Glitters, closed gates and an encounter

Am submitting this post for IndiBlogger’s  Expedia - Around The World Contest

Across the road from the ocean we saw was a towering wall and a board that read -Dutch Cemetry and Fort which was the sign we had been looking for.  A fortress town located on the Coromandel Coast in Kanchipuram District, about 70 km from Chennai on the ECR  is Sadras, also known as Sadurangapattinam, and we were standing at the gates [which were shut] of the Sadras Fort. 

It was a blazing hot day and i was dead tired, we had been on the road all day and had just returned from a visit to Kanchipuram and few other places . The gates were all we could see through the locked gates, we took some pictures when we saw a funny looking man come running towards us.. 

He came over and said he was "Anand, the gatekeeper, and that he was a Furniture doctor".. Had golden glitter on his face, was wearing blue shades, pink nail polish and a orange whistle around his neck.. we had a bit of doubt about him, but just played along trying to get rid of him... When Lakshmi asked him about the glitter, he replied- "Oh,today my daughter's bday madam, i am coming from the party" and he even posed for a pic!! i clicked while she was taking her shot !! :D

He said he will take us inside thru the back door[which we had passed by and knew there was no way into the fort there...:)].. this was when a policeman walking past told us "Madam, he is mental".. 

Our man heard this and was like " Tamilians are the reason other Tamilians dont prosper, you come madam, i take you"..."that policeman is only mental madam, see he is not even wearing shoes"... We beat a hasty retreat, trying to sneak into the car and out, but not before he suddenly said "give me Rs10, if i had taken you inside, it would be Rs 30" ... We hopped into the car and asked the driver to speed away... had a good laugh!!!

Phew.. the things we see and people we meet... never ceases to amaze me!  

Skywatch Friday- Through the ruins

With apprehension, i got out of the car and checked to see if the gates were open.. Phew, they were! This was my 2nd time here at Sadras Fort [well, technically 1st since the last time i landed here the gates were shut and i had an interesting encounter with an interesting character.. anyways, that is another story]... For now, i was eager to explore the grounds within the Fort... 

Sadras or Sadurangapattinam is a fortress town situated along the Coromandel Coast, about 70 kms south of Chennai. The Fort originally built by the Dutch for commercial purposesis today just a land of ruins. The fort walls have crumbled and so have the structures within. There was a huge granary, a stable and smaller structures that were apparently used to mount elephants. The British in their own style raided the fort around 1818 and took over possession. Today, this dilapidated structure is protected monument and cared for by the ASI. 

Near the entrance of the fort is the Cemetry, with tomb stones and an internal chamber that was part of a secret tunnel passage. As we walk through the narrow corridor, a sudden burst of sunlight caught us by surprise. What was once a majestic pillar is now only a small stump, with a gaping hole on the ceiling through which sun's rays sneak in...  

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