The oldest city in Tamil Nadu

   Again, it is usually the children who approach us first. "Hello sir, how are you?" And "Welcome to Tamil Nadu." If you then say something back, they don't always know how to formulate an answer, and all you get back is a bright white smile. You do notice that they are more used to tourists here in Madurai than in Pollachi. By the way, most of those tourists are Indians who come on pilgrimage to the city's many Hindu temples.

Meenakshi SundareswararTemple

   This temple claims to be the largest and oldest temple in South India. The inner complex is over 1,000 years old, and consists of an all-stone building whose golden roof is supported by many pillars. The name of that hall is therefore aptly called the "1000-pillar hall". But that is only one of the four halls that are supported by numerous decorated pillars. It is a masterpiece of Dravidian architecture.

   Naturally, we wanted to go and see that with our own eyes! Unfortunately, you are only allowed to take the clothes you are wearing and your money into the temple. The control at the entrance is pretty strict. Chappals have to be taken off off, and they will keep them for you for free. Mobile phones have to be taken out of your bag and put in a locker separately, which you have to pay for. A small handbag can be taken into the temple, but my rucksack was too big and also had to be stored - for a fee. But then we were finally allowed to enter the temple through the west gate.

   In every wind direction there is a Gopuram, a gate tower 45-50 metres high. Every inch of it is used to depict stories and gods. The city's streets are also laid out in such a way that you can see each tower at the end of a street from afar. And the closer you get to it, the more impressive the sight becomes. Besides the four outer towers, the complex has 10 more gopurams  inside the outer walls, for the various temples to visit.

   The temple complex itself is an area where you can easily wander around for a few hours without getting bored. All the pillars are again beautifully carved. What manpower it must have taken to build this temple over the centuries! For although the city and temple are mentioned in writings as early as the first century AD, the temple that stands there today was largely built and expanded to its present size between the 12th and 17th centuries.

   The complex is dedicated to Meenakshi, an apparition of Parvati who is said to have lived here. And of course, her husband Sundareswarar (an apparition of Shiva) belongs by her side. But Vishnu too has a place there, as Meenakshi's brother.

   We wandered around the Meenakshi temple complex for an hour and a half, deeply impressed by all the handicrafts on display. Thousands of people spent their working lives making this. And all made of solid granite. It is a wonder how all this must have been hoisted together by manpower. Every corner we turned made us gasp again at the enormity of it all, and the detail that appeared.

The temple is currently being renovated. And that is just as well, because such impressive heritage must be kept in good condition. And this was not the only building in Madurai that is currently (partially) under renovation. The 1670 Tamukkam Palace, which houses the Gandhi Museum, and the 17th-century Tirumala Nayak Palace are also currently under construction.

Tirumulai Nayakkar Palace

   King Tirumala Nayaka, who expanded the temple in the 17th century, also had a palace built in the city for himself. Of the entire palace, only the reception hall still stands. In the large courtyard, it received guests, the rabble could watch their monarch and performances were held, with musicians and dancers. The original complex was at least four times larger, with servants' quarters for men and women, a harem, stables, etc.

   As we entered and walked under the high arches, we felt how cool it was there compared to the outside air. This structure also contains many pillars, a total of 248, each with a circumference of more than 4 metres. There are 15 to 20-metre-high vaulted ceilings, brilliantly painted. People in these parts were able to make expressive paint colours early on, mostly from purely vegetable materials. Here we again walked around breathlessly. Architecturally, Indian buildings were certainly not inferior to structures in Europe. On the contrary, they were even more sophisticated.

Jain Hills: Pechchipallam

   We took a taxi to check out the Jain hills a little outside the city. A large rocky hill, on and  within which the remains of ancient Jain temples can be found. Sitting in the air-conditioned car for half an hour on the way to the hills was no punishment. Because once there, we still had to make a quite a climb.

At the bottom of the path up was another temple, with smiling horse statues on the edge of the walls. Again in vibrant colours, the statues at the gates to the temple reminded me of those at the Efteling, a Dutch amusement park ( and especially the part themed: The Indian Water Lilies). The temple is dedicated to Karuppu Samy, a patron god of the rural people. In front and next to the temple were two lotus ponds. And next to the temple was a staircase going up the rocky hill.

   We had already read that it would be a bit of a climb, but when I saw the crooked staircase, an anxious feeling crept up on me. After all, I amno hero at climbing high things. Whether it's towers or mountains, somewhere along the way up, my legs start shivering and sweat breaks out. I can keep going up because I only look at the floor in front of my own feet. But the idea of having to descend the same route again makes my head spin and pushes the air out of my lungs. Not wanting to miss out on all the fun, I sometimes push on anyway. Not always, but this time I did.

   The final steps up, there were no more carved steps and eventually not even a handrail. How relieved I was when I reached the plateau where the first reliefs had been carved into the rock face. These carvings dated back to the ninth century. Some remains of a wall could also be seen. This continued upwards, which was the reason for Simon to walk on. After a few minutes, he called from above for me to come and have a look there as well, as there was much more to see. I tried for a bit, but gave up due to the dizziness, and I let Simon walk around on his own, and have to make do with the photos he took there myself, just like you, dear reader.

The whole hill area with Jain - and Hindu - ruins stretches for about three kilometres. In the end, we saw only a very small part of it. That the temples were so high on a hill may be explained by the Jain's habit of leaving their dead in the open, to be used as food by the birds of prey and consumed by the elements. Usually they choose high places for this. But I have no evidence for this theory.

Going downhill, Simon is always there to help me, by staying close in front of me (which is why I dare go up occasionally, anyway), but what a relief when I am back with two feet on the flat ground. We took a quick breather with a bottle of water and a bag of crisps before heading back to the cool A/C of the taxi.