Kanyakumari

Continuing from Madurai (December 2010), we had set an alarm clock to ensure we wouldn’t miss the sunrise. However, to our surprise, we were awakened early by anxiety and whispers from the corridors. We decided to check if the sun was rising soon, but the horizon remained dark with only faint rays of light. We let Aarush sleep and ventured to the rooftop, where we discovered that every hotel rooftop was filled with people eagerly awaiting the sunrise. After some anticipation, the magnificent sunrise finally occurred, although it was a bit late, around 6:30 AM, but well worth the wait. Here’s a small video of the sunrise.

Following a rather ordinary breakfast at a small stall, we visited the Vivekananda Rock Memorial and the Thiruvalluvar Statue, often referred to as the Indian version of the Statue of Liberty. It was 8:30 in the morning in December, and the sun was scorching hot. There was a considerable queue for the ferry ride to that location, but it was well worth it. Upon reaching the Rock Memorial, the sun was beating down intensely, making it challenging to walk around barefoot.

Thiruvalluvar was an ancient Tamil poet who lived nearly two thousand years ago. His work is an integral part of everyday Tamil life but not widely known beyond South India. This massive statue certainly commanded attention at the southern tip of mainland India. Personally, I found it to be quite massive and somewhat of an eyesore, but that’s a matter of personal perspective.

Upon returning from the ferry ride, we returned to our hotel, but it was already noon, and the Kanyakumari (Virgin Goddess) temple was closed. We had to wait until 4 PM for it to reopen or consider moving forward. Having experienced the temple queues in Madurai and Rameshwaram, I was a bit weary. Additionally, this temple required all males to enter wearing only a dhoti (the traditional Indian dress) and shirtless. Consequently, we opted to skip the Kanyakumari Temple, which is located on the shore, and headed towards our next destination – Kovalam, with the aim of reaching there before sunset.

It was one of those days where we witnessed both the sun rise & sunset by the sea.