Tamil Nadu is a state of unending beaches, exquisite craftmanship, strong culture
          and enduring tradition.
          The waters of the Bay of Bengal kiss the eastern shores. The tip of the peninsula,
          touches the confluence of the three water bodies - The Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal
          and the Indian Ocean.
          The bordering states are Karnataka, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh. This shows the
          influence of the various dynasties that ruled over the state through the passage of time.
          The Pallavas, the Cholas, the Portuguese, the British, the Dutch and the French
          have left their stamp on the monuments scattered in the different parts of the state.
          "Tamil Nadu" is a Dravidan name that was given to the state after independence.
          Dravidan culture is reflected in the dances, the music, and the handicrafts.

CHENNAI started with a strip of golden seashore on the east coast of India where Fort St. George now stands. A place of time-honoured memories, it grew to engulf many adjoining villages which even today stand isolated in their individual glory. Chennai is a city of extremes.

          On the plushy side,it is the trend-setter of Fashion.You will see a market place teeming
          with people of different culture baffling in the diversity of merchandise offered.Travel a
          few kilometers and you will find yourself in a rural pocker, complete with mud roads,
          thatched huts, wandering cattle and deserted ancient temples for village deities -
          a place of conventional beauty. It is indeed a different world with a different slant.

          Today Chennai is the capital of Tamil Nadu.
          A Seaside City where the sea is a rhapsodist blue, hugging thesecond largest beach
          in the world. From the sky, it looks neat with majestic long straight roads,
          and the silvery streams meandering through. Dotted with clumps of trees and
          low skyline,it is a sprawling city.It is located near the 13° North parallel
          and 80°longitude,stretching 19 Km long along the Coromandel Coast and
          extends about 8 km inland. The rivers flowing through the city are Coovam River,
          Adyar river and the Historic Bucking Ham Canal.

A very famous temple in           Chennai is an 8th           century Pallava           temple called the           "KAPALEESWARAR           TEMPLE",           located at Mylapore.

          The temple 'Gopuram'(tower) is characteristic of Dravidian style architecture.
          Dedicated to Lord Shiva,this temple has some beautiful sculptures, among which
          the bronze idols of 63 Saivite Saints(Nayanmars) which adorn the outer coutyard
          are rare specimens.Also in the courtyard under the old Punnai tree is a small
          shrine depicting Goddess Parvathi in the form of a Peacock Worshipping Lord Shiva.
          It is from this legend that Mylapore derived it's name -'myil'meaning peacock and
          'oor' meaning town. Mylapore swarms with life during the Arupathu Moovar festival
          that is held in March-April every year.

Tamil Nadu provides the visitor with a wide variety of delicious food both for the vegetarians as well as the non-vegetarians, though most food in Tamil Nadu consists of grains, lentils, rice and vegetables. Spices are added to give a distinctive taste. Breakfast or tiffin includes idly (steamed rice cakes) (top), vada(deep fried doughnuts made from a batter of lentils) (middle), dosai (a pancake made from a batter of rice and lentils crisp fried on a pan) (bottom), pongal (a mish mash of rice and lentils boiled together and seasoned with ghee, cashew nuts, pepper and cummin seed), uppuma(cooked semolina seasoned in oil with mustard, pepper, cummin seed and dry lentils.) There are several variations of the dishes mentioned above which are eaten with coconut chutney, sambar (seasoned lentil broth) and mulaga podi (a powdered mix of several dried lentils eaten with oil).

          Lunch or meals consists of cooked rice served with an array of vegetable dishes,
          sambar, chutneys, rasam (a hot broth made with tamarind juice and pepper) and
          curd(yogurt). For a non-vegetarian lunch, curries or dishes cooked with mutton,
          chicken or fish is included. The meals is incomplete without crisp papads or appalam.

          The making of filter coffee is almost a ritual, for the coffee beans have to
          be first roasted and then ground. The powder is put into a filter set and
          boiling hot water is added to prepare the decoction and allowed to set for
          about 15 minutes. The decoction is then added to milk with sugar to taste.
          The final drink is poured from one container to another in rapid succession
          to make the ideal frothy cup of filter coffee. The last process makes one
          wonder whether the brew could be bought by the yard.

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