February seems to be a month of the Bay of Bengal for me; I keep
gravitating towards it! This time it was the Coromandel Coast facing the Bay of
Bengal.
Out again on a weekend trip, to visit family and friends (a
tricky situation combining both… I tell you) this time. Stayed at Chennai with
relatives and visited Mahabalipuram with friends; that was how I divided my
visit. Divide and conquer :-P
Set out, for one by most comfortable rides so far, to Mahabalipuram
(previously called Mamallapuram) after finishing a leisure lunch. Once we got
out of Chennai, the road just kind of took us to the Mahabs (that’s the lingo
my friends used so I am following that just as a true blue friend should!) in
about 2 hours. There is a reason why I mentioned comfortable before; the road
was just that…comfortable!
Mahabs is a small town with a lot of things to take in! There
were beautiful stone carvings, superb light houses (the old one made of a rock
and the new one with a curving staircase used to reach the top). We had a tricky time climbing the stairs as
it was narrow; the last stretch was so narrow that it had to be monitored so that
at any point there was only incoming or outgoing traffic of people. But the
view was sooo worth it!!
The curved stairs
View from the Lighthouse
On one side is the lighthouse, on an another side is the
stone wall with the amazing carvings alongside the rock which holds itself on a
incline without any support! And on yet another side is the shore temple behind
which is the beach! No wonder it is called as an “open-air museum”! It’s been
classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Now to the beach… I just loved it!
There were people but it was not too crowded for a Saturday evening. Follow the
beach along the shore temple to climb some rocks and you would find it an
amazing place to sit and ponder on the combination of profound power and playfulness
of the waters. This path leads you to what looks like a one-street beach town
with some great cafes and restaurants serving some amazing sea food! My friends
told me the best one was Moonrakers! (I am a veggie so I dint bother much with
the restaurants/cafes there). This street reminded me of Pondicherry maybe due
to its ambiance which is probably influenced since Pondy is quite close to
Mahabs. For shopping enthusiasts: granite souvenir can be taken, it’s pretty
amazing here; many leather footwear stores are here, you can find some leather
sandals for a price range of Rs. 300-500.
The granite!
On the rocks!
Classic sunset with friends was one of the highlights of my
evening at Mahabs! Returned home with a carful of fond memories as one of my friends’
put it :-)
THE street!
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