As a tourist attraction, Chennai is not as popular as the other major cities of India. The main reasons travelers come here is to transact business or to make a long-distance travel connection.
Population: 6 million as of 2000
Main Language: Tamil
Now officially referred to by its Tamil name, Chennai is India's fourth largest city, and the capital of Tamil Nadu state. It's an enjoyable place because it suffers far less from the congestion and overcrowding than other big India cities. However this is rapidly changing and it won't be long before it rivals the others for bustle, noise and fumes. Catch it while it is still pleasant!
The people here are zealous guardians of Tamil culture, which they regard as superior to the cultures further north. They very much oppose Hindi being made the national language.
The city of Chennai is largely a huge collection of overgrown villages that have melded together into a city. The city is quite spread out. Although the rickshaws here are the most expensive you may find in India, the city has a fairy good bus system as well as a commuter train system going to certain areas.
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There are around 2,500 churches in the Madras area and around 8-10% of the population is Christian. In certain areas of the city (such as Vepery or St. Thomas) there is a large Christian presence, while other areas (such as Triplicane or Georgetown) are virtually completely unreached. As a tourist attraction, Chennai is not as popular as the other major cities of India. The main reasons travelers come here is to transact business or to make a long-distance travel connection. |
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Madras is trisected by two east-flowing rivers that traverse its width. The Cooum River almost divides the city into half and the Adyar river divides the southern half of the city into two. The historic Buckingham Canal runs nearly parallel to the coast almost through the entire length of the city.
| The city has somewhat ungenerously described as having three seasons - hot, hotter and hottest. Indeed, except for four pleasant months, November to February, the weather is uniformly hot and humid.... May is the hottest season with the mercury sometimes touching 42 C and the mean temperature about 33 C. December and January are the coolest months with a mean temperature of 24 C. However, the cool sea breeze (which sets in shortly after 3 PM daily) makes even the warmest of evenings bearable. But venturing out in between noon and 3 PM during April-August is best avoided. |  |
The Madras monsoon is from October to mid-December - and in a good year (from the point of view of water-short citizens) the rain on some days during this period can be quite heavy.
Madras, the first city of Tamil Nadu, is a comparatively new city. The erstwhile villages of Mylapore, Triplicane, Ezhambur (Egmore) etc. all now a part of Madras, have a recorded historical past centuries older than Madras. Madras, the present gateway to the South of India, is itself, however, only about 350 years old..
| Particularly charming features of Madras are its allegiance to ancient traditions, no matter how modernized it has become, and its willingness to spread out further rather than develop into a multi-storey concrete jungle. The result is a widespread city still open to skies; a green, airy city with several vestiges of its rural past; a city that adheres to the leisurely tempo of life of a world of yesterday; a city whose values of another day still survive midst of the humdrum bustle of today; a city that still retains the charm, culture and courtesies of the ages. | 
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| Many major international airlines have regular direct flights to Madras. These include: Air India, British Airways, Lufthansa, Singapore Airlines, Air Lanka and Malaysia Airlines. Almost all other international airlines have direct flights to either Delhi or Bombay to which Madras is well connected by air, rail and road. Indian Airlines has daily flights from Madras to Bombay and Delhi and most international Airlines will arrange the domestic flight booking with Indian Airlines to Madras, if you decide to catch their flights to either Bombay or Delhi. |
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Madras is connected to all major cities in India by air and its rail and road network make the tiniest village easily accessible by comfortable trains and deluxe buses. Airline reservations from Madras can be made at large travel agencies and the respective airlines offices.
Links
Links relating to the City of Madras
YWAM's own virtual tour of Madras!