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| About
Madurai |
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Madurai
is more than 2,500 years old and was an important cultural
and commercial centre even as early as 550AD, when the
Pandyas made it their Capital.
Legend has it that drops of nectar from Lord Shiva's
hair fell on the town and so the place was named Mathuram "meaning sweetness" in Tamil, now known as Madurai. Madurai is also known as "Temple City".
Today, the city is situated on the banks of the river
'Vaigai' and is the second largest city in Tamilnadu. It
is
also a industrial, commercial and educational
centre, besides retaining its cultural heritage. Madurai is also the Home Town of TVS, one of the largest Business House in India.
Madurai has an optimal tropical climate all through
the year with a strong northeast monsoon. The temperature in peak summer varies between 35°C to 40°C.
Madurai is the centre of Jasmine Flower Cultivation, giving Madurai the name Jasmine
City, in addition to the Temple City. Jasmine is known as "Malli" in Tamil and Madurai Malli is famous in India as well as abroad. It is also being exported to various parts of the world. |
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| Where
to visit |
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 Meenakshi
Sunderashwarar Temple, dedicated to Lord Sunderashwarar
(Siva) and Meenakshi (Parvathy), orginally built by Kulasekara
Pandya. However the entire credit for making the
Temple as splendid as it is today, goes to the Nayaks
who ruled Madurai from the 16th to
the 18th Century.
- Tirumalai
Nayakkar Mahal Palace, a classic
example of the Indo-Sarcenic style
- Gandhi
Museum, housed in the 300-year
old Mangammal Palace.
- Alagarkovil, is
situated at the foot of Alagar Hills and is dedicated
to Lord Vishnu.
Pazhamuthircholai, is on a small hillock 2KM away and
is one of the six abodes of
Lord Subramanya (Murugan).
- Thiruparankundrum,
one of the other six abodes of Lord Subramanya (Murugan), is also situated in Madurai.
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| How
to get here |
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 Madurai
is situated in Tamilnadu, India and is
460
kms south of Chennai,
120 kms south of Trichy,
240 kms east of Coimbatore,
250 kms north of Kanyakumari.
Madurai
is connected
by
Air - with
Chennai and Mumbai.
by Rail - to all
parts of India with direct connections to Bangalore,
Chennai, Kochi, Kollam, Mumbai, Palakkad, Thiruvananthapuram and
Thrissur.
by
Road - to
all parts of India and is situated on the National Highway
7 & 47 ; the North - South Corridor also touches Madurai. |
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