Swamimalai Temple Yelagiri Hills

Yelagiri Hills' most famous landmark is the Swamimalai Temple. While there are plenty of other temples dedicated to Lord Murugan, the Swamimalai Temple is the most famous of them all. If you are coming here via a vehicle, you can park it in the Mangalam village which is at the base. In fact, visit the Mangalam temple too. At the outset let me inform you that going up the hill to the Swamimalai Temple is not as easy a climb as many think!

Steps leading up to the temple

Mangalam Temple Yelagiri Hills

While the Swamimalai Temple in Yelagiri is more well-known, the Mangalam temple too has its own importance. In fact, to get to the Swamimalai Temple you have to start at the Mangalam village. From this village you can trek up to the Swamimalai Temple.

Top Slip Sanctuary

Welcome Board at Topslip Sanctuary

Boundaries are seen clearly on a geographical map, but in reality areas could well overlap making actual boundary lines between regions redundant. This is the case with the Parambikulam Sanctuary in Kerala, the forest area of which on the other side is within the State of Tamil Nadu. Visitors to Parambikulam Sanctuary should know that the entry to this wildlife sanctuary is not on the Kerala side but on the Tamil Nadu side, at the Indira Gandhi Wildlife Sanctuary and National Park.

Raoji Residency Homestay in Valparai

Staying in Valparai is not at all expensive. In fact, for budget travellers it is really good. The problem is finding a good place to stay. We had initially booked rooms at the Green Hill Hotel Valparai, but shifted from there after being unhappy with the not-too-clean & dingy-looking rooms. It appeared that there are quite a few homestays in Valparai where lodging is provided, though not meals. We discovered a homestay named Raoji Residency.

Green Hotel Valparai review

Hotel entrance

Contrary to what many people have said about Green Hill Hotel in Valparai, it is not recommended to stay here. Located on the State Bank road, it does not have any good views at all.

Travelling from Chennai to Valparai

Heading to Valparai by road from Chennai is quite an experience, primarily because you are not just travelling up the ghats but because you have to manouver your way through 40 hair pin bends!

Staying at Ambrra River Resort Pollachi

Soaking feet in cool river waters

Wouldn't you love to do this?! 

This opportunity we got while staying at the Ambrra River Resort, Pollachi. The resort does not have the word 'River' in it just for the heck of it. It is indeed located near a river, the Aliyar River to be precise.

Staying at Aura Valley Resort Yelagiri

On our trip to Yelagiri, a quiet hill station within driving distance from Chennai, we stayed at Aura Valley Resort. You can have your base here and visit the local Mangalam temple and Swamimalai Temple.

Ganga Hot Chips Chennai

Other than buying fabric and sarees, jewellery and handicrafts, one thing you must definitely buy to take back home are the unique wafers from Ganga Hot Chips at Adyar, Chennai.

Ganga Hot Chips

The nondescript store is well-known and its variety of wafers are equally famous. There are tapioca wafers, bananna wafers, tomato-flavoured wafers and, of course, potato wafers of both the plain and spicy types.

Location of Ganga Hot Chips, Chennai: The store is located exactly opposite Parasu Dental Hospital.

Parasu Dental Hospital opp. Ganga Hot Chips

If you are coming from the main road where Ambica Stores is located, just turn left, go straight and take the second left turn. You will see a Nallis shop on your right. Just ahead of it, in the same line on your right, is Ganga Hot Chips. The Parasu Denal Hospital will be on your left.

Beside wafers, you can also buy pickles and mithai (sweetmeats) including ladoos, chivdas and different types of muruku at Ganga Hot Chips.

A row of pickle bottles sets your mouth watering!

The store lives up to its tagline "Your Satisfaction is our Ambition" - satisfaction is definitely gauranteed!


Address and Contact Information of Ganga Hot Chips in Chennai

Old No.12, New No.22, 3rd Cross Street,
K. B. Nagar, Adyar,
Chennai - 600020.
Ph: 044 - 24402549
Mobile: 9841446791

Staying at Vailankanni

When visiting Vailankanni you can stay at the MGM Vailankanni Residency Resort. It is located about 1km from Our Lady of Vailankanni shrine. You can opt to stay in one of the 8 cottages or in a delux room or in a suite.

Room Tarriff at MGM Vailankanni Residency Resort:
* Delux room: Rs.2750/- + Taxes and Service Charge Single / Double occupancy
* Grandeur Suite: Rs.3250/- +  Taxes and Service Charge Single / Double occupancy
* Cottage: Rs.3500/- +  Taxes and Service Charge Occupancy: 4 people
Note: The rates include breakfast; an extra bed costs Rs. 700/- + tax
Check in Time 14:00 Hrs / Check out Time: 12:00 Noon. 

Facilities at MGM Vailankanni Residency Resortinclude a swimming pool, mult-cuisine restaurant, a badminton court, and an indoor games room. Business travellers can avail of conference room facilities. The in-house Lotus restaurant offers Indian, Chinese and Continental food, both vegetarian and non-vegetarian.

The resort can arrange for transportation to the shrine.

MGM Vailankanni Residency Resort Address and Contact Information:
# 64 / F 2, Nagapattinam Main Road
Vailankanni-611111
Ph: 91-4365-263900 / 263979 / 263336
Email: mgmvlknresidency@mgm.co.in

Visiting Vailankanni

When visiting Chennai, it is a good idea to keep 2 days on your itinerary to visit the holy town of Vailankanni. Vailankanni is famous for its Vailankanni shrine. It is believed that requests asked for through prayers at the shrine of Our Lady of Vailankanni are granted. 

Legend has it that Mother Mary arrived at Vailankanni with baby Jesus and hence the shrine was established here. Devotees of all faiths visit the shrine throughout the year and make a return trip once their prayers are fulfilled. The annual 10 day feast, known as "Feast of Our Lady", begins on August 29th.

 

Location of Vailankanni: The small town of Vailankanni is located about 350 kms. from Chennai. You can hire private taxis to and fro from Chennai itself if you are staying in Chennai. It is also accessible by road from Bengaluru. 
How to go to Vailankanni

* The nearest airport to Vailankanni is no the Chennai Airport, but the Tiruchirapalli airport (also known as Trichy airport). 

Contact Phone Number of Tiruchirapalli Airport: 91-431-2340551, 91-431-2341810

* The nearest railway station to Vailankanni is at Nagappatinam. It is part of Southern Railways and is located on the Erode-Nagore rail route. 

View Larger Map

Tips for Visitors when visiting Vallankanni:

* The Our Lady of Vailankanni shrine is not simply one single church, but a large complex. Hence, you should not assume that you will be able to complete your visit in one hour. There is plenty to see, so you should ideally have 4-5 hours for visiting the shrine.

Map of Vailankanni Shrine location and shrine complex

* You can stay in the town of Vailankanni itself and not find it necessary to make a quick dash to and fro from Chennai or other nearby cities. The local officials have set up simple accomodations in what is called 'The Mega Mahal'. You can also stay at the nearby MGM Resort. 

* If you have not taken along any special offerings, but would like to offer something in the form of gold or silver, there is an Offering Center at the premises. Your own unique petition or letter can also be dropped into the large boxes kept for the purpose. 

* Visit the museum to see the display of what devotees have been offering at the shrine over the years. 

* Make sure you visit the old chapel near the enclosed water tank and not just the newer extensions which were built later - this is said to be the place where Mother Mary first appeared with baby Jesus.

Vailankanni shrine altar

Contact information of Our Lady of Vailankanni shrine

 

Very Rev. Fr. P. Xavier
Rector,Shrine Basilica

Vailankanni 611 111
Nagapattinam District
Tamilnadu, INDIA
04365 : 263 530 (Father's personal)
04365 : 263 517 (Father's Fax)
04365 : 263 423 (Shrine Number)
Email : info@vailankannishrine.org

Photos of Vailankanni Church

White Pepper restaurant Chennai review

The White Pepper restaurant Thiruvanmiyur, Chennai identifies itself as 'Dim Sum Delicacy Restaurant'. Yes, they definitely do have dim sums, but their menu is much more expansive, covering a good variety of Asian cuisine. If you are looking for a meal that does not include the same old southern food of sambhar rice, vadas and thalis, head to the White Pepper restaurant for something different.

Before I tell you about this restaurant, though, here are a few tips: The portions are plentiful – and I mean really plentiful! – so it can definitely be shared between 2-3 people. Secondly, make very sure you have enough space to enjoy the lovely desserts at the end of the meal!

Location of White Pepper restaurant Chennai : As mentioned in the address of the restaurant, White Pepper is located near Jayanthi theatre. This theatre, however, comes on your right side on the opposite side of the road when approaching from Adyar so you need to keep your eyes glued to that side – look out for the small sign board of the restaurant perched atop a compound wall after you pass the Aiswariya Bhavan building (this is while approaching from Adyar side). The restaurant is located inside a small by-lane on your right so you could just miss it altogether if you miss the sign board on the main road.

The White Pepper restaurant is located in a bylane off the main L.B.Road

Interior: I was vastly revealed to see that the restaurant is not one of those types which are extremely dim (no pun intended on the word dim sum!) and you can barely see the menu, leave aside what are the ingredients in the food you have ordered. The White Pepper restaurant is bright and cheerful, with neatly spaced out tables and sofa seating arrangements too – groups of 2, 4, 6, 8 and even up to 12 can sit comfortably without elbows & knees knocking. The impeccably placed all-white plates and cutlery are ready for diners, as are toothpicks and salt/pepper/vinegar. When we dined here, the bright red heart-shaped balloons of Valentines Day were still in place, adding to the happy ambience. 

White Pepper restaurant interiror

Service: Smiling waiters, quick service (except the first order of dessert took some time coming), hot food.

White Pepper restaurant Chennai Food: The menu of White Pepper Restaurant includes both vegetarian and non-vegetarian cuisine, including lamb, seafood and poultry items. Noodles, oriental grilled food, soups & starters, dim sums, rice, and beverages (fresh fruit juices, mocktails, soft drinks) & desserts completes the menu. As mentioned at the beginning, the portions are good enough to share. So you can order 1 one bowl of soup between 2 people (say one by two when ordering). If you order small bowl, it costs Rs.70/-; the large one costs Rs.110/-. 

Soup

Once you have finished slurping up the hot soup (nothing outstanding), move on to the starters. I had the Popiya (spring rolls) and the non-vegetarian members in our group ordered the Calamari (squid). Both were simply wonderful. The Popiya were value for money (Rs. 90/- for 6). They came served on a top of a few straggly strips of cabbage and carrot accompanied by a bowl of a tangy sauce (the sauces are one thing which are served in miniscule portions in really tiny bowls). The minute I bit into a Popiya, I was delighted by the crunchiness. It was not spicy or oily and the sauce was a perfect accompaniment.

Popiya

Calamari

We then ordered Momos, both vegetarian (Rs.110/- for a basket) and chicken (Rs.150/-). These were nothing exceptional and pretty bland in taste.

Cane box in which Momos were served

Next part of our meal was rice. We ordered the Five Coloured Fried Rice (you can order in varying portions depending on how many in your group, with the price varying depending on the portion (Rs.100/- / Rs.110/- / Rs.115/-). The rice did have 5 colours, incorporating baby corn, capsicum, carrot & mushrooms. It was not as tasty as I expected, due to the absence of any fancy spices. Those looking for less bland rice can opt for other varieties on the menu, such as the Thai Spicy Fried Rice or the Corn and Pepper fried rice. Incidentally, plain steamed rice is also available (Rs.70/-).

Five Coloured Friend Rice

To accompany the meal we had a mix of broccoli, mushroom and baby corn veggies (Rs.150/-). This was served in a gravy which was a tad watery, and was Ok.

Finally came the superb dessert: we ordered 3 different desserts – the Choco Mocha mousse, Chocolate mousse, and Mango mousse. Out of these, the Choco Mocha was definitely the best. Note that all these desserts are eggless and gelatin free.

Chocolate mousse

Choco Mocha mousse

Mango mousse

In-between our meal, we were served a complimentary platter of some fried snack resembling fried samosas – like the Popiya, these too were crunchy. At the end of the meal we were also served a plate of bite-sized fruits with toothpicks sticking out. These included watermelons, grapes, bananas, papayas, etc.

Fruity end to the meal!

Overall, the meal was very filling but not the heavy type where you feel the food is literally up to your neck and you just cannot move from your seat! It was a value for money meal, as good as a fancy meal in an up-market expensive hotel’s restaurant. Definitely worth a visit once in a while, especially if you are celebrating something special – we were celebrating my niece winning a talent award for writing at school. Cheers! 

White Pepper restaurant Chennai  Address and Phone Numbers

New no.76/1, L.B.Road, 3^rd street,

Near Jayanthi theatre,

Thiruvanmiyur

Chennai – 600 041

Ph: 044-43178366 / 43178367

Email: whitepepperchennai@gmail.com

White Pepper restaurant Chennai Timings:
11.30.m. to 3.30p.m. / 6.30p.m. to 11.00p.m.

Extra: The restaurant does free home delivery.

Visiting Kapaleeswarar Temple and Shopping in Chennai

I had heard a lot about the Kapaleeswarar temple, so made it a point to go there on my first visit to Chennai. It is well-known for its architectural beauty, especially its extremely tall pyramid structure (gopuram) that stretches towards the sky. It is located in Mylapore and is easily accessible by autos and cabs. As per a legendary lore, Parvati worshipped Lord Shiva here in the form of a peacock. The temple is also home to beautiful bronze figures of Lord Shiva’s devotees, numbering 63 saints in all.

So I was very excited to visit the temple. At the left side of the entrance, I handed over my footwear to the charge of a caretaker and got a token in return for collecting them later. I was truly awed by the tall gopuram and wondered at the superb mastery of the temple artisans who created the many idols and figures that grace the gopuram. I happily started clicking away and stepped over the threshold, camera at eye level to snap some pictures of the interior. A temple priest saw me, shouted something in Tamil and gestured with his hands, by which I understood that it was forbidden to take photos inside the temple precincts. Duly chastened, I put away my camera. Walking around the temple created an inner peace that is typical of a place of worship.

Best Places for Shopping in Chennai

After spending some time in prayer at this wonderful temple, after collecting my footwear I headed to the Radha Silk showroom. Located just a few footsteps from the temple, ‘Rasi’ as it is popularly known, has (naturally as it is south India!) extremely fine silk sarees. However, there is far more than sarees to attract the avid shopper at this emporium. I veered towards the children’s wear section, looking for something to gift my niece. I came across some adorable cotton skirts in various shades of blue and pink. I was happy to see the good quality fabrics and fine stitching work. Unfortunately, though, I did not get the size I wanted and I was sorely disappointed! Then I proceeded to the men’s wear section and, believe me, I came across some of the finest men’s kurtas I have ever seen to date. There was a vast range of colors and sizes and each one was impeccably designed. For the ladies, too, there are some lovely salwar-kameez sets for wearing at celebratory functions. Whether you are looking for casual or formal wear, Rasi is a definite shopping stop!

A major shopping destination in Chennai is the Saravanna Stores. It is not just a store, but a multi-storeyed building. Even in the early mornings, there will be a huge crowd of shoppers. By huge I mean really huge – it seems as though half the population of the city has converged here, not to mention visitors like me. Each floor is devoted to a particular type of goods – jewellery, clothes, bags, household provisions, sports items, stationery, etc. Many people rush here to buy their monthly provisions and gift items to take advantage of the low prices. There are plenty of tempting things to buy, but make sure you have some money left over to enjoy the equally low-priced food in the canteen. Try the dal-vadas and samosas and take some of the cake to try out later.

For bookworms, two places that are a must-visit are Crossword and Landmark. Both are beautifully designed spaces. The Crossword Shop has comfortably deep large chairs that you can sink into and read a book undisturbed – what bliss! Landmark’s larger outlet at Spencer’s Plaza is simply awesome. It is so vast that you will need an entire day just to browse through the whole space!

Then there are well-known garments / sarees / jewellery that are Chennai’s landmarks, once again occupying entire buildings, such as Pothy’s, Nalli’s, etc.

So there are no dearth of shops and malls to spend many happy hours in the shade away from the heat!

Kebab Court Chennai

Kebab Court Restaurant Chennai

Just as it is difficult to locate a restaurant in North India that serves authentic dosas and sambhar, it is tough finding a dining establishment in the southern parts that serves authentic north-style kebabs and parathas. So it was a lovely surprise to feast on some really succulent kebabs and well-cooked parathas at Kebab Court, ECR, Chennai. The restaurant is open for dinner after 7 p.m. and it is a sensible idea to reserve a table in advance as diners start coming in large groups after 8.30p.m.

The waiter courteously draws out your chair if you are a lady and within seconds a small glass of cold lime and mint sherbet appears; the complimentary drink makes a refreshing start to your meal. Hindi film songs are played in the background without being annoyingly loud. It is easy to select from the menu, as it is not very vast, but nevertheless has something to tempt every palate. You can order simple Rotis or plain Naans or go for Vegetable Parathas. Before that, feast on the kebabs – six on one plate – that simply make you drool and tempt you to order more. The parathas too are made just right – not hard, and not burnt! For the main dish, you can select from the various rice varieties and finish your meal with a dessert. Though a meal for two could cost upwards of Rs. 1000/- (with both of you sharing each dish), it is value for money.

Note: Kebab Court also has branches at Velacherry and at Anna Nagar.

Light Art Store Chennai

Lights enhance the décor of a house, the atmosphere of an office, the interior of an automobile and the ambience of a hotel or restaurant. At one time the options were limited to long white tube lights or round yellow bulbs. Today lighting systems are veritable art pieces in themselves, brightening up indoor places and outdoor sites in enlightening ways. Some lights are harsh, some soft and soothing, yet others keep you mesmerized.

Shopping for lights is fun! To enter a store that is devoted exclusively to lights and nothing else is even more enjoyable. One such showroom that I came across on my visit to Chennai is Light Art at Alwarpet. The ordinary-looking red and white exterior houses some of the most extraordinary lighting systems that I have ever seen. For those with small requirements to those looking for ways to light up spacious homes – every kind of customer can have their bright wishes at this one store. Tiny Swarovski-embedded ceiling bulbs, chandeliers with white Egyptian crystals, wall lamps of every hue, unique lotus-shaped lights suspended from the ceiling …all these and more will have you gasping in awe.

Travel Tips for Visiting Chennai

What was my first impression of Chennai on my very first visit? Well, I was too busy wiping off beads of sweat the minute I exited from the Chennai domestic airport to even register anything! I had been warned that it is sizzling hot during the month of May, but boasted how I loved hot summers and that I could take the heat. So there I was, walking to the car, already feeling the ‘summer’ seeping through my clothes. I have always hated air-conditioned vehicles and prefer to keep the windows down and enjoy the breeze. It was in Chennai that I realized the advantage of an ac car! In fact, I considered myself really really lucky to have my relative’s car available for my entire stay.

Tips for Staying in Chennai
* Take along an umbrella or wear a cap and don sunglasses each time you step out.
* Carry a bottle of water in your handbag. It is totally pointless leaving a bottle of water in the car with the thought of quenching your thirst when you return from your wanderings, as within a few minutes the bottle and its contents are going to get heated up!
* Take along sufficient clothes. It gets so hot that your clothes literally STICK to your skin and, you will want to change your clothes the minute you return from touring around. This is the case even with simple cotton garments.
* If the heat is really getting to you while you are walking around, just duck-in for a while into the nearest shop for a few minutes. It doesn’t matter if you’re not planning to buy anything – every shop’s staff is so helpful and kind that they won’t be rude to you even if you simply look around the merchandise.
Despite the heat, I honestly loved Chennai and in my next blog will share with you the places I visited.