Sights in Puducherry (Pondicherry)
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A
Sri Aurobindo Ashram
Founded in 1926 by Sri Aurobindo and a Frenchwoman known as ‘the Mother’ (whose visage, which you’ll either find benevolent or vaguely creepy, is everywhere here), this ashram seeks to synthesise yoga and modern science. After Aurobindo’s death, spiritual authority (and minor religious celebrity) passed to the Mother, who died in 1973 aged 97. A constant flow of visitors files through the main ashram building, which has the flower-festooned samadhi of Aurobindo and the Mother in the central courtyard.
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B
Puducherry Museum
Goodness knows how this cute little museum keeps its artefacts from rotting, considering there’s a whole floor of French-era furniture sitting in the South Indian humidity. As you amble through the colonial-era building, keep an eye peeled for Pallava and Chola sculptures, a small Versailles’ worth of French Union–era bric-a-brac, and coins and shards of pottery excavated from Arikamedu, a once-major seaport a few kilometres south of Puducherry that traded with the Roman Empire during the 1st century BC.
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C
Sri Manakula Vinayagar Temple
Don’t miss the chance to watch tourists, pilgrims and the curious get a head pat from the temple elephant who stands outside Sri Manakula Vinayagar Temple, dedicated to Ganesh and tucked down a backstreet just south of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram; the temple also contains over 40 skilfully painted friezes.
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D
Promenade
The Promenade is a supremely modern beachfront boutique dripping with contemporary design flash. It’s owned and operated by the swish Hidesign group, and is trying to magnetise itself as a centre for Puducherry’s small social scene.
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E
Notre Dame de Anges
The mellow pink-and-cream Notre Dame de Anges, built in 1858, looks sublime in the late-afternoon light. The smooth limestone interior was made using eggshells in the plaster.
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Paradise Beach
Paradise Beach, in Chunnambar, 8km south of Puducherry, has some resort accommodation, water sports and backwater boat cruises. The tourist office has details.
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F
Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception
The Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, completed in 1791, is a robin’s-egg-blue-and-cloud-white typically Jesuit edifice.
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G
Botanical Gardens
Established by the French in 1826, the botanical gardens form a green, if somewhat litter-strewn, oasis on the southwest side of town.
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H
Sacred Heart Church
The brown-and-white grandiosity of the Sacred Heart Church is set off by stained glass and a Gothic sense of proportion.
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Quiet Beach
There are a few decent beaches to the north and south of town; Quiet Beach is north of the centre within 8km of Puducherry.
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Reppo Beach
There are a few decent beaches to the north and south of town; Reppo Beach is north of the centre within 8km of Puducherry.
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