Madura Travel Guide, India

Give a glance below to get the Madurai, India - Overview!!  

Popularly known as the temple town of India, Madurai is one of the oldest cities that was inhabited in the Indian Peninsula. At times, Madurai has also been named as the Athens of the East because of the legends and the myths associated with it. The famous city has been inhabited around the Vaigai river and the cultural heritage of this place dates back to the pre-Christian era almost 2500 years back.  Madurai is a blessed town that is almost synonymous to the divine Meenakshi temple.

 Mythology 

The state of Tamil Nadu boasts of Madurai as its third largest city with Tamil being the predominantly spoken language in the place. Madurai is a fascinating tourist destination that personifies the temple culture of South India. The city has been the capital city of the Pandya kings but the history of this cultural hub of India is equally known for a brave and sagacious ruling queen, RaniMangammal. As the myth goes, the great Pandyan ruler Kulasekarar built the city of Madurai  in the shape of lotus around a great temple.

 Location

Strategically located, Madurai is famous for many of its landmarks. Apart from the Meenakshi temple, the Koodalazhagar Divya Desam and the Aappudaiyaar Koyil Tevara Stalam are also important temples and a must watch in the city.

Other popular landmarks include Thirumalai Nayakar Mahal, a palatial monument that finds its place in almost all movies that are shot in south India. Azhagar temple, with the Vishnu shrine is also a vital place of worship that defines the traditional inclination of the city.

Madurai is also a notable city because of the popular monuments like Gandhi Museum, an exclusive place to gather all information about Mahatma Gandhi. This museum is also known to preserve the last clothes (blood stained) worn by Gandhiji Kazimar Big Mosque, a centrally located mosque, St. Mary’s Cathedral, a Roman Catholic church and several temples like Kudal Azhagar Koil and Thiruparankundram temples depict the secularism of this special city.

Modern Era

Other than these traditional spots, Madurai also claims to be an entertaining zone for the youngsters with the Eco Park, Athisayam Water Theme Park and Rajaji children park.

The shopping freaks also enjoy their stay in this traditional city with a number of shopping malls and other places including the famous spencers daily, big bazaar, mega mart, Vishal Mall, Millenium Mall, Café Day and Reliance fresh hypermarkets. In the crowd of such shopping plazas, the city also hordes popular radio stations like Hello FM, Radio mirchi and the Suryan FM.

Madurai, India is not only a place to visit for a short while but is also a very important education center of the country with significant colleges and institutes like the Thiagarajar College of Engineering, Thiagarajar School of Management and The American College. The Madurai Kamaraj University hosts an engineering college, a medical college, a law college, research institutes, agriculture college and many arts and science colleges under its affiliation. Famous for its jasmine flowers, Madurai is a city in South India that deserves to be visited for its ethnicity and piousness.