Meet Me At Meenakshi

In Madurai, a city about an hour by plane southwest of Chennai, is a major Hindu temple called Meenakshi. It's the center of the city and a busy hive of activity. The grounds feature four main gopurams or tower-like gates, each marking a point on the compass. Inside the compound is a maze of halls, shrines, endless carving and groups of vendors selling various trinkets.

It was a lousy, rainy day when we visited, but the gopurams still impressed. As did one of the halls inside.

A worshipper lighting a candle. Hey, check out the resident elephant- so vain with the toupee!

A vendor in his small shop. Listening to what the cow has to say. Didn't Merrill Lynch run a similar ad campaign a while ago?

As one comes to expect at major attractions, one must Exit Through The Gift Shop. No matter how religious you are or how you came, shopping is shopping.