Shopping
Chennai is a Shopper's delight. There are a lot of places and shops worth visiting. One thing to be kept in mind is to try and bargain for prices at almost all places. Most shopkeepers reduce the prices of the commodity after a bit of bargaining, so be sure to do that.
For clothes and other curio items, try the shopping complexes at Spencers Plaza, Alsa Mall or Prince Plaza near Egmore, or in Nungambakkam and T Nagar.
Silk sarees are a must buy for any visitor to Chennai. Try the shops at T Nagar for Silk sarees, especially Nalli, Kumaran, etc near Panagal Park.
For people who love jewelry, T Nagar is the place to be. There are a lot of jewelry shops, the well known ones being Lalitha Jewelry, GR Thanga Maaligai, Prince Jewelry, etc.
For Handicrafts, visit the Khadi Gramodyog Bhavan or the Victoria Technical Institute at Anna Salai or the Tamil Nadu State Poompuhar Emporium. Parrys Corner also has a lot of shops selling almost everything. Nearby is the famous Burma Bazaar where all sorts of imported goods can be purchased.
There are a lot of shops in Pondy Bazaar, T Nagar, Parrys, Nungambakkam selling a variety of goods and a stroll along these places is quite likely to catch your eyes.
For books, CDs, cards and other novelties, visit Landmark at Nungambakkam or FountainHead at Mylapore.
Restaurants & Bars
Chennai has got a lot of restaurants, right from small establishments on the roadside to five star ones. For Indian delicacies, try Mathura, Punjabi Dabha, Carnival, Seetharama, Sangeetha, or Saravan Bhavan.
For Pizzas and burgers, try Pizza Corner, Domino's Pizza or Hot Breads.
For Chinese food, the best places are Lius Waldorf at Adyar, Nanking at Royapettah, Mandarin at Gopalapuram, or the Canton at Nungambakkam.
Decent bars are very few in Chennai. The one at Hotel Sindoori is good with a lively discotheque. You can also try the bars at Hotel Taj Coramandel, Hotel Connemara or at Hotel Imperial.
Current Events
The City has quite a lot to offer by way of entertainment. There are always quite a few decent, recently released English movies running around, so check them out.
The Music Academy, the Narda Gana Sabha or Kalakshetra and quite a few other places also regularly host concerts and dance programmes which are quite good.
For tennis fans, currently the ATP Gold Flake Tennis Tournament is on with reputed players like Carlos Moya, Karol Kucera, Byron Black, Leander Paes, Thomas Enquist etc participating. The Finals are slated for April 11th.
April 14th is celebrated as Tamil New Year's Day, and is hence a very attractive time to shop with lots of discounts being offered. Check them out.
Check out Sankara Hall and Chettiar Hall in Alwarpet for a year-round exhibition cum sale of handlooms, books, garments etc.
For people interested in a game of pool or snooker or bowling, the city has a lot of clubs. Try the Billiards Point at Guindy, Pool Centre or Snow Bowling at Nungambakkam.
Around Chennai
About 50 kms away from Chennai is the town of Mahabalipuram, famous for its Rock cut temples and sculptures dating back to the 7th Century AD.
Mahabalipuram is THE place to hang your boots and stretch your feet on the beach. The road to Mahabalipuram is beautiful, paralleling the sea and dotted with trees, which form a good place to rest and have a snack while admiring the view.
About halfway is Fisherman's Cove, which has a decent beach of its own and an old fort, which has been converted into a beach resort.
Nearby, there are a few amusement parks, notable among them being MGM Dizee world and VGP Golden Beach. There is also a Crocodile Park, which has a lot of crocodiles and other reptiles including alligators and snakes.
The town of Kancheepuram near Chennai is famous for its temples and also for its silk sarees, which are world-renowned. The temples are very old dating back to the 10th century AD and rich in artistic beauty. All of them are well worth a visit.
Not much happening now because of the scorching summer heat. I will keep you folks regularly updated with the latest happenings.
Be sure to check back every now and then.
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If you have some questions about Chennai/Madras, email the author of ask an Insider, below.
Rav - I live in Madras and look forward to answering questions on Madras and southern India.
