India & Sri Lanka (Post Covid Overseas Visit No 12 - My 24 days in Southern India & Sri Lanka Nov 14 > Dec 7 2024) Day 16 - Nov 29 2024 (Day 2 Chennai)

Kachaleeswarar Temple (1725)
Chennai, Tamil Nadu 

St Mary Co-Cathedral (1658), Chennai

Armenian Church (1712), Chennai

Muthamizharignar Kalaignar Memorial
Chennai 

 

Day 16 Friday Nov 29 2021 (Chennai, Tamil Nadu) - India has 3 big colonial cities ie Bombay (Mumbai), Calcutta (Kolkata) & Madras (Chennai), these three were initially fishing & weaving villages & under the British administration, these three colonial port cities grew at a rapid pace. Having visited Bombay in 2019 & 2023 & Calcutta in 2019, I was extremely pleased that in Day 2 of my stay in Madras, I was able to visit the old Madras (Chennai) ie the likes of Armenian street, George Town (the Penang island of peninsula Malaysia too has a similar street name & place) Parry's Corner, High Court, N.S.C Bose Road ..... as though I am in a familiar territory in the state of Penang, Malaysia (my home country) ! Other colonial cities I had the opportunity to visit in my so far 5 trips to India were Darjeeling (2019), Delhi (2007 & 2018), Goa (2023), Agra (2007 & 2018), Puducherry (2024) & Shimla (2007) hence I have virtually visited all the major colonial cities of Incredible India ! 

A visit to the Kalaignar Memorial in the evening brightened up my Day 2 visit in Chennai ! A super fine day for me despite a red alert of a cyclone hitting the shores of Chennai anytime soon ! 

1) KHIMAS Inn, Chennai - old lift & our hotel room located on 3rd floor, open air space & long corridor.  

2) The start of my familiarisation visit to old Chennai by taking a metro ride from Central Metro > High Court Metro station; walkabout in Armenian street, George Town, High Court road, N.S.C Bose road, Parry's Corner, Burma Bazaar & Chennai Beach Railway Station etc  

3) The Arcot Luthern Church (1892), Broadway, Madras (Chennai), Tamil Nadu - founded by the Danish Missionary Society in 1864, formerly known as the Danish Mission Church. 

4) C.S.I Tucker Church (1820), Broadway Rd, Mannadi, George Town, Chennai, Tamil Nadu - the beautiful church was named after its second missionary, Rev John Tucker, built in 1820. 

5) George Town area, Chennai, Tamil Nadu - old, historic buildings dominate !

6) Small Eat - due to drizzling, both of us took "refuge" in a local eatery stall in Armenian street & enjoyed a local Indian breakfast + chai (Indian tea) ! 

7) Moving on with our walkabout in Armenian Street despite the rain, wet floor & roads / lanes filled with pool of water !

8) Kaalikambal Kamdeswarar Temple (1640), Thambyu Chetty Street, Mannadi, George Town, Chennai, Tamil Nadu - a Hindu temple dedicated to Shri Kaligambal & Lord Kamadeswarar, the temple is a prominent financial street at George Town, running parallel to Rajaji Salai. 

9) Kachaleeswarar Temple (1725), Armenian Street, Mannadi,  George Town, Chennai, Tamil Nadu - also known as Great Kachali Pagoda, dedicated to Lord Shiva, built in 1725 by Kalavai Chetty, a Dubash for the British East India Company.   

10) Heading to High Court area 

11) St Mary Co-Cathedral (1658), Armenian Street, Parry's Corner, Chennai, Tamil Nadu - a Roman Catholic co-cathedral, constructed by Capuchins in 1658, one of the oldest churches in the former British India. 

12) St Mary's HR Secondary School (1839), Chennai, Tamil Nadu

13) Armenian Church (1712), Armenian Street (near High Court), Chennai, Tamil Nadu - one of the oldest church in India, a famous landmark, the church is famous for its belfry of six, now functioning as a heritage site, the graves of about 350 Armenians have been laid out throughout the church; open daily from 09.00 > 14.30, free admission.   

14) High Court (1892), High Court Road, Parry's Corner, George Town,  Chennai, Tamil Nadu - historic high court of Madras, built 1892, featuring monumental Indo-Saracenic architecture, admission for authorised personnel only. 

15) East India Company, High Court Road, Parry's Corner, George Town, Chennai, Tamil Nadu - selling bathroom fixtures & accessories. 

16) C.S.I Anderson Church (1845), NSC Bose Road, Parrys, Chennai, Tamil Nadu - one of the oldest churches in Parry's Corner area of Chennai, the original structure was built in 1845 by Anderson as an educational Institution. 

17) N.S.C Bose Road (China Bazaar Road), Chennai, Tamil Nadu - a busy commercial district. 

18) Dare House (1938), Parry's Corner, Chennai, Tamil Nadu - an art deco building which houses the offices of the Murugappa Group, built between 1938 & 1940, it is named after William Dare, one of the partners of Parry & Co from 1819 > 1838. 

19) Burma Bazaar, N Fort Road, George Town, Chennai, Tamil Nadu - a market run by Burmese refugees in Chennai, located at Parry's Corner & is one of the grey market shopping hubs of Chennai, this historical area is where the city of Madras was officially born in 1640 alongside Fort St George. Parallel to the bazaar is the Chennai Beach Railway station 

20) The Madras Bank (1683), Rajaji Salai, Chennai, Tamil Nadu - founded in British India, the oldest bank in India, later it was merged with the Banks of Bombay & Bengal to form the Imperial Bank of India in 1921 & renamed the State Bank of India in 1955.  

21) Chennai Beach Railway Station, Chennai, Tamil Nadu - a slow train ride from Chennai Fort > Chennai Park, just to get a feel of this old train ride going back to the good old days of Madras ! 

22) Chennai Park Railway Station

23) MGR Chennai Central Railway Station

24) Slow train ride from Chennai Park > Chennai Fort & a bus ride to Muthamizharignar Kalaignar Memorial Memorial near Parry's Corner. 

25) Perarignar Anna / Muthamizharignar Kalaignar Memorial, Chennai, Tamil Nadu - a memorial dedicated to the former chief minister of Tamil Nadu C.N.Annadurai (Anna) where a black marble platform was raised on spot of Anna's cremation in Feb 1969. 

) Kalaignar Museum, Chennai, Tamil Nadu 

26) Words of Wisdom by Kalaignar 

27) Kalaignar Memorial by Night 

28) Bus ride from Kalaignar Memorial > MGR Chennai Central Railway Bus Station 

29) Chennai Railway Station by Night - magnificent looking !