Yes it seems I have successfully completed 365 (and still counting) days since I first got down at Chennai Central railway station, my ‘Buland Darwaza’ to a world outside the skeptical alleys of Kerala.
The knick knack shopping, bingeing on pongal and chutney, traveling by metro railway (with and without ticket), commuting to work in Chennai MTC buses, walking in the December rain, loading pirated DVDs into my bag, the 24x7 local FM channels, clicking away pics of happy kids (as a respite to my boring desk job), thanking cordial strangers for showing direction and speaking broken Tamil and being happy at the end of the day... life in Chennai and a metro city for the very first time has been nothing short of pure adventure, happiness and little boredom strewn in between.
And oh yea, did I miss out my eat-out experiences in Velachery? I used to stroll around the suburb after my work hours and go on a gourmet therapy. Chennai is one of the finest places to find great food joints, local and international. It's pure fun to experiment a food joint a day and savour on the local delicacy. Also, it's fun to get into an ice cream parlour, look around and ask "Is this a new shop? I just came in to check what is out here, Thank You". C'mon, you needa have a count on your calories right?!
Ever attended an interview for a private detective post? That is so beautiful and so crazy, well, I have had. I was hailed as a detective in the embryo by the famous private detective, doing detective jobs on Sundays in Velachery area! The master detective told me, "I can see a bright detective in you, Ms. Uthara." Thrilled at my potential designation, I came back home singing some famous detective numbers, apparently excited about my new role and also the scope to earn a few extra bucks.
A month and half passes by, but no intimation from the man in black suit from Scotland, the dandy Mr. Cholan. No regrets here since the meet up was fun, adventurous and a perfect staple for discussion with my friends back home in college. (at the time of writing I was still in college).
Life is riding on high since my coming to Chennai. I feel the place lets you take some fresh lessons on the value of independence, culture, politics, add to all, the importance to shed inhibitions in one's life. Of course, I wouldn’t dare to experience this had I been in Kerala, since women rarely do feel safe after twilight.
Till date, I have explored very little in Chennai and most of the things to be done still hog around my wish list. Movie reviews take the lion’s share of the blog posts here, ironically the reviewer have never had the chance to go out with her friends to a multiplex and catch the new movie watching experience!
I still await the opportunity to bask in the sun in Besant Nagar beach, visit lot more temples and churches, explore the nightlife in a discotheque on a New Year eve, go to Mahabalipuram (my new Telgu friends have promised that they’d accompany me one day), do high-end shopping in a department store, attend movie and art fests, and so on and on and on.
If you feel to share some free tips on sight-seeing in Chennai, please do it right away. Extending the discussion to the comments board...
PS: Some of my visual testimonials.
The Little Florist In West Mambalam
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| Crowd Across Ranganathan Theru On A Diwali Day |
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| Chennai's IT Highway on OMR, my new neighbourhood (courtesy: Wikipedia) |
