Re: [silk] Stops on a DIY walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town
On Friday, February 22, 2013, Sumant Srivathsan suma...@gmail.com wrote: It was (and perhaps is) Easwari Lending Library. But Easwari Lending Library is in Gopalapuram! Their branch in Mylapore was/is Rajeswari (on Kutcheri road). Thaths -- Sumant Srivathsan http://sumants.blogspot.com -- Homer: Hey, what does this job pay? Carl: Nuthin'. Homer: D'oh! Carl: Unless you're crooked. Homer: Woo-hoo! Sudhakar ChandraSlacker Without Borders
Re: [silk] Stops on a DIY walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town
On Thu, Feb 21, 2013 at 6:51 AM, Thaths tha...@gmail.com wrote: Are there any musical instrument makers left in Maddala Narayanar St? Yes, most certainly, there are. I still go there to get my tamburas (NOT tanpuras) repaired. And you can see tiny shops like this one: http://deponti.livejournal.com/615272.html Those pics were taken on Maddala Narayanan Street. It was (and perhaps is) Easwari Lending Library.
Re: [silk] Stops on a DIY walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town
They have franchises all over the city such as murugan library near adyar signal --srs (htc one x) On 22 February 2013 11:38:51 AM Sumant Srivathsan suma...@gmail.com wrote: It was (and perhaps is) Easwari Lending Library. But Easwari Lending Library is in Gopalapuram! -- Sumant Srivathsan http://sumants.blogspot.com
Re: [silk] Stops on a DIY walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town
Chandrachoodan does photowalks of both areas and I am sure he has better ideas. Along with Rasi Silks take him to rangachari on eldams road - a much more traditional establishment. Rasi's silk choice is rather poor - head to nalli in T Nagar (or just tour T Nagar for the heck of it, if he appreciates crowds) Non hindus aren't allowed inside at least some part of various hindu temples, so going inside kapaleeswara might be a non starter Thaths [20/02/13 17:50 +0630]: An American friend of mine is going to be in Madras soon. He is interested in a walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town. I'm thinking of taking him around myself. What are some of the stops in a walk around Mylapore and George Town that I should not miss? Here is a tentative plan I have in mind: 1. Mylapore Start at the San Thome bascilica A walk around the temple tank Inside Kapali Temple and explaining the hierarchy of Hindu gods and the rituals See the (scaffolded) temple chariot and explain the 63 Nayanmar festival Rasi Silks Giri Traders Walk around Mada streets and see the market Stop at Ambika Stores and Grand Sweets for an introduction to Indian pickling (Ambika) and snacking (Grad Sweets) traditions Perhaps a stop at R.K. Mutt Dinner or tiffin at Karpagambal Mess or Simply South (next to RK Mutt) (or, last choice Saravana Bhavan) 2. George Town Start with some talk about the architecture of colonial buildings on drive to George Town (point to Ripon Building, Central Station, Southern Railways Building, etc. along the way) An aside about the glories of Moore Market that used to exist Start with a walk around the High Court. Emden bombing, indo sarcenic architecture Broadway and show the buildings where some law firms operate nearby Parry's corner, Burma Bazaar, GPO Walk around some of the side streets where businesses cluster together Lunch or snack at Rambhavan or Ramakrishna Tiffin Home (or Agarwal Sweets) What are other places I could take him to? Thaths -- Homer: Hey, what does this job pay? Carl: Nuthin'. Homer: D'oh! Carl: Unless you're crooked. Homer: Woo-hoo! Sudhakar ChandraSlacker Without Borders
Re: [silk] Stops on a DIY walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town
A preview of my real life action adventure game for tourists - live life like a Madras teenager: - A visit to the TASMAC store to pick up cheap liquid courage -- For bonus points: this is done at around 6PM on a Friday or October 1st - A spicy chicken Biryani made of genuine 100% crow -- For bonus points one visits a political rally where one can accomplish the above two tasks for free -- Boss level: you don't get into a fight and return with all your teeth - An auto ride, with haggling and cheating included of course but where the auto driver is glad to be rid of you rather than the other way round - Watching the first day first show of a popular Tamil movie but _so_ not-optional, standing in line to buy the tickets on current booking -- bonus points: you dance in the aisles during the item number -- boss level: the police get called in because of you - Riding a city bus at peak hour on the foot board -- bonus points: you wait until the bus has picked up speed before attempting to board - A visit to some of the nicer sections of city, where one can witness fantastic entrepreneurial spirit in the sale of liberated auto parts - A visit to Ritchie street or seedy DVD shops in Parsn complex to pick up pirated DVDs -- for bonus points you demand to see their secret collection of porn On Wed, Feb 20, 2013 at 4:50 PM, Thaths tha...@gmail.com wrote: An American friend of mine is going to be in Madras soon. He is interested in a walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town. I'm thinking of taking him around myself. What are some of the stops in a walk around Mylapore and George Town that I should not miss? Here is a tentative plan I have in mind: 1. Mylapore Start at the San Thome bascilica A walk around the temple tank Inside Kapali Temple and explaining the hierarchy of Hindu gods and the rituals See the (scaffolded) temple chariot and explain the 63 Nayanmar festival Rasi Silks Giri Traders Walk around Mada streets and see the market Stop at Ambika Stores and Grand Sweets for an introduction to Indian pickling (Ambika) and snacking (Grad Sweets) traditions Perhaps a stop at R.K. Mutt Dinner or tiffin at Karpagambal Mess or Simply South (next to RK Mutt) (or, last choice Saravana Bhavan) 2. George Town Start with some talk about the architecture of colonial buildings on drive to George Town (point to Ripon Building, Central Station, Southern Railways Building, etc. along the way) An aside about the glories of Moore Market that used to exist Start with a walk around the High Court. Emden bombing, indo sarcenic architecture Broadway and show the buildings where some law firms operate nearby Parry's corner, Burma Bazaar, GPO Walk around some of the side streets where businesses cluster together Lunch or snack at Rambhavan or Ramakrishna Tiffin Home (or Agarwal Sweets) What are other places I could take him to? Thaths -- Homer: Hey, what does this job pay? Carl: Nuthin'. Homer: D'oh! Carl: Unless you're crooked. Homer: Woo-hoo! Sudhakar ChandraSlacker Without Borders
Re: [silk] Stops on a DIY walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town
As an American, I really liked the bookstore at RK Mutt. Great collection of Vivekananda. Also, needless to be said, the Dosa at Saravana Bhavan right near the Kapali Temple.
Re: [silk] Stops on a DIY walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town
Perhaps I should count myself lucky not to be left to Cheeni's tender mercies when I was in town. I did a walking tour with Storytrails that pretty much covered what Thaths has in mind for Mylapore. Will say that we and other tourists had no problems entering Kapli temple, though there was some confusion re where to buy camera tickets (so we just didn't). Not quite sure how you would manage it, but we were able to visit a priest's house near the tank which preserves the original courtyard layout. Agree with Suresh that Rangachari's is lovely, you should ask Divya for tips! The other thing I particularly enjoyed in Chennai was visiting the Government Museum in Egmore. It,s much better we with a specialist guide, but an elegant bronze is an elegant bronze. On 20 Feb 2013 19:49, Srini RamaKrishnan che...@gmail.com wrote: A preview of my real life action adventure game for tourists - live life like a Madras teenager: - A visit to the TASMAC store to pick up cheap liquid courage -- For bonus points: this is done at around 6PM on a Friday or October 1st - A spicy chicken Biryani made of genuine 100% crow -- For bonus points one visits a political rally where one can accomplish the above two tasks for free -- Boss level: you don't get into a fight and return with all your teeth - An auto ride, with haggling and cheating included of course but where the auto driver is glad to be rid of you rather than the other way round - Watching the first day first show of a popular Tamil movie but _so_ not-optional, standing in line to buy the tickets on current booking -- bonus points: you dance in the aisles during the item number -- boss level: the police get called in because of you - Riding a city bus at peak hour on the foot board -- bonus points: you wait until the bus has picked up speed before attempting to board - A visit to some of the nicer sections of city, where one can witness fantastic entrepreneurial spirit in the sale of liberated auto parts - A visit to Ritchie street or seedy DVD shops in Parsn complex to pick up pirated DVDs -- for bonus points you demand to see their secret collection of porn On Wed, Feb 20, 2013 at 4:50 PM, Thaths tha...@gmail.com wrote: An American friend of mine is going to be in Madras soon. He is interested in a walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town. I'm thinking of taking him around myself. What are some of the stops in a walk around Mylapore and George Town that I should not miss? Here is a tentative plan I have in mind: 1. Mylapore Start at the San Thome bascilica A walk around the temple tank Inside Kapali Temple and explaining the hierarchy of Hindu gods and the rituals See the (scaffolded) temple chariot and explain the 63 Nayanmar festival Rasi Silks Giri Traders Walk around Mada streets and see the market Stop at Ambika Stores and Grand Sweets for an introduction to Indian pickling (Ambika) and snacking (Grad Sweets) traditions Perhaps a stop at R.K. Mutt Dinner or tiffin at Karpagambal Mess or Simply South (next to RK Mutt) (or, last choice Saravana Bhavan) 2. George Town Start with some talk about the architecture of colonial buildings on drive to George Town (point to Ripon Building, Central Station, Southern Railways Building, etc. along the way) An aside about the glories of Moore Market that used to exist Start with a walk around the High Court. Emden bombing, indo sarcenic architecture Broadway and show the buildings where some law firms operate nearby Parry's corner, Burma Bazaar, GPO Walk around some of the side streets where businesses cluster together Lunch or snack at Rambhavan or Ramakrishna Tiffin Home (or Agarwal Sweets) What are other places I could take him to? Thaths -- Homer: Hey, what does this job pay? Carl: Nuthin'. Homer: D'oh! Carl: Unless you're crooked. Homer: Woo-hoo! Sudhakar ChandraSlacker Without Borders
Re: [silk] Stops on a DIY walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town
On Wed, Feb 20, 2013 at 4:50 PM, Thaths tha...@gmail.com wrote: What are some of the stops in a walk around Mylapore and George Town that I should not miss? Here is a tentative plan I have in mind: 1. Mylapore Jannal Kadai vadais and bajjis - 4ish PM to about 8ish PM. Rose milk at the corner of East Mada Street and South Mada Street Walk around Chithra kulam and go to Karneeswarar Temple. Stop to point out the name board that is the last surviving mention of the road's original name: Brodie's Castle Road. This is on a house opposite the Tank bus stop, actually across the road from the Petrol station. That house has a whole lot of history associated with it. Including a visit by a certain Swami Vivekananda 2. George Town Start with some talk about the architecture of colonial buildings on drive to George Town (point to Ripon Building, Central Station, Southern Railways Building, etc. along the way) Ripon Building is on probably not George Town anymore. It's Periamet. Central is in Park Town (because it used to be called People's Park - an actual park that once housed the Madras Zoo before it - the zoo - moved to Vandalur, and was created when Hog's Hill (Panri Medu) was razed down as it was in the line of sight between Fort and the sea to the south.) SR HQ is the start of Sowcarpet/George Town. Between the Central station and SR HQ is the Wall Tax road, because the Govt raised a tax to build a wall to keep the blacks out of the White town. And, if you are in George Town, how, how, HOW CAN YOU NOT GO TO FORT St. GEORGE? C -- http://about.me/chandrachoodan +447594553053
Re: [silk] Stops on a DIY walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town
Don't forget that Mylapore is the traditional area for musical instruments and for Thanjore painting. If you have time to wander it is not far from Kapali...unfortunately i forget the names of the roads now.
Re: [silk] Stops on a DIY walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town
Also for silverware. On Wed, Feb 20, 2013 at 8:58 AM, Radhika, Y. radhik...@gmail.com wrote: Don't forget that Mylapore is the traditional area for musical instruments and for Thanjore painting. If you have time to wander it is not far from Kapali...unfortunately i forget the names of the roads now.
Re: [silk] Stops on a DIY walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town
On Wed, Feb 20, 2013 at 10:28 PM, Radhika, Y. radhik...@gmail.com wrote: Don't forget that Mylapore is the traditional area for musical instruments and for Thanjore painting. If you have time to wander it is not far from Kapali...unfortunately i forget the names of the roads now. The road on which you can find musical instruments is called, appropriately enough, Maddala Narayanan Theru (Street). It's a small lane that connects the Kapali Kovil area to Kutcheri Road. (It's an extension of one of the Maada Veedhi). Mylapore and T.Nagar...two areas of Chennai that I love (er, for about two months of the year or so). Thaths, your perambulations are spot on. Perhaps you could peep into the Ramakrishna Mission too. You could show your friend the paathra kadai (shops for utensils) at the corner of Mylapore Tank, which is not an armoured vehicle. Deepa.
Re: [silk] Stops on a DIY walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town
Most of you have covered most of the to-do stuff. All I have to add is a visit to the fruit juice shop on the Abhiramipuram end of Dr. Ranga Road. A plate of chat at the Kolkata chap next door followed by a glass (which is technically equal to two glasses given the refill) of fruit juice at this place was my dinner for some three months way back in 2005.
Re: [silk] Stops on a DIY walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town
On Wed, Feb 20, 2013 at 11:04 PM, Thejaswi Udupa thejaswi.ud...@gmail.comwrote: Most of you have covered most of the to-do stuff. All I have to add is a visit to the fruit juice shop on the Abhiramipuram end of Dr. Ranga Road. A plate of chat at the Kolkata chap next door followed by a glass (which is technically equal to two glasses given the refill) of fruit juice at this place was my dinner for some three months way back in 2005. That place no longer does a refill. And isn't half as good as I think my 2005-self thinks it is. C -- http://about.me/chandrachoodan +447594553053
Re: [silk] Stops on a DIY walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town
On Wed, Feb 20, 2013 at 11:05 PM, Chandrachoodan Gopalakrishnan chandrachoo...@gmail.com wrote: That place no longer does a refill. And isn't half as good as I think my 2005-self thinks it is. Dammit! What right do these guys have to mess with my nostalgia?!
Re: [silk] Stops on a DIY walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town
Would you happen to know of the tasty lassi and samosa shop in the lane behind Devi theater? I remember it being way too successful to have closed down by now, so I still hope. On Wed, Feb 20, 2013 at 11:05 PM, Chandrachoodan Gopalakrishnan chandrachoo...@gmail.com wrote: That place no longer does a refill. And isn't half as good as I think my 2005-self thinks it is.
Re: [silk] Stops on a DIY walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town
On Wed, Feb 20, 2013 at 2:20 PM, Thaths tha...@gmail.com wrote: An American friend of mine is going to be in Madras soon. He is interested in a walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town. I'm thinking of taking him around myself. What are some of the stops in a walk around Mylapore and George Town that I should not miss? As he is an American, I presume he is a meat eater - you could take him to Velu Military mess which used to be on a side street off Eldams Road (perhaps combined with a visit to a Tasmac shop as suggested by Sriniram :-) ) Ashok
Re: [silk] Stops on a DIY walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town
So the tony Iyer part of mylapore and the shady downmarket part of mylapore are two entirely different kinds of fun. And right next to each other. Velu military is still where it is. And the market near it .. or other vegetable, fruit and flower markets in the city are worth showing him. Do make sure he has an iron stomach before you introduce him to more downmarket eating places though. --srs (iPad) On 21-Feb-2013, at 0:05, ashok _ listmans...@gmail.com wrote: On Wed, Feb 20, 2013 at 2:20 PM, Thaths tha...@gmail.com wrote: An American friend of mine is going to be in Madras soon. He is interested in a walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town. I'm thinking of taking him around myself. What are some of the stops in a walk around Mylapore and George Town that I should not miss? As he is an American, I presume he is a meat eater - you could take him to Velu Military mess which used to be on a side street off Eldams Road (perhaps combined with a visit to a Tasmac shop as suggested by Sriniram :-) ) Ashok
Re: [silk] Stops on a DIY walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town
On Wed, Feb 20, 2013 at 4:50 PM, Thaths tha...@gmail.com wrote: 1. Mylapore A more serious contribution to your list: - Rayar's Café and Maami Kadai - http://www.thehindu.com/life-and-style/metroplus/article2295935.ece - Dabba Chetti Kadai - traditional Indian medicines and things your grandmom would want aka nattu marundu kadai - Srividya Upasaka Nilayam of Srividya Kumkumam fame - Gaudiya Math in Royapettah I am surprised you are missing Triplicane - the mosque, stadium, Ratna Cafe and Perumal koil. Some other gourmand spots: The Adyar Grand Sweets, and I've confirmed it exists, the Bombay Lassi stall (in Madras lingo directions are - Devi (Theatre) back entrance opposite)
Re: [silk] Stops on a DIY walking tour of Mylapore and/or George Town
On Thu, Feb 21, 2013 at 3:38 AM, Srini RamaKrishnan che...@gmail.comwrote: On Wed, Feb 20, 2013 at 4:50 PM, Thaths tha...@gmail.com wrote: 1. Mylapore A more serious contribution to your list: - Rayar's Café and Maami Kadai - http://www.thehindu.com/life-and-style/metroplus/article2295935.ece - Dabba Chetti Kadai - traditional Indian medicines and things your grandmom would want aka nattu marundu kadai - Srividya Upasaka Nilayam of Srividya Kumkumam fame - Gaudiya Math in Royapettah Excellent suggestions everyone. Thanks. Are there any musical instrument makers left in Maddala Narayanar St? I am going to include Rajeshwari (Easwari?) Lending Library in the Mylapore walk. It was certainly an important part of my childhood. Chandru, Ft. St. George is closed to visitors on Friday (when I'm planning to take them around). I think I'll also take them to Clive Battery which is nearby. Thaths -- Homer: Hey, what does this job pay? Carl: Nuthin'. Homer: D'oh! Carl: Unless you're crooked. Homer: Woo-hoo! Sudhakar ChandraSlacker Without Borders
