Botanical Garden: The "Life of Pi" Park is "Lifeless"

October 02, 2014

Starting of the trip was bit rough and disappointing...

Reason#1: We couldn’t get a rental bike as we planned, we had to completely rely on Auto rickshaws which are unreasonably fared :(

Reason#2: The super-hot weather - It was just 7.40AM in the morning, but the sun was already blasting at 36+ degrees. It’s been long time since we traveled outside Bangalore (where the avg. temp is just ~25 deg.C).

It was very difficult to get accommodate, we literally needed some shadow to rest on . The Botanical Garden is just a few hundred meters from the railway station. So we started our Pondy trip from the Botanical Garden.

This garden is situated at the west-centre of the town and supposed to be one of the best attractions of Pondicherry, but it’s not :(. We could see a few formal French style clipped trees, flower beds, a tiny fountain and a few age old trees. It features even a small aquarium and a "Joy" train ride for the kids. But, it’s too far away from the word “Botanical Garden” :P

This is the same gorgeous garden where the Oscar winning movie "Life of Pi" is made, but unfortunately all those beauty was alive only on the screen. In reality, it needs a lot of maintenance and proper management. No security, No controller, …nobody was there to regularize. The Forest Department of Pondicherry should really focus to improve this place.

Anyway, our intention of the visit was simple, we just needed some shade from the sun. We had our breakfast at the park (food that we had brought; there's no restaurant/canteen inside the park), we walked around the park, clicked a few snaps and moved away to the Promenade …..

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  1. De jardin botanique, cet espace n'en a que le nom. Nous avions lu dans notre guide une appréciation très positive. Nous nous sommes retrouvés au mileu d'un terrain vague, à l'abandon et avec des déchets. Inutile de vous déplacer pour aller le voir.

  2. Albano Laziale, ItalyOctober 7, 2014 at 3:40 AM

    I Giardini Botanici di Pondicherry hanno una storia secolare (risalgono all'Ottocento) e hanno certamente delle risorse interessanti - tra cui segnalo i tronchi fossili pietrificati - nonché un piccolo acquario (chiuso tra le 13 e le 14). Per questo motivo, secondo me, vale la pena di visitarli, anche se purtroppo è vero che sono tenuti in modo pietoso e non consono alle loro potenzialità.

  3. Translated version of Albano Laziale, Italy comment:
    The Botanical Gardens of Pondicherry have a long history ( dating back to the nineteenth century ) and they certainly interesting resources - including fossil petrified trunks point out - as well as a small aquarium (closed between 13 and 14). For this reason , in my opinion , it is worth to visit them , although unfortunately it is true that they are required so pitiful and not suited to their full potential.

  4. Translated version of Dieter M Comment:
    Botanical garden , this space has only the name . We read in our guide very positively. We ended the milieu of vacant land , abandonment and waste . No need to travel to see it.