Madurai - A travelogue

Am back from Madurai after an arduous and enervating journey. The mercury was soaring and came close to setting a new record. We still braved the heat and visited Meenakshi Temple, Azhagar Temple and Thirumalai Naickker Mahal.

Meenakshi Temple was exciting. We needed almost 2 hours to cover the entire temple. The sheer size was astonishing. The biggest dissapointment at the temple was the so-called-museum. The museum was in a bad state and poor maintenace showed. Many exhibits seem to be just love-boards for lovers. I can't stand people defacing public property (The Anniyan Effect). The musical pillars were in a shoddy state and wasn't quite marketed well.

We were too intimidated by the heat and decided to take an auto-rickshaw to Azhagar Temple. The driver seized the opportunity with both hands, for, we had to shell out 250/- for the journey. Our next stop was Naickker Mahal, the palace of the once-opulent Thirumalai Naickker.

Naickker Mahal was the biggest dissapointment of the whole tour. It was in such a bad state that we wondered if it was a hoax. The roof which was once embellished with rich architectural patterns was now filled with cracks. The Mahal now belongs to the Archeology Dept. I guess the funds that are disbursed for renovation are siphoned off to feather some nests !

The most pleasant thing about the trip was the Madurai makkal. They were so helpful, mild-mannered and smiling. I just love the Madurai folks ( I have understood that exceptions cannot be examples). Hats of to you guys !