Madras) the first city of Tamil Nadu, is a comparatively new city. The erstwhile villages of Mylapore, Triplicane, Ezhambur (Egmore) etc. all now a part of Chennai, have a recorded historical past centuries older than Chennai. Chennai, the present gateway to the South of India, is itself, however, only about 350 years old.
Chennai or Madras is the fourth largest metropolis in India. Located on a 17 km stretch of the Coramandel coast, the city is trisected by the waterways of Cooum and Adyar and the Buckingham Canal. Popularly regarded as the 'Gateway to the South', Chennai presents culture that is distinctly different from that of northern India. Music, dance and all other art forms of the South are cherished and nurtured in this city, which though industrialized continues to be traditional and conventional in many ways.
CLIMATE
Chennai is basically a tropical city and humidity prevails normally between 62 to 86%. Proximity to the sea brings in cool breeze much to the relief of the scorched Chennai. Normally Chennai records in a day 36.5 C maximum and 20.8 C minimum. April-May being the summer in Chennai. When the mercury sometimes shoots upto 42 C. Winter spreads over November-January. The monsoon lashes the city at different spells between July-August & September - November. However, the rainy days restricted to a few days to a couple of weeks during these monsoon periods, that makes the situation pleasant for a tourist. Average rainfall is 1215 mm.
PLACES OF ATTRACTION IN CHENNAI
• Marina Beech : 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.
• Santhome Cathedral : Built over the tomb of apostle St. Thomas, the Santhome Cathedral is an important pilgrimage centre. According to legends, St. Thomas arrived in India from Palestine in AD 52 and died after 26 year. 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.
• Kapaleeswarar : 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.
• Guindy National Park & Snake Park : These parks are adjacent to each other. The Guindy National Park is 1 km from the Guindy station. The Snake Park with its lizards, crocodiles and turtles is quite interesting. It is well maintained with generous enclosures. Information boards debunk many myths about reptiles.
• Sri Parthasarathy Temple : 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.
• National Art Gallery : 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.
• The Theosophical Society : 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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