Sandy strands, handicrafts, French delights, shopping, alcohol and lots of foreigners. These are some of the strokes that form the picture of Pondicherry, a coastal town of India.
Once a French colony, initially established as a trading centre, the town is divided into two parts - the Ville Blanche or French town and Ville Noire or the Indian town. The ‘White Town’ retains some of the French flavour with the names of the roads beginning with ‘Rue de...’, the oval shaped city centre, boulevards and promenade along the beach.
Many houses with high walls, gardens, solid front doors and ornate interiors still lend it a ‘French quarters’ look. In the other part of the town, Tamil architecture too can be seen - single or two-storeyed houses with sloping roofs, intricate wooden carving and courtyards.
Six hours away by bus from Bangalore, Pondicherry is an ideal weekend getaway for both those who want to party hard - thanks to low liquor prices - as well as for those who are in search of solitude.
And if you are a spiritual person, you could head straight to the Aurobindo Ashram on Rangapalli Street, perhaps the single most important landmark within town limits, where you can spend hours in meditation in front of Sri Aurobindo’s samadhi.
For the less soulful, the ashram also has shopping opportunities to offer - handicrafts, clothes, perfumes and other small trinkets for people back home.
You could take a walk down the promenade on Beach Road in the evenings, taking in the sea breeze, biting into the variety of street food available at the beach there or sitting on one of the benches and relaxing.
A trip to ‘Pondy’ entails a visit to Auroville, ‘a universal town in the making’ about 10 km away by road. Founded in 1968 by the Mother (from Aurobindo Ashram), it has been planned built in accordance with her vision. The Matrimandir, which was erected as a shrine to the Universal Mother, is a gold-plated dome-like structure with a lotus pond beneath it. However, passes to enter the shrine have to be obtained in advance are generally available only to serious spiritual seekers.
If you’re driving down from Chennai, you could stop en route at Mahabalipuram, another coastal town in Tamil Nadu. Known for its shore temples built by the Pallava dynasty, you could also pack in your lunch there.