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Day 01
: Chennai
Arrive Chennai - the gateway to southern India, established in 1639 by
the East India Company, is one of the oldest cities of the country.
Assistance and transfer to hotel.
After lunch at hotel, half day sightseeing tour, visiting Gandhi
Memorial, Kala Kshetra, Mylapore temple and Marine beach. Dinner and
overnite at hotel. |
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Day
02 : Chennai(Excursion - Tirupathi,154kms/3.5hours)
After
breakfast, proceed to Tirupathi. Lunch at local restaurant Tirupathi is
a temple town known for the famous ancient temple of Lord Venkateswara
(Lord of seven hills or Balaji, as he is affectionately known ) on the
top of the 860mts high Tirumala hills. The temple of Lord
Venkateswara is not only believed to be amongst the oldest temples in
the country, but also the richest of them all .Legend has it
that Lord Venkateswara borrowed money from the divine treasurer Kubera
for his wedding expenses. He is still paying back this debt which is why
the pilgrims donate generously to the temple funds. In the evening
return to Chennai for dinner and overnite stay.
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Day
03 :
Chennai/Kanchipuram/Mamallapooram
After breakfast drive to Kanchipuram ( 76 kms/01.50 hrs ) – is the
ancient capital of the Pallavas famous as a city of 1000 Temples and
still has 124 shrines. The first temple dedicated to Shiva was
built in the 7th and 8th century and has paintings on
the walls. Temples of Ekambaswara , Kailasanatha, Sri
Kamakshi and Varadarajaswamy are of interest. Kanchipuram is also
famous for its silks. Lunch at local restaurant and later drive to
Mamallapooram and check in at hotel.
Afternoon visit the city - built in 7th century, earlier called
Mahabalipooram, this ancient Pallava port, is today the sight of
several antique sculptural marvels. In this ancient seaside town ,
shrines and huge sculptures cut-out of rocks more than 1200 years back
during the reign of Pallava Kings in the region can be seen. The
rock carvings depicting mythological episodes - of demons, Gods and
animals in battle and others - are truly poems in stone. The only shore
temple which remains here is the spectacular two - spired shrine,
unique because it houses both Lord Shiva and the Lord Vishnu in its
sanctum-sanctorum. Dinner and overnite at hotel. |
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Day
04 : Mamallapooram/Tiruvannamalai/Pondicherry
After
breakfast drive to Tiruvannamallai(112kms/03hrs)- a pilgrim centre with
an ancient temple of Lord Shiva. After lunch at local restaurant,
proceed to Pondicherry (131kms/ 3.5hrs), which carries a strong
whiff of the French presence in India. This erstwhile French colony on
the east coast of South India merged with the rest of the country in
1954. Legend says that Pondicherry is the place where St.Agasthaya
settled down. Checkin ,dinner and overnite at hotel.
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Day 05
: Pondicherry
After
breakfast drive to visit Aurbindo Ashram, the city of dawn, which is
10kms north of Pondicherry. This ashram promotes Aurbindo's ideas in
bringing about a synthesis of Yoga and modern science, so as to
unite the spirit and matter. After lunch at hotel, visit Auroville -
a unique experiment in international living and in creating a new
environment where men and women of all nationalities live together in
harmony. Dinner and overnite at hotel.
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Day
06
: Pondicherry/Chidambaram/Tanjore
After breakfast drive to Chidambaram(65kms/1.5hrs) also called as
Thillai, which has the famous Nataraja temple with the root of the
sanctum-sanctorum covered with golden plates is located in the centre of
the town covering an area of 40 acres. In this temple, postures from the
Bharatnatayam form of dance are depicted in sculpture. Natraja is Lord
Shiva as a cosmic dancer. After lunch at local restaurant, drive to
Thanjavur (104kms/03hrs) enroute visiting the Brass factory at
Kumbakonam. Tanjore once the capital of Chola Kings, has the
Brahadeswara temple(or the big temple of God).The temple tower rises
to a height of 15mts from a square base of 29 mts and then tapers off,
making a total of 66mts.Checkin, dinner and overnite at hotel .
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Day
07 : Tanjore/Trichy(54kms/02hrs)
After breakfast leave for Trichy, short name of Trichurapalli, situated
on the banks of Kaveri River is a blend of history and tradition as well
as pilgrim centre, it is famous for Ranganath temple at Srirangam.
Checkin at hotel. After lunch city tour visiting Rock fort and its
temple at a height of over 23mts. Also visit Srirangam and
Jambukeshwar Temple. Dinner and overnite at hotel.
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Day 08
: Trichy/Madurai(133kms/3.5hrs)
After breakfast proceed to Madurai and checkin at hotel. The
ancient city of Madurai, some 2600 years old is laid out in the
banks of river Vaigai as a lotus flower with the Meenakshi temple in
the centre. After lunch city tour visiting - Meenakshi temple, King
Tirumala's Palace, Great tank and Gandhi museum. Dinner and overnite at
hotel.
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Day 09
: Madurai(Excursion-Rameshwaram,154kms/04hrs)
After
breakfast proceed to Rameshwaram- the most sacred temple town of
India is an island hallowed by the epic Ramayana, where Lord Rama is
said to have visited before
going into battle of Srilanka. Legend has it that Lord Rama sent
Hanuman to Mount Kailash to bring a Lingam for worship when he set foot
after defeating Ravana. As Hanuman did not return when the auspicious
hour was approaching, Sita made a sand Lingam so that worship could be
performed in time, which is where the present day Ramanatha Swamy
Temple stands close to sea on the eastern side of the island. One of
the twelve Jyotirlingam shrines is also well known for its
magnificent corridors and the massive sculptured pillars lining them.
Lunch at local restaurant. Return to Madurai for dinner and overnite
stay at hotel. |
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Day 10
: Madurai/Trivandrum ( 329 kms/08.50 hrs )
After
breakfast drive to Trivandrum and check in at hotel. Afternoon at
leisure.
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Day
11 : Trivandrum(Excursion Kanyakumari 87 kms/02.00 hrs )
After
breakfast proceed for Kanyakumari – is the land’s end of India where the
water of the Arabian Sea , the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean meet.
An important pilgrim centre of India , it is famous for the Amman
Temples – a symbol of unity and sanctity – deidicated to the virgin
Goddess , Kanya Kumari. To its South – East lies the famous Vivekananda
Rock Memorial , a blend of all the architectural styles of India. Lunch
at local restaurant. Evening enjoy the beautiful sun set and later
return to Trivandrum. Dinner and overnite at hotel.
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Day 12
: Tivandrum/ Back
Home
After
breakfast transfer to airport to connect flight for onward journey.
End of our services. |
India
will sideswipe you with its size, clamour and diversity but if you
enjoy delving in to convoluted cosmologies and thrive on sensual
overload, then it is one of the most intricate and rewarding dramas
unfolding on earth, and you'll quickly develop an abiding passion
for it.
"If
there is one place on the face of earth where all the dreams of
living men have found a home from the very earliest days when man
began the dream of existence,