Marina Beach (மெரீனா கடற்கரை)

MARINA BEACH

Marina Beach is a natural beach sandy beach, in the city of Chennai, India along the Bay of Bengal, part of the Indian Ocean. The beach spreads from near Fort St. George in the north to Besant Nagar in the south of Chennai. It is the second longest beach in the world after Casino Beach-254 km (Praia do Cassino), Brazil.

The view of Marina Beach from Light House

Bathing and swimming at the Marina Beach are legally prohibited because of the danger, as the undercurrent is turbulent. It is the most crowded beach in the country and attracts about 30,000 visitors a day during weekdays and 50,000 visitors a day during the weekends and on holidays. During summer months, about 15,000 to 20,000 people visit the beach daily.

History

The promenade of the beach was built by the former Madras governor Mountstuart Elphinstone Grand Duff in 1884 and was named by him as ‘Madras Marina’.

Dimensions and Characteristics

The total length of the beach is 13 km, the length of the promenade is 6 km, and the maximum width is 437 m and its orientation is from north to south.

Infrastructure and Activities

1. 500 food stalls run by 1,212 vendors.

2. Memorials and statues.

3. Morning walk and joggers’ track.

4. Aquarium.

5. Joyrides, merry-go-rounds and mini giant wheels.

6. Marina swimming pool (100 m length, 30 m width and 3 to 5.5 ft depth).

7. Anna swimming pool (4 to 11 ft depth).

Statues present along the promenade of the beach from north to south

1. Robert Caldwell.

2.  Kambar.

3. Ilango Adigal.

4. Triumph of Labour.

5. Subramaniya Bharathi

6. Kannagi.

7. Subhash Chandra Bose.

8. Thiruvalluvar.

9. George Uglow Pope.

10. Annie Besant.

11. Bharathidhasan.

12. Swami Vivekanandha.

13. Avvaiyar.

14. Mahatma Gandhi.

15. Constanzo Beschi (Veera Maamunivar).

16. Kamarajar.

17. Thandhai Periyar.

18. Sivaji Ganesan.

19. Fishermen at the Buckingham Canal statue.

20. Thilagar Thidal plague.

21. Golden Jubilee of Independence memorial pillar.

Historical Buildings and Institutions present near to the beach

1. M.A.Chidhambaram Cricket Stadium, Cheppakkam.

2. University of Madras, Cheppakkam Campus.

3. Public Works Department (PWD) Complex.

4.  Presidency College.

5.  University of Madras, Marina Campus.

6. Vivekananda House.

7. Lady Wellington House.

8. Queen Mary’s College.

9. Inspector General of Police Headquarters, Chennai.

10. Forensic Science Department.

11. All India Radio, Chennai.

Other structures present along the beach

1.  Marina swimming pool

2. Anna swimming pool.

3.  Aquarium.

4. Marina cricket ground.

5. Dr. Annie Besant Park.

Events in Marina Beach

1. The annual Independence and the Republic Day ceremonial parades and air shows with the unfurling of the Indian national flag, held along the promenade of the beach.

2. The annual idol-immersion event of the Hindu festival ‘Vinayaga Chadhurthi’.

3.  Several marathon and walkathon campaigns in the venue of the beach. The annual Chennai Marathon, held in the beach starting from the Anna Square to Annai Velankanni Church on the Elliot’s Beach in Besant Nagar.

4. The beach receives the maximum number of visitors on the Kaanum Pongal day, when about 1,50,000 people come to the beach.

Transportation

1. The nearest bus terminus to Marina Beach are Anna Square Terminus, Triplicane Terminus, Vivekananda House (Ice House) Terminus and Foreshore Estate (Pattinappakkam) Terminus.

2. The nearest railway stations to Marina Beach are Cheppakkam Railway Station, Triplicane Railway Station and Lighthouse Railway Station.

Notes

1. Seven entry points on the beach’s service lane are near the PWD Building, Subash Chandra Bose Statue, Dr. Annie Besant Statue, Vivekananda House, Avvaiyaar Statue, Veera Maamunivar Statue and the lighthouse.

2. The following spots off the beach including near the Anna Square, Kannagi Statue, Triumph of Labour Statue and behind Vivekananda House, have been identified by the police as extremely unsafe due to the presence of whirlpools and rock projections in the seabed.

3. A tramp ship SS Damatis, that sank off the Marina beach during a cyclone in 1966.

Things and activities to do in Marina Beach

1. Seeing the sea, sea waves, ships and boats.

2.  Listening the sea waves’ sound.

3. Sitting in the seashore, observing the waves coming towards the shore, touching it and returning back gradually.

4. Wetting the legs in the sea waves and playing with them.

5. Bathing in the beach.

6. Watching the people’s activities in the beach.

7. Talking to family and friends freely.

8. Eating beach foods in beach food stalls.

9. Joy rides.

10. Balloon shooting.

11. Horse riding.

12. Taking photos with the celebrity model in the beach photo studio, taking photos of the beach, us with the beach and boats in the seashore & taking photos by standing and sitting with the boats in the seashore.

13. Buying the memorable things in the beach-Wrist band, ‘Name written in the selected’ keychain, ‘Name written in the seashell’ keychain and ‘Name written in rice’ keychain.

Foods in beach food stalls

1. Sundal, Verkadalai, Pattani & Uppukadalai.

2. Tea & Filter/Sukku Coffee.

3. Cool Drinks, Sugarcane Juice & Ice Creams

4. Fruit Salad.

5. Meen Varuval.

6. Pani Puri, Masala Puri, Bhel Puri & Masala Pori.

7. Vaazhakkai Bachi, Melaga Bachi & Vengaya Bachi.

8. Panju Mittaai & Other Snacks.

Tips and suggestions for entertainment in the beach

1. The best time to visit the beach is between 4 pm to 6 pm as the breezy air is cool at the time and the climate is good.

2. To see the morning sunrise in the beach, just go there before 6.30 am. It is a nice experience to see the fishing of the fishermen in the seashore of the beach early in the meaning. Sitting in the seashore under the night moon will also give good enjoyment. When we visit the beach in afternoon between 2 pm to 4 pm , there will be no crowd and we shall enjoy the beach freely.

3. Seeing sunrise or sunset in the beach is very nice.

4. Leave the foot wears in a place in the shore and wetting the legs in the tides of the beach with empty legs is suggested.

5.  For enjoying in the beach freely, just move lightly right from the main area seashore the beach to the seashore, that is back to the Marina swimming pool. Here crowd will be less, the waves will be clean and we can enjoy the beach freely.

Reviews of the Marina Beach

The only things that are not liked in the beach are the crowded people, dirtiness, bad smell and presence of more number of food stalls.