Southern India
Table of Contents: Regions / Cities / Other destinations / Culture and History / Talk / Travel to Southern India, visa requirements / Get around / Southern India attractions and sightseeing / Itineraries / City tours / Good restaurants and cheap meals / Southern India nightlife, bars, clubs and pubs. / Stay safe / Get out More from India: Eastern India, Himalayan North, North-Eastern India, Plains (India), Southern India, Western India More from South Asia: Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka |
South India includes major states in peninsular India and the two island groups of Lakshadweep and Andaman and Nicobar.
Regions
Cities
There are many cities in South India. Below is a list of the nine most notable. Other cities can be found on their specific regional pages.
- Bangalore - The Garden City, Pub City, Silicon Valley of India, Land of Silk, Gold, Sandal, Incense etc.
- Chennai (Madras) - City of Temples, Home of famous Marina Beach, Automobile Capital of India
- Kochi (Cochin) - The Queen of the Arabian Sea
- Coimbatore - Manchester of South India
- Hyderabad — With the formation of Greater Hyderabad it is now the second largest city in India. The city of pearls, was famous for the Golconda diamonds and is now a major IT hub. Home of Charminar, Golconda fort and Salarjung Museum.
- Madurai - City famous for its Meenakshi Amman Temple. It was among the nominees for the new list of 7 wonders of the world for its architecture.
- Mysore - Twin city of Bangalore. Famous for the Royal Palace, Brindavan Gardens.
- Pondicherry - French Enclave in India. Commonly known as "Peaceful Pondicherry"
- Trivandrum - Padmanabhaswami temple. It is the capital of Kerala State.
Other destinations
Culture and History
Talk
The main language of Karnataka is Kannada. In most of Bangalore and most tourist sites, people will speak English - from a smattering of words to complete fluency. If you drift outside major areas, some people may speak no English, or be too uncertain of their English to speak with you.
However, Kannada is by no means the only language of the state. The district of Kodagu (Coorg) has its own language (Coorgi). Tulu and Konkani are spoken along the coast. Marathi and Tamil speakers are numerous along the borders with Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu, respectively.
If you would like to try a few words of Kannada, many Kannadigas will appreciate the effort
- namaskaara ("num-uh-skah-ra") - means both hello and goodbye, just as namaste in the north.
- beku ("bay - koo") - means "I want" or "I need". An example of use would be "dosa beku" or "niru beku"
- beda ("bay - duh") - means "I don't want" or "I don't need". An example would be "niru beda".
- niru ("nee - roo") - water
Travel to Southern India, visa requirements
Get around
Southern India attractions and sightseeing
Itineraries
City tours
Good restaurants and cheap meals
Southern India nightlife, bars, clubs and pubs.
Stay safe
Get out
More from India: Eastern India, Himalayan North, North-Eastern India, Plains (India), Southern India, Western India More from South Asia: Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka |
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