Puducherry- The Changing Face

Has Puducherry Changed?

Puducherry (aka Pondicherry), a French colonial settlement till 1953, was known for the following:

• Sandy beaches
• The Prominade by the sea
• French villas and houses
• Auroville (City of Dawn) and Aurobindo Ashram
• JIPMER- premier institute for PG medical education and research

With the passage of time and construction of breakwaters, beaches are no longer sandy. JIPMER continues to attract top most meritorious students. Auroville, an ecologically designed township, gets thousands of visitors every week. With Union Territory status, the economy of Puducherry has bounced back. However, to cater to the tourists, number of fast food outlets, Airbnb and other types of accommodation and wine shops have mushroomed. Ghumakkad visited Pondicherry enroute to Pichavaram on 17-19 May 2024. Sharing below few pictures bringing out the changing face of this colonial settlement.

The history of Puducherry reveals territorial dominance by multiple dynasties from about 4th Century CE to the 20th Century. While staying in Puducherry, Ghumakkad noticed neighbourhood chicken and cocks fighting for territorial dominance for the morning feed. Sharing a short 30-sec video with you. Mankind, animal kingdom or the birds- the story is the same! What do you say?

How to Reach

Puducherry is well connected by road and air. Rail head is 24 kms away. See the coastal route from Chennai in the map below:

The existing icons and the emerging face of Puducherry are brought out in the pictures below.

Inaugurated in November 2022, the imposing structure shown below is sure to become the new icon of Puducherry. Unfortunately sites like Wikipedia haven't updated yet!

Airbnb and other travel portals, offer a variety of budget accommodation at Puducherry. Where we stayed, it was nicely furnished and well kept. Loved the way old glass bottles had been recycled by the owner. Few pictures.

Why carry a bicycle all the way from Chennai to Puducherry as shown in the picture below? Because on the return leg, our son Ankush who is preparing for the Iron Man challenge, rode his bicycle for 120 kms. He left at 5.30AM and reached Chennai before us in the car. 

You may browse the picture story of 70.3 Iron Man which he completed in Nov-22.

Iron Man in the Family - A thrilling narrative of 1.9 km sea swim, 90 kms bike followed by 21.1 km run - all on one morning in that sequence!

The story on Puducherry continues.

Puducherry-Cuddalore highway has a unique cafe. Called Grami Cafe, It serves millet-based dishes and is very tastefully done up. See the pictures below.

Once again, many thanks to our son Ankush for putting the whole trip together and accompanying us on the road.

Readers may browse our story on Pichavaram Mangrove Forest by clicking the link below:

Pichavaram Mangroves- The 2nd Largest in India - Pictures and videos show how the mangroves in Pichavaram have been well protected despite a large number of tourists every day.

Change is part of life. In fact changing seasons help sustain life on our planet. Best example of a change which we encounter everyday is the sunset and sunrise. We close with a PQ- picturesque quote on the morning glow in our lives by Gautam Buddha. He said "Each morning we are born again. What we today is what matters most".

Thanks for browsing. Stay connected.

   - Harsh-the-Ghumakkad with Neeta Bhargava/ Secunderabad/ 2nd July 2024

Postscript:

3rd July: Dr Umesh Dhyani wrote: 

"1. In 1980s- Pondicherry shops had wooden doors.

2.  in 1990s-  wooden doors were changed to glass doors.

3. Shops were AC, beeches were vibrant and tourism vibrant. 

4.  You missed Pondicherry university. Campus is like a resort.

I did my PGDBA from Pondicherry university. 

City was heritage in 1980s."

#Puducherry, #FrenchColonialPast, #Auroville, #KamarajarManimandapam, #JIPMER, #UnionTerritory #TheProminade #Pichavaram #Airbnb #Matrimandir #Change #PQ #GautamBuddha #Ghumakkadhb #Ghumakkadharsh #recycling #ecofriendly #ironman