Pondicherry Diaries!!

As Indians, most people who are beach lovers are so fond of Goa and undoubtedly that place has its own beautiful charm. The next beach destination possibly that comes to my mind is Pondicherry which is in the South of India and the town has a different vibe of its own. It can be a paradise for people like me who have always lived in busy and noisy cities like Mumbai and Delhi. The calmness of the place, the spiritual connect and the heritage that Sri Aurobindo and Mirra Alfassa known as The Mother have left behind is remarkable. One needs to go there definitely once to see the city that has a different culture and life of its own. 

They say no one can give you a tour of the new town more than the locals. I was lucky enough to have my aunt's family in Pondicherry whom I contacted just a day before going and they happily hosted me at their place. Always so grateful to their kindness and warm hospitality and so many beautiful memories and learnings that I take back with me from this visit. 

Pondicherry, that was once a French colonial settlement and is known for preserving its French legacy. It is distinguished by tree-lined streets, mustard-colored colonial villas and chic boutiques. My Pondi trip started with cycling ride in morning along the town with my cousin Appu. I realized that day that there is no better way to see the town rather than cycling and enjoying the pleasant weather of early morning. There is something nice about fresh coconut water on the stalls and filter coffee brewing across the road. We definitely made it a point to visit the famous KBS coffee shop every morning for their amazing filter coffee and next time if one is in town this place is definitely not to miss! One of the coolest aspect of  Pondicherry is that shorts is the unspoken dresscode here. My Masi told me the first day just wear your comfortable shorts and travel freely in this city. Be it some celebration or even an occasion like a wedding, you will not be surprised to see people wearing their regular shorts.

Walls with such vibrant colors!

Love the mustard colored walls!

KBS Coffee Shop 

We headed to the Promenade beach from there which was full of tourists and I was quite surprised to see the number of tourists especially in covid times. The locals are known to be very fitness conscious and many of them were either taking a stroll, jogging or swimming in the sea. There is some kind of calmness that one may experience by sitting on the rocks and just paying attention to the sound of the waves. There are no vehicles allowed on the beach road which makes it so much better. Also, my cousin told me about an initiative started by one of the locals to not allow any street vendors on the beach which helps to keep the beaches more clean and less disposal of plastics in the sea in some ways. 

Promenade Beach!

Love the sky & coconut trees!

Two of the names that one will hear a lot in this town is of Sri Aurobindo and The Mother. Sri Aurobindo has a history of fighting in the freedom struggle to later moving to spirituality and settling in Pondicherry. Sri Aurobindo Ashram was founded in 1926 and it grew over time from a small group of disciples to a large and diverse community of devotees. The Ashram is an interconnected block of houses in which Sri Aurobindo and The Mother lived for most of their lives. At its centre, in a tree shaded courtyard, lies the Samadhi, a white marble shrine where their bodies are laid to rest. I was lucky enough to have been in Pondicherry on my birthday. I was informed by my cousin that at the Ashram, they have a special arrangement and an hour to visit the Samadhi specially for people who have their birthday. They actually make sure to ask you if you have your birthday and one gets to sit at the Samadhi and do meditation for a good 30 minutes. The peace that I felt that day by sitting at the Samadhi of Sri Aurobindo was something I have never felt before. There is something unique and pious about that place that makes you conscious of your inner self and it encourages you to focus on your inner soul as a way of life. They later give me a Happy Birthday card along with blessings envelope of Sri Aurobindo and The Mother which was such a sweet gesture that I haven't seen in any other temples of India. It was indeed a very different spiritual start to the birthday and one of the most memorable and something that I will cherish for life.

 At Sri Aurobindo Ashram on my Birthday! Blessed!

The birthday was followed by beautiful surprise planned by my cousin and Masi. They invited their friends and close family members at their home for a celebration and I was so glad that they came and didn't hesitate to come for birthday of someone whom they didn't even know. Taking out time for someone not known to you is hardly seen in today's times and maybe that's the beauty of small towns where the relations are so close-knit and community oriented. They all know French having studied in Pondicherry and they sang a Happy Birthday song in French which was so special. I met Chitra aunty who is such an inspiring lady and works in the field of educating the differently abled children. It was so insightful to know the stories of her work. Even her husband who is such a successful industrialist in Pondicherry sponsors education of children of his staff's employees and it was so good to know about so many things that they are doing. Even in their busy schedules they manage to go for morning walks everyday at 4.30 am and I hope I always give that much importance to physical health in my life. One of my aunt's friend who came that evening was a regular trekker and he shared his stories of trekking in Himalayas. My cousin and him were going on a trek to Himalayas in just a few days and it is actually one of the highest peaks of India. It was an evening full of interesting conversations, good food, learnings and so much joy and laughter. Forever grateful to my Masi for organizing this get together for me and so happy to have met them in life. 

So grateful for this lovely evening!

The next day was a visit to Auroville, which is like a township of its own built on the ideal of human unity based on the vision of Sri Aurobindo and The Mother. While Mantrimandir was closed due to Covid restrictions, the township has a different vibe of its own. You will see foreigners all around the township who have resided here and made Auroville their home. They work at hospitals, schools, canteen and others as part of being a resident of Auroville. We visited a centre of e-bycicles which is a project to encourage more cycling culture in Auroville and thus indirectly less pollution. They have already started renting out e-cycles and it has a great potential to scale up across India if they manage to bring down the cost. Auroville has a very unique sound museum called SVARAM, where one can experience the magic touch of sound and encounter the power of vibrations. This place is definitely worth visiting to see the power of sound. 

 

Matrimandir

My cousin being a localite showed me the different buildings of Auroville Ashram so well. He studied in Ashram's school and I was amazed to know how their schooling is so different from Mumbai schools. They are no exams and they are marked just on grades and students also have the liberty to choose subjects of their choice. Sports has been such an intrinsic part of their schooling and they are made sure that they are taught almost all sports of this world. From martial arts, wrestling to tennis every sport that one can name and probably he has played that. It was so nice to know that there is no gender bias and both girls and boys play all sports. He in fact mentioned that wrestling competitions are held where girls and boys compete against each other till 16 years of age which is so cool. The school focuses a lot on natural learning and in one of the instances he also mentioned that to remove their fear of darkness they were made to walk in a tunnel. Apart from school, the Ashram also maintains a library and public canteen wherein anyone who wants to eat food can do so at a nominal price.

The next stop was the Serenity beach which has the most beautiful and outstanding shoreline. The beach is flanked by palm trees on the shore and gives a good view of the Bay of Bengal stretching into the vast expanse. Waves of the sea across the backdrop of the horizon gives an enchanting view. 

With my cousin Appu!

Serenity Beach

Beyond the amazing places, Pondicherry is a place for some great food too. You will find the best south indian dishes like dosa, appam, pongal at a very reasonable price and very good quality of food. I was pampered with the best south indian dishes and even a full spread Sapad as they call it. It can be an absolute delight if someone is a south indian food lover. The city also has amazing French bakeries where one can find really good cakes (Zuka - Aura Cafe, Baker Street). 

Appam

Grateful to the people I met and the beautiful places I saw in this trip. I hope I take back the discipline of my Uncle (Masa) who makes sure to start his morning walk at 5 am everyday since years and has set such great physical fitness goals for himself. My aunt (Masi) is known for feeding everyone till their tummies would explode and such love and care I hope to learn from her. And a big thank you to my cousin who was my guide for the city and took me to all places that I had on my wish list. This lovely hospitality and warmth only a family can provide and so grateful to them always!!

People forever close to my heart. Love them!

My favourite click and a lovely candid pic taken by my cousin.

                                  

                                                                            Pondi - You beauty!