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dr anand naregal

Visit to Tranquebar : slice of history; journey back in time!

Every one knows British ruled India for more than 200 years. Most of us also know that we also allowed French to set up colonies in India. Few of us know that even Dutch were here and had set up their shop in Kochi and around. But hardly any one of know about the existence of Danish east India company and their trading post at Tarangambaddi, sleepy coastal village 280 km south of Chennai. History is, Inspired by the progress of trade done by British East India company, king Christian IV of Norway and Denmark sent his Men to India in the year 1620. When young Danish Admiral Ove Giedde landed on the Coromandel Coast looking to set up a trading post. He fell in love with a shing village known as Tharamgambadi, the place of the singing waves. The Danes renamed it to Tranquebar and it became a prominent trading post for the Danish East India Company in the 17th century. It is said that in its hey days its trade in tea surpassed that of British east india company. While reading this information from an old outlook traveller magazine. I thought this is the perfect destination for an exotic holiday we are looking for, where you want to relax in a tranquil environment and perhaps rediscover some secrets from the past. So this Diwali we decided to club Tranquebar

and Pondicherry (this French colony was also was on my wish list for past 5 years) for a week long vacation.

In last few trips we have mastered the art of catching early morning ight for the destination after catching Baroda express and getting down at Borivali and reaching airport by hurried three wheeler trip to just make to the ticket counters in nick of time. This time was also no different and we were in Chennai by 9 am. Sami (short of Subramanian swami) , our local driver was right there to welcome us at the airport with placard. After brief attempt at conversation with him we realized that the placard was going to be of more useful than we thought. His knowledge of English and Hindi was as good (or should i say as bad) as our knowledge of Tamil. However with some forceful gestures and signs we could make him understand that we were hungry and would like to have south indian breakfast. Sami was stalky, short, ugly looking man with a hint of squint in one eye, but he had a great smile to compensate for his looks. It was difcult to compensate his black color but he was again trying hard with spotless white uniform and his white colored Innova. he took us to Sangitha, a great place for dosas and idli. We literally freaked out on sambhar and various chutneys. It was only after one full hour of hogging that one of us realized and reminded us that we have 280 km , 7 hour journey to undertake. When we informed Sami about our destination. He had a strange look on his face as if we were telling him to take us to Islamabad. This fellow didn't have any clue where Tranquebar was! Infact he thought that after eating so much these rascals want booze now and asking about some bar. While my friend was getting bit hassled , I had a smile of satisfaction all over my face, that indeed our place is so exotic that a local driver hasn't been there and doesn't know about it also. Any way matter was only settled after the dependable google maps from our smart phone convinced Sami that there is indeed a place called Tranquebar, some 280 km south from where we were standing.

so we are on East Coast road, also know as State Highway no 49 among beurocrats. built along with the coast of the Bay of Bengal it is said to be among ten most scenic drives in India. it connect Chennai to Cuddalore via Pondicherry. Heavy breakfast had taken its toll and most of us started dozing shamelessly ignoring natural beauty. I was sitting in front trying to keep at least one eye open . After a while I realized that Sami was continuously

looking at me rather than on the road. I was about to snap at him but in the nick of the time , I remembered he had a squint, squint in the left eye!. Just to remain awake I decided to surf about the East Coast Road, to my surprise this road was in perfect condition but its site(www.eastcoastroad.in) was under construction! Soon we passed Mahabalipuram, unesco heritage site famous for its shore temples. Surprisingly there were no signboards mentioning historical signicance or giving directions. Did not expect Sami to contribute to my knowledge either. So ancient town of Mahabalipuram passed by very peacefully. Not discouraged by lack of information I opened my back pack and took out my recent acquisition "india becoming" by Ashish Kapoor whose rst line of rst chapter is- "East Coast Road has changed, twenty ve years ago it was a potholed tar road that meandered across South Indian countryside, cutting through rice elds, coconut plantation and sleepy shing villages. The views were stunning- rippled ocean, the grey waters of Bay of Bengal, shimmering under the harsh coastal sun. But today in the name of progress everything has changed. Road is smoother, wider having glowing dividers and bright signboards. But much of the countryside has given way to the promised development . Barring few rice eld , whole stretch of ECR is dotted with beach resorts, open air restaurants , and gated developments having infrastructure ready plots. after bypassing Pondicherry, We reached Cuddalur by noon. This used to be the capital of the English Possessions on the Coromandal cost. Sami took us to Adiyar restaurant where we tried South Indian thali. Some of us kept waiting for chapatis and pooris which never arrived! Back in the car we headed toward our destination via Chidambaram.

Town gate of Tranquebar: passage to 17th century.!

As we were approaching Tranquebar, I started giving some recently acquired Gyan to kids, from web encyclopedia called Wikipedia. " Tharangambadi (or Tranquebar) is a panchayat town in Nagapattinam district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It was a Danish colony in India from 1620-1845. It is spelled Trankebar or Tranquebar in Danish, which came from the native Tamil, Tarangambadi, meaning "place of the singing waves". It is located about 100 km south of

Pondicherry, near the mouth of a distributary of Kaveri river".

We were now passing thru very old and distinctive gate. The town gate of Tranquebar, with the royal Danish insignia inscribed on it, is like a portal that admits visitors to a different era. From the midst of rural Tamil Nadu, travellers are suddenly transported into a historical odditya former Danish colony. Kings street is the main road of Tranquebar and it directly lead us to our hotel "Bunglow on the beach" - restored former house of the British governor. True to its name this property is right on the beach. I have never seen a hotel in such a proximity to sea. Like my other favorite names of Neemrana nonhotels, Glasshouse on the Ganges (at Rishikesh) and Verandah in the Forest (at Matheran), Bungalow on the Beach evokes a clear-sighted joy of life, something light and airy and breezy. When you have the Ganges, or a forest, or a beach, you cant do better than to celebrate their presence and intrude as little as possible. The Bungalow speaks of this ethos. It is not a building constructed as some activity-laden resort for beach-hoppers, but a building that was there originally as part of this small ports heritage and has now been lovingly restored from its state of dilapidation. If it had fat round columns then, it does so now. If it had very tall wooden doors then, it does so now. If it had ventilators, pillared portico, staircase, wooden rafters holding up the ceiling, it has them now, and in the same place and of the same dimensions. I can stand on the balcony and try to imagine without too much

Bungalow by the beach : then and now , after 3 years of painstaking restoration strain what the British Collector may have thought as he stood here face to face with the sea. After a cup of delightful welcome tea we were shown our rooms. All the rooms here are named after the Danish ships which arrived over two century of Danish Raj. Names like Crown prince of Denmark, princess Sophia and Chritianus septimus evoked feeling that you are into a

different era. As you enter the room this feeling is enhanced by massive ceiling height and tall windows and doors. Sound of Sea waves, continuous breeze and those owing sheer white curtains make you feel that you are in the sea and not by the sea. Wide 10 feet verandah overlooking the sea circulates on all side of this colonial house and is actually USP of this property. One can spend hours sitting there in a recliner doing nothing but looking at the sea waves and feeling its cool breeze on your face. Really nothing else freshens you up like a cool sea breeze on your face. As the night fell, I am still standing in the verandah looking at the sea waves, now reecting the moon light as striking silver lines as they near the shore. When I am looking on my right i can see the outlines of the 400 years old Danish fort on my right, just a stones throw away. When Look on my left i could see silhouette of the 14th-century stone temple being slowly eroded by the sea. Next day early morning at 6 am armed with camera decided to have a bird's eye view of the whole town. I decided to climb on the 150 feet high water tank right in the centre. After climbing few ights on Blend of Tamil and Danish architecture circular stairs I realized that hand rails are missing in some sections, tiles are eroded and steps are uneven. I had to literally sit on the stairs and climb the rest step by step in sitting position, without looking down or around. By the time I reached on top I had done my adventure quota of this trip. On the top of tank I felt like a Dansborg by the sea: 400 hundred years old and only Danish fort in India

explorer as I thought when last some one must have come here. I also came

to know true meaning of word "dizzy". but I was also rewarded with magnicent panoramic views of Tranquebar town. I took pictures and started my climb down slowly remembering all possible Gods I could. After breakfast we went on town exploration with map which not only showed the streets but had names of all the houses. Besides Kings and queens street there are streets like post ofce street or gold smith street. While we were getting around the town we played treasure hunt with kids and sent them alone to nd out things like " inscription C 7" or nd the emu farm in the town, nd Tranquebar town model carved out of stone or nd out the printing press where bible was rst translated and printed in Tamil. Kids loved this activity and allowed us to do some serious historical exploration. We went to places like new Jerusalem church, Danish governors house, many of these buildings are being renovated by INTACH, which is organization which is painstakingly trying to restore our heritage buildings to their past glory. Favorite place to relax and enjoy sea In the evening again we all sat in the verandah, everyone doing their own work, like nishing a novel, or listening to Jagjitsingh. Finishing tour diary, or just watching and enjoying the sea.

So why this beautiful place remained out of sight to most of the tourist fraternity!! One of our old and repeater guest at the Bungalow explained me, " there was simply no place to stay and people had to come on day trips from Pondicherry. All of which has Restored 700 years old Shiva temple changed now. The Neemrana bungalow has not only immensely facilitated the Denmark connection but also begun the process of putting Tranquebar on the heritage- and beauty-spot map on the East Coast. Especially as there are now, not just one Neemrana property here, but three.


For a place with practically no tourist activity, Tranquebar keeps me quite busy. I can sip tea and read in the uncomplicated beauty of my room at Gate house. I can sink in my four-poster bed at the bungalow and marvel at the splendid 10-foot-high wooden doors. I can walk down the beach and watch shermen at work, their children at play, their boats at rest. I can explore the fortress and imagine its brass guns looking out at the sea. Highlights in the Tranquebar menu are a heavenly beach, magnicent specimens of Danish architecture, a church where the rst Bible was printed in Tamil language and the 400 year old Fort Dansborg.

Fact le:
GETTING THERE The easiest way to get to Tranquebar is to drive down from Chennai, on the smooth East Coast Road, via Pondicherry a.k.a. Puducheri. The town is located at a distance of 280km from Chennai and 120km from Puducheri. The journey from Chennai should take you between ve to six hours.

WHERE TO STAY Neemrana Hotels now has three properties in Tranquebar, all heritage houses expertly restored by INTACH Pondicherry. The earliest to openin late 2004, and then near-destroyed by the tsunami later in the year, only to be re-restored and re-openedis The Bungalow on the Beach. The hotel has eight rooms, some sea facing and all air-conditioned. Tariff: Rs 4,000-5,000. A swimming pool is coming up this year. Breakfast is Rs 150 and meals Rs 350. Book in advance, as its proving very popular. The second is Gate House, an elegant property with air conditioning, and also with a pool coming up, a three-minute walk from the beach. Tariff: Rs 3,000 per room. Finally, Naik House, right on the beach, has three rooms with air conditioning. Tariff: Rs 2,000 for the en suite double rooms; one room, with bath not attached:

CONTACT Neemrana Hotels reservation ofces: 011-41825001; 022-24322495, 080-41144724/25; www.neemranahotels.com Warning: Tranquebar is strictly No No for fun seekers, shopaholics, or for labelled sight seeing eg; Scandal point, sunset point etc. For more pictures visit my page on Facebook. Awaiting your comments and suggestions at anand.naregal@rediffmail.com