The French Connection

The grumbling auto wala from the Pondicherry bus stand was in a constant peeve - "You could have taken a hotel closer to the bus stand" (or so we inferred from his otherwise incomprehensible Tamil). An almost sleepless (Surprise, surprise!) overnight bus journey from Bangalore brought us to Pondicherry. It was just the wee hours of morning and the town was still asleep under a blanket of very un-Indian tranquility. The auto took a sharp left turn on a street and stopped.“That's Du Parc” - the autowala pointed to a huge medieval door on the opposite end. As we knocked bleary eyed , the door opened to the villa which stood like a time trap - a courtyard lined with pastel coloured walls and large French windows. Du Parc was originally a French Villa built in the 17th century, now restored as a heritage hotel. The colonial rooms are styled beautifully, we were particularly thrilled with ours which had a split,duplex setting. After the initial excitement of running up and down the stairs inside the room (yes, the silly girlish streaks are unputdownable at times:)) , we chalked out a rough itinerary for the two days and plonked ourselves on the grand beds to catch up with sleep till breakfast.

Pondicherry is tiny - a queer mix of the French colonial heritage and the ubiquitous small Indian town. As far as colonial history goes , it has never occupied a predominant place in the discerning travellers' imagination the way other colonial cities in India have. Set up by the French in 1674, it was captured by the Dutch almost immediately , retaken by the founders and then sacked by the British. Also, unlike the more glamorous Goa , this coastal town on the Bay of Bengal has shied away from the glammed up crowd looking for a hip beach getaway. In Pondicherry, time unwinds at it's own pace like a leisurely amble on the wide brick streets by the sea or stands still at the old pastel coloured Catholic Churches.

We decided to visit Auroville and Aurobindo ashram on Saturday and spend the next day exploring the town on our own. Auroville is a universal township in making ,some 10 kms from Pondicherry. The utopian township was founded by the Mother, and is a means of implementing the teachings and vision of Sri Aurobindo. Visitors are only allowed till a viewing point where one gets to see the Matri Mandir or the meditation centre. For those interested in spiritual experiences of the very alternative kind , there are cafes galore which offer the best gastronomic fare ( including fresh sea food and the best pasta:)) or boutiques selling chic craft clothing , handcrafted leather and bohemian jewellery.

Our next stop was the Aurobindo Ashram where Sri Aurobindo and the Mother lived for most of their lives. At the centre of the Ashram, in a tree-shaded courtyard, lies the Samadhi, where their bodies are laid to rest. A slew of visitors were lined up for a visit to the Ashram as the Mother's birthday lay the very next day.
From the Ashram , we headed out towards the sea. The too-rocky-to-swim beach is smattered with tourists , a very incongrous statue of Gandhi ,stately old buildings , a boutique hotel - Promenade (a Hidesign hotel) and a 24 hours open cafe by the beachfront which turned out to be our favourite haunt during the Pondy stay. Endless conversations over coffee later , we decided to solve our “what-to-do-next conundrum” with shopping for shabby,chic street clothing and headed back to the hotel for a quiet dinner.

The next day we rented bicycles and decided to explore the quiet town on our own. Pondicherry is a vagabond's delight!You can wander through the streets aimlessly,relax at a shady corner along the neatly lined perpendicular streets or just breathe in the breeze along Goubert Avenue across the sea. The neighbourhood changes drastically near the sea - the 'white town' with it's colonies of ochre coloured walls, tile roofs ,wooden shutters,colonnades and balconies and streets with very Gallic names. Straight ahead from the beach,the surroundings gradually change back to a familiar,daily Indian town. The Rendezvous, a well known restaurant situated on the Rue Suffren (I tried to pronounce it the French way, from the remnants of a semester of French at university:)) serves the most amazing and fresh sea food.

Endless meanderings through the town, a stop by at an old church and cups of coffee later we returned to Du Parc in the evening and headed back to Bangalore at night. The weekend turned out to be everything a Pondicherry holiday had promised – leisure , amblings, conversations and the childhood pleasure of letting time just roll by.

Hotel Du Parc is a highly recommended place to stay in Pondicherry. Contrary to the autowala's grumblings , it is located only 10 minutes away from the bus stand. The villa is situated in the French quarters , close to the beach. The beautifully restored place and the hospitable staff make it an extremely memorable stay. Details of the hotel here:

http://www.hotelduparc.co.in/