A Pondicherry Biking Tour is a great getaway for the culture buffs looking to explore a piece of old France in India.
At first glance, Pondicherry (aka Pudduchery) may come across as one of the many South India tourist hotspots, but an extensive and well-planned Pondicherry cycling tour reveals several hidden gems of this historical city.
The story of Pondicherry is very old and is inextricably linked to its strategic location in Southeast India. The Union Territory and its adjoining areas were an important trading post for the Greeks and Romans way back in the 3rd century BCE because its waterfront made for an excellent natural port in the Bay of Bengal. Several South Indian kingdoms ruled over it for centuries until it became a French colonial settlement in 1674. Thereafter, the city changed hands between the French and the British a number of times, but it was France that held control for the most part until 1954 when Pondicherry became a part of the Republic of India as a Union Territory.
Nearly three hundred years of French rule has left an indelible mark on Pondicherry and made it one of the best India holiday destinations. More international fame came with the writer Yann Martel’s Booker winning novel ‘Life of Pi’, which was set in Pondicherry and later adapted to the namesake Oscar-nominated movie by the Hollywood director Ang Lee.
In cycle trips you get a probability to discover the area and research more about your location. As associated to the other experience activities like backpacking or tubing, Cycle Trips to South India are more relaxing and enjoyable as well as for stamina examining. It allows you to discover the social part of the location and contributes more significance to your holiday. It is fun loaded way to spend your holiday. A motorcycle trip may increase to several days, several weeks or months.
Today, modernity has changed the cityscape of Pondicherry, but the French heritage is still very much alive in the old part of the city. Wandering around, one may still come upon a small community of French people here. Our biking tour of Pondicherry explores these parts and several others to give you a glimpse of the unique hybrid culture of this coastal city.
You get the first taste of the comingling French and Tamil cultures at La Caf� or Caf� des Arts, which are eateries with both South Indian and French cuisines on the menu. Not far, one may go for a short bike ride or stroll to the Promenade Beach. Pondicherry is not really known for its beaches, because of the long seawall and breakwater that runs along the coastline, but the sea breeze that comes in draws crowds to the shore in the evening.
On the first day of Pondicherry cycling adventure, you may bike northwards on the famous Gourbet Avenue along the coastline. On this route you come upon the French War Memorial and Mahatma Gandhi’s statue and Rock Beach and then the Puducherry Beach. On the way, you may take a short de tour to Puducherry Museum, which has a collection of 81 bronze statues from the Chola Empire that reigned from the 9th to the 13th century CE.
While this encounter with Pondicherry’s distant past is intriguing, it is best to save at least half day, if not full, for the biking ride to Sri Aurobindo Ashram farther up. The Ashram was home of the renowned Indian philosopher, spiritual guru, yogi, and poet Sri Aurobindo, who lived from 1872 to 1950, but retired from public life after 1926 to pursue spiritual enlightenment in this ashram. A community of disciples grew around him and today this community is spread throughout India and beyond. The spiritually minded will relish this rejuvenating visit to the ashram.
For the history buffs, our Pondicherry cycling holiday itinerary features an important trip to Arikamedu, an archaeological site to the south of Pondicherry where several antiques belonging to the ancient Roman empire were first discovered in the 18th century. Repeated excavations have revealed that Arikamedu used to be a trading post for the Greeks and the Romans way back in the 2nd or 3rd century BCE. Today, you can still visit the ancient ruins of this site – old brick structures with arches and pillars. Several terracotta figurines, shell beads, gems, pottery, and an engraved emblem of the Roman emperor Augustus have been found at this site – all of it now showcased in museums. Arikamedu is not far from Pondicherry’s city centre, and the bike ride on metalled roads and across Pondicherry Bridge is smooth and breezy.
One whole day of the cycling trip of Pondicherry can be reserved for touring its many temples and churches. Closest to the city centre is Arulmigu Manakula Vinayagar Devasthanam, a Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Ganesha. The temple is said to precede the arrival of the French in Pondicherry. Though old, the temple you see today is a renovated and brightly painted structure visited by hundreds of devotees every day. Biking to rural Pondicherry reveals more ancient temples, such as Sengazhuneer Amman Temple at Veerampattinam village, or Thirukaameeswarar Temple in Villianur, which is said to be more than a thousand years old.
The churches of Pondicherry aren’t very ancient structures, but they are architecturally beautiful enough to merit a stopover on your Pondicherry biking holiday. The most famous of them is the Basilica of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which has stark Gothic influences. Not far, the Immaculate Conception Cathedral has a 300-year-old history of repeated demolitions and re-buildings. Another church named Our Lady of Angels has influences of Greco-Roman architecture, and Our Lady of Lourdes Church is a serene structure built in 1877. Still older is St. Andrews Church, built in 1745. All these churches can be visited on a daylong cycling tour of Pondicherry.
Done with exploring the culture, you can pamper your senses and slip into the full-on holiday mood on the final day with a biking trip to Pondicherry’s backwaters. Situated about 8km to the south of the city centre is the beach of Chunnambar, also known as Paradise Beach, right at the mouth of the backwaters. You may take a short cruise into the sea, go on a boat ride, play beach sports, or simply lounge around and sunbathe. The eco-tourists will love overnighting at one of the tree-top houses available as accommodation here. These high lodges afford an excellent view of the backwaters and a bit of an adventure to boot.
Ideally, a Pondicherry cycling holiday should be given three to four days, but if done with smart planning it can be wrapped up in two days, which is what we do on our South India Cycling Tour. Pondicherry is an important biking destination of this tour and our expert guides waste not a minute in giving you a thorough experience of the many hidden marvels of this unique tourist hotspot.
Francophiles and culture buffs will particularly dig this special biking holiday of Pondicherry.
