India on My Platter by Saransh Goila & Sanjeev Kapoor

Author:Saransh Goila & Sanjeev Kapoor [Goila, Saransh & Kapoor, Sanjeev]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: India, Food, Travel
ISBN: 9789383202041
Amazon: B010TYBMMG
Publisher: Om Books International
Published: 2015-07-01T23:00:00+00:00

DAY 50

I left Munnar for the picturesque beaches of Puducherry.

DAY 51

25 September / Puducherry

Formerly Pondicherry, the city is fondly referred to as ‘Pondy’ sometimes. It is located 450 km from Munnar. The place looks like a beautiful slice of France that the colonisers left behind, on the Coromandel Coast of India. And the influence is quite strong, be it in their architecture or in the culinary field. You can feast on freshly baked baguettes and croissants for breakfast, celebrate Bastille Day and parlez en Francais (speak in French) with the locals. Saffron coloured churches, painted friezes and sculptured pillars of Hindu temples, road signs in French; a pleasing mélange is the word that can sum up this lazily beautiful town.

There are two sides to Puducherry: the French quarter and the Tamil quarter. The most beautiful part of the former is the promenade along the shore. I met Mr. Ashok from intach (Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage). He invited me to Le café, an old French establishment, famous for its organic south Indian coffee, baguettes and croissants. The building, which is currently Le café, used to be the old French passport office at the dock. Built along the promenade, the café remains open 24 hours a day. Life in Puducherry echoes its tourism slogan ‘Give time a break;’ quite an appropriate philosophy, if you ask me, for a break in this seaside town does take one into the slow lane. Mr. Ashok suggested I lose my car for two days and get a bicycle to ride around the city and that’s exactly what I did. First, we pedalled to the French quarter where we visited one of the most popular churches called Church of Our Lady of Angels, built in 1853, in the Greeko-Roman architectural style. The pastel shades of peach and lime gave it a very serene appearance. It reminded me of Le Basilleque Church in the south of France. One of the Masses in this church is still conducted in French.

Then we visited Bharathi Park, a place which is perfect for an evening walk, and in the centre of the park stands the white Aayi Mandapam. The Park is surrounded by important administrative buildings in Puducherry. It is a treasure trove of 900 varieties of plants and was the location for the zoo shots in the famous movie, Life Of Pi. I got dropped off at the L’Orient Hotel; which earlier used to be the building for the public education offices. It dated back to the late 1760s. The emergence of most Puducherry hotels occurred around this time. Mr. Ashok told me that this hotel was one of the most popular hotels not only for their ambience but also for their food. Their restaurant was called Carte Planche. Set in a courtyard, this was where Tamil spices fused with French fare to create something curiously Creole. I met the chef at the restaurant and he explained this fusion by making a few dishes for me. He

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