Romancing Chennai

I have professed my love for Kochi in particular and Kerala in general, earlier itself. Apart from Kerala, the only other South Indian city that has fascinated me is Bangalore. I have always had apathy towards Chennai. Not that I have visited the city very often or have spend significant time in the city. It was more because of what I had heard about the city- oppressive climate, lack of adequate water and lack of cleanliness! In spite of the fact that I have had many friends who swear by Chennai and also that I knew many families who had made Chennai their homes refusing to come back to Kerala or any other state they belonged to, I had this unexplainable indifference towards the city. All that was in for a change when I visited Chennai 2 weeks back for a short trip. I landed at the airport at around 7.30 in the morning and had to take a local train to Tambaram from the Thirisoolam station close to the airport. I had the first pleasant surprise that Chennai had to offer when I stepped out of the airport. The vast parking space, the wide, clean, smooth roads and the fly over that was under construction really impressed me. This was going to be my first stint with local trains in Chennai and I was surprised to no end at their efficiency and timeliness. Distances seem to be reducing within the massive city that Chennai had grown itself into. The next couple of days that I spent in and around Chennai was enough to completely remove my misconceptions about the city. The wonderful infrastructure (wide roads, massive flyovers- both complete and in progress), the shopping centres, the avenues of entertainment, the cleanliness- everything attracted me to no end. The excellent public transportation system both by rail and road and the accessibility to each and every corner of the city at any point of time during the day as well as the safety and security that the city offers (I could find women walking around all alone even at hours past 10 in the night) are really commendable. I found Chennai to be a city that is modern in its outlook and has a promising future ahead. But, what really sets it apart from a modern city, like Bangalore is the fact that Chennai still clings a lot to its traditions and all that makes the city unique. I am buoyant about the prospects of Chennai and in spite of the oppressive climate and shortage of water; the city definitely has a lot to offer to its inhabitants. I am really thankful to myself for having planned the trip to Chennai. It has really helped me come out of the misconceptions that I had about a wonderful city that has given life to its inhabitants and a lot of migrants from different parts of India! Hail Chennai!!!