Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
a donation to enter the inner precinct, where men must remove their shirts, and cameras
are forbidden.
The shoreline around the temple has a couple of tiny, sandy beaches, and bathing ghats
where some worshippers immerse themselves before visiting the temple. A mandapa
south of the temple is a highly popular spot for sunset-watching and grabbing a bit of day-
time shade. A small bazaar of souvenir shops leads back from here to the main road.
Vivekananda Memorial
MAP
MONUMENT
(admission ?10; 8am-5pm) Four hundred metres offshore is the rock where the famous Hindu
apostle Swami Vivekananda meditated from 25 to 27 December 1892, and decided to take
his moral message beyond India's shores. A two- mandapa memorial was built in
Vivekananda's memory in 1970, and reflects architectural styles from all over India. With
all the tourist crowds this brings, Vivekananda would undoubtedly choose somewhere else
to meditate today.
The huge statue on the smaller island next door, looking like an Indian Colossus of
Rhodes, is of the ancient Tamil poet Thiruvalluvar. The work of more than 5000 sculptors,
it was erected in 2000 and honours the poet's 133-chapter work Thirukural - hence its
height of exactly 133ft (40.5m).
Ferries shuttle out to the Vivekananda island (?30 return) between 7.45am and 4pm, but
there's no regular service to Thiruvalluvar.
Gandhi Memorial
MAP
(admission free; 7am-7pm) Appropriately placed at the end of the nation that Gandhi
fathered, this lemon-and-pink memorial is designed in the form of an Odishan temple em-
bellished by Hindu, Christian and Muslim architects. The central plinth was used to store
some of the Mahatma's ashes, and each year, on Gandhi's birthday (2 October), the sun's
rays fall on the stone. Exhibits are limited to a few uncaptioned photos; the tower is a pop-
ular sunset-viewing position.
MONUMENT
Swami Vivekananda Wandering Monk Exhibition
MAP
(Main Rd; admission ?10; 8am-noon & 4-8.15pm) This newly refurbished exhibition details
Swami Vivekananda's wisdom, sayings and encounters with the mighty and the lowly
MUSEUM
 
 
 
 
 
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