Chennai's colonial history goes all the way back. Formerly known as Madras, it was the site of the first British imperial outpost in India, and was in fact uninhabited before then. Over the years, from Kipling's poetry through the novels of EM Forster to Sir Salman Rushdie (himself born in what was then called Bombay), India has been a fertile source of cultural inspiration for our finest brains and pens.
Whereas for me, the deeply personal link to this city is that, after going to the football and drinking a gallon of lager, my favourite curry is lamb Madras.
In fact 'Madras' curries, like tikka masala curries, aren't really Indian at all. They're very much creations of 20th century Anglo-Indian cuisine. There's nothing wrong with that, of course. But you won't find Madras curries on menus here, just like you won't find spaghetti bolognese anywhere in Bologna.
More importantly, when I went for a walk on Marina Beach and allowed the Bay of Bengal to swirl around my toes, that concluded the first part of this trip: a coast-to-coast journey across central India from Mumbai, where it was the Arabian Sea doing the swirling. I've taken trains the whole way, about 1,000 miles in all. It was a 7-hour daytime ride here from Vijayawada in a first-class compartment where I and three others had individual bunks.
There are many different classes of ticket but the main thing is to be in an air-conditioned carriage. The cheapest seats in 2nd class are just overcrowded wooden benches, and without AC those metal carriages are natural heat traps. You can see that even the locals find them a strain. If I was to try travelling that way then in all seriousness I'd probably end up having some kind of medical episode.
Chennai itself hasn't left much of an impression on me. I don't have anything bad to say about it, but I can't think of much that's particularly good either. Probably one to miss out if any of you are thinking of "doing India". Anyway the second part of this trip begins now, so stay tuned.
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| Shoppers on Ranganathan St |
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| Chennai Central: the busiest railway station in South India |
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| Fort St George: the first English outpost in India. (English, not British, because that was before the Act of Union with Scotland.) |
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| There's a bit too much of this in India. Every tin-pot local bigwig seems to get a gold statue and a big memorial park. Politicans, now more than ever, would do well to remember that they are our servants and not our masters. |
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| Horse rides on Marina Beach |
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| There are many reasons not to go swimming off Indian beaches and here is just one of them |
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| Brief interval of fresh air, along Patinapakkam Beach |
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| Edd vs Food #155 I finally got round to having an Indian meal that isn't a curry! Chicken Almondine Sizzler at the Copper Kitchen. Chicken fried in breadcrumbs, stuffed with mincemeat & almonds. Plus rice & veg, and pepper sauce on top. |
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| At the same restaurant: the £125 Full Goat Biryani. Maybe next time, if I'm here with friends (presumably about 20 of them). |
