Post #212 29 March 2020

Gentlefolk,

This post describes our drive from Chennai to Puducherry (aka Pondicherry, or just Pondy to the locals), and our stay there on Saturday night 7 March 2020.

Pondy became a French colony in 1674. The Dutch occupied it once, and the British 3 times, but it always reverted to France.  In 1954 it finally became a Union Territory of the Republic of India.

With its French history and atmosphere, Pondy has become a magnet for French (and Other) travellers.  The so-called French Quarter covers less than one square km, but most of the street names are French and much of the architecture has been retained.

We stopped for a 'toilet break' at this resort hotel (I think it was part of the Wyndham chain). The resort had wonderful buildings and facilities such as this magnificent swimming pool (and spotless toilets!). There was a beach close by, but we didn't have time to check it out. We saw few guests.

The site map of Auroville.

The Sri Aurobindo Ashram was established in 1926 by Sri Aurobindo (Calcutta 1872 - Pondy 1950) and Mirra Alfassa (Paris 1878 - Pondy 1973).  He was born Aurobindo Ghose, studied at Cambridge Uni, spoke 10 languages, and is described as a philosopher, yogi, guru, poet, and nationalist.
Aurobindo started calling Mirra "The Mother" and the name stuck. In 1968 she founded Auroville as a "model universal town" dedicated to human unity and evolution. 

The philosophy (Integral Yoga) of Sri Aurobindo attracted followers, including Mirra Alfassa; they jointly established an Ashram in Pondy in 1926.  He died in 1950 and she carried on his work.

As the number of followers of Integral Yoga continued to grow, in 1968 "The Mother" founded Auroville 12 km outside Pondicherry.  About 1,800 people from many countries now live in the township. All followers/residents must work in some field; work is an essential prerequisite to be able to live in this community.  

We had lunch in the busy restaurant near the big Visitor's Center. The food was all vegetarian.

We went to the Matrimandir, the spiritual center of Auroville. The huge 29m high golden dome is like a giant golf ball or golden spaceship. Construction started in 1971 and it was finally opened in 2008. Entry is restricted; apparently the inner chamber is lined with white marble, and the 'altar' features a huge crystal 70cm in diameter.

This magnificent banyan tree at Auroville, one of the biggest I have ever seen.

Another view of the amazing banyan tree.

From Auroville we drove to Pondy and checked into the Accord Metropolitan Hotel. Swim. Later Eugine led a walk around the French Quarter.  The city is on the coast, but the beach near the center of Pondy had to be reinforced with boulders, which unfortunately made it unsightly  and unsuitable for swimming. Apparently there are good swimming beaches not far away.
It was Saturday evening, and there were many people on the Esplanade along the beach.

The former residence of the French Governor, now the local government's HQ.

Many of the old French colonial buildings have been renovated.

A statue of Mahatma Gandhi. 

Street art of MG.

More street art - Mother Theresa.

Poster, in English!

Another poster, also in English.

Statue of a policeman.  They still wear the French-style hat!

Former colonial-era building - looked better at night, all lit up.

There was a crowd at the Sri Manakula Vinayagar Hindu Temple dedicated to Ganesh. 

The elephant in front of the Temple gave blessings for a fee - a pat on the head with his trunk.

Impressive memorial to Tamil writer Ambedkar Manimandabam.

One of the many Catholic churches in Pondy. In French 'Notre Dame des Anges'.

The entrance to the church. It was re-built in 1858; attractive pink & cream colour.

Inside the church.

Eugine took us to a local liquor store to stock up. He said that liquor prices were cheaper in Pondy because there was no State tax here.

We had dinner in a boutique hotel, a tastefully-renovated colonial era building. It was a lovely setting, but most of us were disappointed with the food. 

For me Pondy was a little disappointing after all the build up of "a slice of France in India". It had potential, but I guess we just had too little time there.

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Early the next morning we left for our next destination, Trichy.

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Womens basketball

I neglected to mention a significant event which took place in Canberra last Wednesday night. The Canberra Capitals beat Melbourne's Southside Flyers 71-68 to win the WNBL for back-to-back titles. 

Well done, girls!

Vera & my favourite player, Olivia Epoupa, was named Most Valuable Player of the Finals. She is the smallest player in the Capitals, but wonderful skills and tireless.

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Coronavirus update

Tragic scenes on TV of many thousands 'migrant workers' in India walking back to their villages (sometimes hundreds of km). They have lost their jobs as a consequence of the national lock-down, and can't afford to stay in the cities and towns.

Our tour ended just in time - we were lucky - even Singapore has stopped allowing transit passengers.

Tonight PM Scott Morrison reduced the size of permitted groupings from 10 to just 2.  Mandatory, supervised 14 day isolation started today for all new arrivals.

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Best wishes, stay healthy and keep smiling.

Vera & Alex Olah
Canberra, Australia
Sunday, 29 March 2020