Map In My Pocket

Tag: Pondicherry

Hotel Review: Maison Perumal, Pondicherry
Maison Perumal, a sepia serigraph of another time – dusted off perhaps, but not retouched.

Says CGH Earth‘s website for this property of theirs, Maison Perumal, Pondicherry.
& I couldn’t have put it better myself.

CGH Earth has two properties in Pondicherry – Maison Perumal in the Tamil Quarter and Palais de Mahe in the French Quarter just off the famous Pondicherry promenade. We split our time in Pondicherry in two parts – two days in the Tamil Quarter and two in the French, and stayed at both of these boutique hotels. One a restored Tamil home, another a recreation of a French home.

Definitely amongst the most charming of boutique hotels in Pondicherry, Maison Perumal is the one hotel there that I haven’t had enough of. Just as much as I can never tire off being in Pondicherry, I can’t think of not wanting to go back to this beautiful heritage home.

Maison Perumal Review: Past Perfect in Pondicherry

Location

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Restored by INTACH, this heritage building in the Tamil Quarter of Pondicherry was once – nearly three hundred years ago – a Chettiar mansion in the affluent neighbourhood around the temple. Maison Perumal is located right at the heart of the bustling side of Pondicherry, where the locals go about busily attending to their day’s work away from the precise boulevards of the French Quarter where most of the tourists restrict themselves to. It is the perfect location for those wanting to get a glimpse into the local Tamil way of life and still be able to get back to the promenade and its chic cafes and boutiques on a whim.

Design

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From the redoxide flooring to the typical colonial Indian wooden furniture, Maison Perumal, transported me straight back to my grandparents hundred and eighty year old house in Visakhapatnam and I happily walked straight back to those summer holidays of my childhood. This beautiful house is tastefully done up in furtniture and accents that are are alive with detail. And, the sunlight that filters in through stained glass windows only adds dimension to this heritage home sequestered away in the colourful lanes of the Tamil quarter.

Our Room

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Quietly elegant, the rooms are furnished keeping with the Franco-Tamil character of this property and this corner of India that is Pondicherry.

Restaurant + Food

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The smell of cooked fish that wafted from the kitchen clung stubbornly to all that came out of the kitchen. So much so that I couldn’t gulp down more than a sip of my fresh watermelon juice the first night we were there. Making the one restaurant in the hotel, out of bounds for vegetarians, especially for those like me, who have been so all their life.

& NO, there is no room service.

But having said that, the food is delicious and is served hot and fresh by staff who are willing to whip up whatever it is that suits your preference. Like they did for us.

Service

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We had checked into the hotel only late in the night, way past dinner time but the staff were so welcoming and helpful, they rustled up a quick vegetarian dinner for us by the time we were through checking-in. Not only did they suggest this themselves (we were too tired to even think of dinner!) but they did it happily too.

And, just for that they deserve a big thumbs up!

Convenience

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Wifi

Unlike most other hotels, wifi works well in the rooms too.

Drinking Water

Two litres of bottled water replenished daily.

Getting Out & About

The leafy lanes of the forgotten Tamil Quarter are shady, colourful and peppered with just the right amount beautiful old buildings. Add to that there is only the occasional tourist that wanders on to this side of the canal that divides Pondicherry into precise cultural quarters, there is much to explore right outside the Maison Perumal. The staff are also helpful enough to find you a “tuk-tuk” for those times when you aren’t just up for a walk and would rather head straight to the promenade or the more happening neighbourhood of Pondicherry.

Value for Money

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While Palais de Mahe, has the feel of a modern day hotel with all the amenities, Maison Perumal which is priced a little lower feels like an old lived in home, which is what it is. And, for those who love staying in heritage homes, Maison Perumal at around Rs.10,000 (150 USD) is good value.

My Take on Maison Perumal

Would I stay at Maison Perumal again?
Most definitely, yes!

What did I love about Maison Perumal?
Genuinely helpful staff
Decor and Ambience
Courtyard Cafe

What did I hate about Maison Perumal?
Smell of sea food. But thats just a personal quirk. ?
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Address

58, Perumal Koil Street
Puducherry

Find it on Google Maps.
July 25, 2018
Cafe Review: Artika Cafe Gallery, Pondicherry

A hidden courtyard, swirling bougainvilleas dancing down in the breeze to carpet the floor, walls and doors adorned with graffiti that ranges from cute to edgy; the Artika Cafe Gallery in White Town, Pondicherry truly is a hidden gem.

Sequestered away behind a row of ordinary looking shops, this quiet and low key cafe is more of a local favourite than a tourist hotspot and probably the best French Cafe in Pondicherry. A couple of locals that we had met on our last trip to Pondicherry recommended Artika to us, after hearing of our experiences with the more popular “tourist favourites”. But as it is with cafes in Pondicherry (they are very particular about their timings and don’t usually stay open late or long!), I didn’t get a chance to go to Artika then. So, here I am now.

Artika Cafe Gallery, White Town, Pondicherry.

Ambience | Design + Crowd

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Courtyard Cafes have my heart anyway. But this one is a winner because it is artsy without trying too hard. Plus I really liked the abandoned and overrun kind of entrance into the cafe. Like you have stumbled upon something, though beautiful, is easy to miss.

I also loved the feel of the place. Relaxed. The crowd that it draws, seek it, for that too. It surely helps that Artika Cafe Gallery is more an offbeat favourite rather than a mainstream one!

Food

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They have limited menus on certain days. On the day we were there they were out of both pesto and fries! So, I had croissants and cold coffee. But from whatever little we tried, the food was freshly made and tasted good. So, all in all the decent coffee and buttery croissants – though nothing exceptional – were good enough for me to want to go back.

Service | People + Hospitality

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Not overtly friendly or over the top warm but welcoming enough for you to make yourself comfortable here at the cafe and even stay awhile. Ideal for those days when you just want to sit down, take it easy, maybe catch up with old friends.

Value for Money | Price + Experience

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Mid Range cafe, you can get a main dish for less than Rs.300/-. So if it is just coffee and nibbles for two, except it to be around Rs.500/-. Definitely worth the experience.

Explorers Guide

Artika Cafe Gallery

1, La Bourdonnais Street
White Town, Puducherry

Timings: 8:30 AM – 6:30 PM, Closed on Wednesdays.

Getting There: Just three lanes away from the promenade into the heart of White Town, it is easily accessible from the beach.

June 10, 2018
Streets of Pondicherry – Part II: Architecture

They say if you can’t afford a ticket to Europe, travel to Pondicherry instead.

Stroll through the white part of town and be transported in time and place to a laid back French town. Or just wander the streets to absorb the distinctive Franco-Tamil culture of the place.

This small seaside town has a lot to offer for those who are looking for a leisurely laid-back holiday.

There is always coffee and croissants to intersperse your endless explorations with. For, Puducherry is blessed with both – cafes & heritage – in abundance!

Once an important port of call and a very prominent fortified town, as it changed hands, it was razed to ground and its ramparts flattened to what are today the tree lined boulevards of Pondicherry.

Laid out in a grid, the town is divided into the French and Tamil quarters by a storm water canal.

Both these quarters are so distinctive that you can tell which part of town you are in just from colour and style of the houses that go from classical European architecture to vernacular Tamil in a step.

As a lingering shadow of its European past follows you along its every street or rue as it known here, the historical richness of this town comes to life. In its art & architecture.

So what could possibly be a better way to discover this quaint little town than via Heritage Walks and Cycle Tours!

My first day in Pondicherry, I walked 9.6 kilometres to be exact. Discovering urban street art and restored heritage bungalows.

Besides, in this town of neat little blocks, self reliance comes easy to a girl, who just wants to explore, camera in hand.

I have been to Pondicherry thrice. & my longing for it only gets the stronger. :)

PS: INTACH or The Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage has been working with the Government of Pondicherry and its public to conserve and restore the unprotected architectural heritage and townscape of Pondicherry. Almost all of the heritage buildings you see today have been brought back to life by them. Even the rocks to tame the sea on the famous promenade were by them.

They conduct heritage walks in the white town every morning and evening. Ending on the promenade, this hour long walk is a perfect way to to get to the beach just in time for dusk.

Read First: Streets of Pondicherry – Part I: Art

July 12, 2017
Streets of Pondicherry – Part I: Art

New Settlement. That is Pudicheri for you. Interpreted into Pondicherry by and for the French.

From the Romans who came here to trade in the 1st century AD to the Portuguese who returned in 1521 to trade in textiles, Pondicherry has had a colourful legacy. Not the Pallavas, Cholas, Pandyas, Sangamas or the Mughals; not even the Dutch or British could lay claim to this town. It has and will always be French.

Atleast as Tamil as it can get, but with a constant presence of its French past.

The historical richness of this town comes to life in its Art & Architecture. A lingering shadow of its European past in its every street.

So, come walk with me.

A leisurely stroll through the streets of Pondicherry, as you discover yet another piece of Urban Art, just around the corner.

To be continued in Streets of Pondicherry – Part II: Architecture

More on Pondicherry:
Pondicherry, Racist much?

February 25, 2017
Pondicherry, Racist much?

Pondicherry has South India’s most distinctive sub culture. They say if you can’t afford a ticket to Europe, travel to Pondicherry instead. Stroll through the white part of town and be transported in time and place to a laid back French town where cafes cool and inviting are at every turn.

But, just how racist are you Puducheri?

Does the storm water canal that separates the French and Tamil quarters into neat little grids of White Town and Black Town also exist in your mind?

This is Cafè des Arts. It is the most popular Cafe in Pondicherry. Rated #1 on Trip Advisor with a Certificate of Excellence to boot.

Here, Indians are not welcome.

& this is what transpired in the cafe and on Trip Advisor.

“so when we ask you to wait, we are trying to please your comfort”

Completely missed the point did they? Or do the tone, the numbers and the smattering of French point to something now not just obvious but also reiterated and reinforced??

Forget about being “asked to wait”, if only we were even acknowledged.

*Sigh*

We are the same people, the very same Indians who wait endlessly in queues outside the Kamats and Rajdhanis of the world for one simple meal.

Cafè des Arts

10, Suffren Street
White Town, Puducherry

+91 9994481914

Open: 8:30 am – 7 pm, all days except Tuesdays

We were refused a table at Villa Shanti too. It is the next ‘Most Popular Cafe in Pondicherry’. We were told they did not have a table, while we all stood in the foyer, right there in an empty cafe. On our second visit there, as we pushed past the half closed door, we were ushered in with a grimace from the very same head waiter. Well, every other cafe in Pondicherry was closed because of the Jalli Kattu protests going on that day. Though we definitely felt unwelcome and awkward, the food was good and the experience “okay”.

This is the same Pondicherry where Indian citizens were once offered a choice of French Citizenship as an era came to an end. It is the same Pondicherry where old war veterans, till today, turn up on the streets in the full glory of their erstwhile military uniform on Bastille Day every year.

It is also the same Pondicherry that I so love, for in its neat little blocks, self reliance comes easy to a girl who just wants to explore, camera in hand.

February 23, 2017