It is 75 km away from Chennai. A City of Thousand Temples, Kanchipuram is one of the seven sacred cities and considered as the second holiest place in India. It was successively the capital of the Pallavas, the Cholas and the Rayas of Vijaynagar. The city was also the seat of learning Shree Sankaracharya, Appar and Siruthonder. The great Buddhist Vhikku Bodhidharna lived and worked here. There are 126 temples in Kanchi and a few more on the outskirts.Ekambarnatha Temples, the largest temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, was built originally by Pallavas and later improved by the Cholas and the king of Vijaynagar.

The 57 meter high Rajagopuram is one of the tallest in south India. The centre of attraction of this massive temple has the 2500 years old Mango tree which still bears fruit with four different flavors on its four major branches. Krishna Dev Raya constructed outer stone walls of the temple in 1500. KailasnathaTemple was constructed in the 8 th century and has a beautiful

Kanchipuram is also known for its thriving handloom industry. The silk weavers settled here 400 years ago and today it is known to be the producer of best silk sarees. Tiruttani, 42 km from Kanchipuram, has a temple which is one of the six abodes of Lord Subramanya. Situated on a hilltop, the temple is accessible by road as well as the 365 steps on the hill which are said to represent 365 days of the year. The Karthikai festival in December attracts lots of tourists.Vellore, 64 km from Kanchipuram has the fort which is one of the best example of defense architecture in this part of the country. The strong bastions of the fort defended the Vijaynagar kings until their defeat in 1565. Tipu Sultan held the fort for some years before he was defeated. His family imprisoned here and their tombs now lie to the west of the fort.

(1) Ekambaranathar Temple (2) Vaikunta Perumal Temple (3) Kailasanathar Temple (4) Varadarajaswami Temple (5) Kamakshi Amman Temple (6) Muktheeswarar Temple (7) Mathangeswarar Temple (8) Ashtabujam Temple (9) Ulagalanda Perumal Temple (10) Kumarakottam (11) Jain Temple,Thiruparankundram (12) Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam Math.

Kanchipuram silk sarees are known all over the world. Beautiful high grade pure mulberry silk of various hues are woven into sarees by traditionally trained weavers reputed for texture, luster, durability and fine finish. These sarees are exported to foreign countries. About 5000 families are engaged in this industry. Sarees are available at loom prices here and through cooperative societies.

At Sriperumbudur, 30 km to the north – east on the Chennai – Bangalore National Highway, is the immaculate memorial to the assassinated former Indian prime minister, Rajiv Gandhi. This is also the birthplace of Vaishnava saint and former Ramanujacharya (born 1017).The ancient Adikesavaperumal Temple here is majestic.