It was a unique trip like no other! Plenty of fun, camaraderie and bonding with lots of insights too on culture and heritage explored together, as we merry band of Silver Surfers set off on a jaunt of Mansion hopping in the remote region of Chettinad and Temple hopping in Tanjore.
Shock and Awe. That’s the mix of emotions that hit us right through the trip. Oh, the Chettinad mansions! Could there ever be a parallel to this anywhere in the world, we wonder.
The region is dotted with thousands of huge mansions and palaces, with endless rooms and corridors, built by this humble but enterprising Chettiar community of traders and money lenders….all built with the money they made sailing out on the oceans across Southeast Asia trading in silk and spices! We stayed in one such mansion, the comfortably refurbished Chidambaram Vilas. The most fascinating stories about the history of the Nattukottai Chettiars and their grandiose mansion building ambitions were related to us by their affable general manager Mr Senthil Kumar himself. A stroll through the spacious central courtyards and huge halls had us enthralled as he gave details of the modus operandi of making money through overseas bartering, and using the wealth made by returning with good teak from Burma, and tiles and stained glass and mirrors from Europe. Every bit of the mansion with its magnificent pillars and carved columns and gorgeously tiled floors reflect this legacy .
Equally mindblowing were the other mansions . ‘ Vishalam” is named after the lucky daughter who was given this beautiful mansion as a dowry by her father. ( This left the men among us pretty wistful at what they’ve missed, their life wouldve been made with a Chettiar wife instead!) These awe inspiring palaces stand cheek by jowl along every village street , yet a Village Walk we did with a hotel staff also revealed how so many of these stately homes are sadly in a state of dilapidated despair and neglect, as the descendants have moved away to cities and also their maintenance is so expensive. Their sold away possessions now lie in dusty antique markets along the village streets, a stroll down which we found fascinating
A visit to a tile factory revealed another precious Chettiar heritage , the much sought after and prized handmade Athangudi tiles. How effortlessly the skilled craftsman turned out those beautifully patterned floor tiles by the minute! Then on to view a unique collection of antique restored cars, clocks and cameras at the Pillayarpatti Vintage gallery. The Chettinad wealth was for sure put to good materially productive use!
But Ah! The Food! There is a popular saying in the south that “one is lucky to eat like a Chettiar”. The famed Chettinad cuisine is an amalgamation of local ingredients and borrowed ideas from their travels overseas. Each sumptuous meal was a treat, with its freshly ground spices, sundried vegetables and meats with a complexity of flavours. A secret ingredient, we were told is Kalpasi ( black stone flower) and dried flower pods. We vegetarians dug heartily into a variety of paniyarams and iddiappams, among a host of other delicacies, while the nonveggies drooled over their aattukari kozhambus, the prawn delicacies and the fables Chicken Chettinad. We even learnt to make a couple of dishes with a local chef…Palkatti Chettinad ( a paneer dish) and Kavuni Arisi, a black sticky rice pudding said to be influenced by Burmese cuisine. Topped with a fabulous yela shapaadu ( plantain leaf meal) lunch of gourmet items at the prestigious resort The Bangala, we were in heavenly food coma!
Then on a more spiritual quest, the temples at nearby Thanjavur and Srirangam was further shock and Awe. The magnificence of the Chola era shows abundantly in the 1000 yr old Brihadeshwara temple complex. Every stupendously intricate carving in this World Heritage Site has a story to tell. Our very knowledgable guide took us through fascinating snippets of its history and construction, while we gaped in wonder, gobsmacked at the grandeur of it all. The splendid special lighting and a pleasant evening breeze simply heightened it all up too.
Visiting the grand Srirangam temple close by was a snap decision and an added bonus. Yet another majestically planned and intricately carved structure and monument , this Vaishnavite pilgrim centre with its multiple gopurams bowled us over totally as did the Big Tanjore Temple
So how did each productive day end?
Full of masti and majaa as we gathered together over a tipple, forging new friendships and letting our hair down with good light hearted ribbing, singing and dancing, and a merry round of games. And that’s exactly what all fun trips with SS is all about, anyway!
This truly was a Silver Surfers holiday like none other. A huge shoutout and zordaar thaliyan to Dipti and Sunita for curating and immaculately putting together this winner of a trip! Sweet Sunita is mighty relieved we crabby old seniors didn’t bully her even once!
So here we are, ready and raring for the next fun travel experience! Just bring it on!
As written and contributed by Bhanu - Silver Surfer, Silver Traveller and Travel Blog Contributor at The Silver Surfers Club.
We sincerely thank Bhanu for beautifully capturing her recent holiday with us, almost taking us along with her on this unforgettable journey into another world.
If you’d like to join The Silver Surfers Club – a growing community of active seniors or The Silver Surfers Travel Club - a fun, like minded and vibrant community of Silver Travellers, write in to us on info@silversurfersclub.in or visit us on http://www.thesilversurfersclub.in
Did we tell you we’re going back to Chettinad in January 2023?
For more details on the holiday or to block your spot (we just have 3 spots available) click here