Chennai Walks, and pics

This is my favorite temple in Chennai in the Mylapore area, the neighborhood surrounding it is full of smaller shrines, I come here often early early in the morning and then have a dosa, chai and my morning paper at one of the delectable resturants near the temple

beautiful colorful kolam

So many dawns, so many Kolams, what wonderful street art!


Beach at Chennai, New Years morning

This was the old ice house where ice shipped from Concord and Salem was brought, usually the shipment at least half melted by then. Now its the Swami Vivekananda house, Vivekananda represented India at the World Parliment of Religions in Chicago on September 11, 1894 (I think that's right, not quite sure about the year)

This is a modest example of the many Art Decco houses all over India, it certainly was a favorite style, I like the elaborate buildings and theatres, but also the modest homes in neighborhoods

The Lady Willingdon school building has seen better days but reflects the Colonial infuence in Indian architecture, some are beautifully restored. The generous collumbed porches and high celings are perfect for the tropical weather year round

A bit worn, but a charming older wooden victorian cottage style building

Fishermens's boats, this area was very badly hit by the Tsunami, there are some sturdy new builngs built along with the thatch buildings

Here you can see both Christian and Hindu churches on the shore in the fishing village, St. Thomas brough Cathoicism to Madras (Chennai) long before the British missionaries

A small chapel in the fishing village

Fishing village road

I've had a few exhausting days but very wonderful. I have been getting up and out by 7:30 and talking long long walks. I just got home from this mornings walk, started at 7:30 and its noon. Not only is the air cool, but the foot and vehicular traffic is manaable and people are friendly, many greetings of Happy New Year this morning. I love to photogaph the elaborate abstract designs that women put on the thresholds, called Kolams, they are to bring the blessings of the goddess of good fortune, Lakshmi, into the house. They are made with rice powder.
Some photos are also of the Mylapore Temple with its prominent brightly colored gopuram, that's my favoriate temple in Chennai, after which I visited the very serene Ramakrishna temple where people of all faiths gather, there were matts on the floor and many people inside meditating or praying, very peaceful and the grounds were beautiful, although not the kind of riotous imagery in the more typical Hindu temples that I find so interesting.

New Years Day commenced with a long walk to the beach, luckily it was hazy because there was no shade to be found. First I was walking through a small fishing village, you could see some new simple concrete structures probably built after the Tsunami which did so much damage. That part of the beach with a combination of thatched huts and grim looking government flats "projects" eventually gives way to a much broader expanse with a promenade and many grand European style buildings across from the main highway that runs along it. One pink buildin is the old Ice House where ice was bought from Salem to Madras, its now the Vivekananda museum. In terms of places of worship, grand and modest, You can see the presence of not only Hinduism, but Christianity, St. Thomas was here so there was ample Catholic presence lon before the missionaries, and many small chappels and larger grander churches. I photogaphed some here in the small beachside fishing village. A visit to another temple further north was pretty intnse, this IS the place to be on New Years Day and it was crowded with people lined up for Darshan, to see the image of the deity. After a very near miss in becoming part of a "Bus Sandwich" my own stupid fault for trying to cross a road unsafely,it made me feel like I really should pay my respects to at least one of the shrines in the temple, so I chouse one with the shortest line. I'm not sure what deity it was, but I was blessed and gave thanks that I could still walk around more, and it was a good lesson to be more careful.

The neighborhood streets around the temple were fun to explore, while I'd say that most architecture in the city is rather drab whitwashed concrete, and new buildings with a dizzying mix of styles, there are some old buildings and also what India excelled at, Decco buildings, many small and simple, a bit worn but with elegant lines. What I find very interesting, and also what makes it easier to be out and about, compared to when I was here in 2002 or before, is the total anonomimity I have walking around. I used to generate a great deal of attention, not harmful at all, but unnerving and made it hard to enjoy just strolling along and looking. Maybe its my gray hair "auntie" or maybe that seeing a westerner walking around is no big deal, though tourists here are still far and few between. There are the Rickshaw wallas who slow down to ask me if I want a ride but to my delight I discovered the above ground train has a station near where I'm staying and what a wonderful breezy ride over the rooftops of Chennai, a great way to see the city.

I've had plenty and plenty of "culture" this being music season. One day I went to two vocal concerts, they are scheduled all day at the main music academy, and yesterday afternoon to a 2 1/2 hour Carnatic music, flute, violin concert. Tonight is the end of the series and there is a multi drum, tabla finale at 6 pm then I will take myself out to the Raintree for dinner, its a luxury hotel I discovered within walking distnace from my place (well a reasonable walking distnace, considering the long long walks I"ve had all over the city.) New Years Eve Deborah took me to a wonderful dance drama of The Man in the Iron Mask, though it was in Tamil, I undestood the story and the visuals, beautiful people, costumes, dance, made up for what I may not have understood.

Tomorrow we hang the show and then the opening the following day, after that I have two days at Kanchipuram, one of the holist cities in India with many famed temples.