I started off from Delhi and an early morning flight landed me in Chennai at around 9am.
I slept with a mindset to leave for Pondicherry by 9am but was really tired after a very long day at Chennai. You will get buses for Pondicherry from CMBT bus stand platform 1 and buses are available all the time. Again, only public buses are available on all routes. The ticket cost is 150/- and if the buses takes you from the East Coast Road, do sit on the left side of the bus to enjoy the view. It takes 3hours to reach Pondicherry. Please applaud me for my great understanding of sign language that the bus driver was trying to make me understand something in Tamil and I replied him back in English. Still we both got what we were telling each other ????.
Even after sleeping at 2am, we were brave enough to wake up at 5am because it's not everyday you get to experience sunrise at a beach. Atleast I can say this for me! We reached Serenity beach and the view was what you can see in the pictures.
On the other side of the bus stand is the Shore temple and the beach. The ticket cost is 40/-.
A friend of mine had recommended to try Podi Idli at Murugan Idli Shop. Highly recommended from my side too. My friend also offered a glass of Jigarthanda- something that was speciality of that place and it completely suits it's name.
By 2pm I reached my friends place. She happens to stay in Jipmer because accidentally this Engineering person has a doctor friend. We spend the rest of the day chatting and making no sense out of our stupid questionnaire. Pondicherry is way hotter than Chennai. I was still trying to sink in the fact that it was November.
We stepped out in the evening to Rocky beach which was closest beach from the main city. The place is quite a hub for all people of Pondicherry. And it was my one of the favorite places in Pondicherry. The calm water, a shining moon and soothing winds mixed with a insane friend is all you need on a break.
Following the peaceful session, we decided to have dinner at any nearby place where we can get some sea food options. There are a number of restaurants around the Rocky beach where you can enjoy the view and food.
Early morning breakfast options are really few in Pondicherry. One go to option would be Adyar Anand Bhawan. Everyday South Indian options but good in taste.
We got back and dressed up for the place I was most excited for - The French Colony. Of course because it is supposed to be the photo session hub for all Instagrammers. The French Colony is on the other side of Rocky beach. So you can cover them in a day of you want to. So what next? we stopped our scooty at every eye catching location for a quick shoot.
There are many cafes which also serve some delicious desserts and coffee. We visited one with the name - Coromandel Cafe. Beautiful ambiance. I would recommend to try the New York cheese cake.
The next and the biggest beach is the Paradise beach which is in the outskirts of the city. The beach is actually an island where they take you on boat and then you can stay as long as you want and come back on another boat. There are various boat ride options also. The ticket cost is 50/- INR. The beach has a very touristy touch and you can even try some water sports.
It was time to leave for Delhi. I got an early bus to Chennai, then left for the airport. Again got a window seat to get view of East Coast Road.
There are a few places to cover in Mahabalipuram-
1. Museum which has amazing models of ships, boats and navy arms.
A random day at office and I decided to break this monotony of juggling between by my work(coding), YouTube music and Amazon sale. Pondicherry was in my wishlist for two reasons -
1. My friend stays there with whom I had been planning a meet-up for forever now.
2. I had planned a lot of mountains for the year and I wanted to cover the beaches.
So without even giving a second thought, I booked for a 4 day trip checking on the nearest dates available. And you won't believe, I even informed my friend after I made the bookings.
Rather than spending my entire trip in Pondicherry, I asked a few friends and decided to spend a day in Chennai. Being a North Indian with no knowledge of Tamil, it was not a easy job to make everyone understand the address I was supposed to stay; more importantly because I was the one pronouncing it wrong!
I reached Zostel and quickly got ready for a visit to Mahabalipuram. In order to reach the place, you only get public transport buses. It takes approximately 1.5hrs to reach from the bus stand. Let me tell you that there are multiple bus stands but you can take the bus from CMBT Koyambedu. The ticket cost is 43/- INR. The weather is humid even in November.
2. A lighthouse from where you can see the view of the beach. Insane!!!
3. The remains of Mandapa which is also a local place of sightseeing.
The ticket cost for the above is 20/- INR.
You can also have some amazing fried fish, raw mangoes, go for a horse ride or buy these shell cut-outs. Another interesting fact is that you can find various sculptures made out of rock at all the places in Mahabalipuram.
I wanted to stay a little longer but I needed to get back early as I was alone with literally some communication issue. While coming back, there are comparatively lesser buses that go back to Chennai. Instead, take an auto to ECR bus stand in 20/- INR and you can get a bus coming from Pondicherry from there. Luckily I got this information from some people at the bus stand who saw me confused with the bus numbers. The locals around Chennai were really helpful. I even lost my way in the morning to the bus stand but the Uber person was such a gem. He stopped the ride on knowing I had put a wrong location, dropped me at the correct bus stand and even helped me get a bus. And all this with mere to and fro communication in English. On my way back, I met an Uncle who was traveling back after meeting her daughter in Pondicherry. He heard me talking in hindi to my mother and quickly bonded over Hindi language since he was from Maharashtra. These are actually the little moments that we steal from these journeys.
I was back in Chennai by 7:30pm. I called my long lost friend in Chennai and quickly decided to meet over dinner. Meanwhile, I shopped at Pothys which is considered a brand in Chennai. You will find various shops with the same and each sell a different item like sarees, readymade garments, household stuff and everything else you can imagine of! I did not shy away from the glitz of it and brought two dupattas.
After a small conversation over Jigarthanda we called it a night as I had to leave early for Pondicherry the very next day.
The night was not yet over! We headed for a late night show at a mall. We got a chance to watch a hindi movie after a long time.
There are also many people who go for sailing in this beach. Many fishermen are also present at this beach.
I had an afternoon flight and by evening I was back to Delhi.
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