Welcome to the French Riviera of India, Pondicherry the South Indian city with une difference. Flaunting the French influence proudly the union territory is the ideal destination for those who want to offload world’s trouble. The planned town, well knit roads, high walled streets of the French quarter, wide beaches, beautiful promenades, majestic churches and imposing buildings and stately statue of Joan of Arc equates it with on par with towns in the Mediterranean. The French arrived in 1673 with their cherished dream to colonize India. Under their rule Pondicherry, the last bastion of France, did thrive from the state of somnolence to a bustling port city.

Pondicherry is spread over Mahe in Kerala and Yanam in Andhra Pradesh. Nestled on the Malabar coast lies the picturesque Mahe dotted with heritage buildings. Yanam is serene and home to a large community of fishermen who eke out their living from the sea. Auroville, the ‘city of dawn’, situated 15 kms outside Pondicherry, calms down any visitor with its red earth, lush greenery of landscaped gardens. The Dansborg castle of Tranquebar rising from the beaches leave one in awe, beholding the erased colonial power of the Dutch.