Gone south

The first of a four-part road trip series.

It's almost November. That isn't so much a statement of fact as it is a hint "" winter's almost here, so put in those leave applications, shake the moth balls off the woollies, dig out the cold cream and, most importantly, get your car set for a long road trip.

Winter, in case you didn't know, is the best time to travel, whether it's by car or any other form of transportation. There's only one reason for this, and that's the weather.

Think about it "" you can go virtually anywhere in the country in the winter months, and you're almost guaranteed great holiday weather. There's snow and sunshine in the mountains, cool days and calm seas along the coast and pretty nice weather even in the desert; you just can't lose.

To help you on your way, here's a nice little round-trip you can do from Chennai.

Set out bright and early and hit the East Coast Road, a superbly surfaced piece of tarmac that's surely one of the best in the country. It's tempting to floor the loud pedal and keep it there, but be careful "" there's habitation on both sides of the road, so people and livestock do hop across every now and then.

If you want, you can stop over in Mamallapuram and have breakfast at the excellent Hotel Mamalla Bhavan, but I'd suggest a similar stop in Pondicherry instead, at the equally commendable Hotel Surguru.

The rest of Pondicherry is, unfortunately, considerably overrated; if you've never been, stay a night, but otherwise carry on down the road via Cuddalore to Thanjavur.

Check into Hotel Parsutham, the best hotel in town, and then set out to explore this fascinating place.

Thanjavur's biggest claim to fame is the immense Brihadeeswara temple, built by the great Rajaraja Chola I in the year 1010. You haven't really seen a 'big' temple in India till you've seen this one; indeed, the locals call it periya kovil, or big temple.

It's an amazing feat of architecture, not to mention engineering, and you'd be hard put not to feel awed by it.

Also visit the Royal Palace, in a state of disrepair but still interesting, and the Museum of Art, which has a wonderful collection of Chola bronzes. Set aside a day for Gangaikondacholapuram (both to visit and to pronounce), 70 km from Thanjavur and home to another Brihadeeswara temple, this time built by Rajendra I. It's not as awe inspiring as its bigger namesake, but it's more sophisticated and graceful and fully worth a look.

From Thanjavur, hit the road again and drive southwards toward Rameswaram. En route, stop in Karaikudi for a fiery non-vegetarian lunch at one of the town's many famous eateries.

Before you get to Rameswaram (which is actually an island), stop for a moment on the Pamban bridge that connects it to the mainland and peer over the side. It's quite a sight to see the railway line running parallel to it over the sea.

Rameswaram is considered the Varanasi of the south, and the Ramanath-aswamy temple here is very well known. Its famous corridors, spanning a total length of 1.2 km, are an amazing sight. There's not much else to do in Rameswaram, but it has such an agreeable atmosphere that you'll be quite happy relaxing by the seaside, or on the balcony of your room at the TTDC hotel. You absolutely must make a trip to Dhanushkodi, though.

It used to be a bustling town, and was the point from where you took the ferry to Sri Lanka, but a killer cyclone totally wiped it out in 1964. There's nothing there except sand and a few ghostly ruins, but the atmosphere is surreal, especially if you get to the tip and look out across the sea to Sri Lanka.

On the way back to Chennai, take the coastal route and stop at Tharangambadi, where there's an old Danish fort (yes, the Danes were in India too). You can either explore it and keep driving or stay a night at Bungalow On The Beach, a superbly restored property owned by the Neemrana group. Pricey, but worth the money!