Location : Chennai, Tamil Nadu
Claimed To Be : Second Longest In The World
Attractions : Aquarium, Anna And MGR Samadhis, Icehouse, Senate-House, Chepauk Palace, Presidency College

A Long Stretch Of Coastal Delight
Golden sand, good surf and a shimmering clean blue sea, this in a nutshell, is Marina beach. This beach is counted among one of the longest beaches in Asia. Its 12-km long stretch was made beautiful by the wonderful facelift given by Governor Mountstuart Elphinstone Grant Duff in the early 1880's, and is a major tourist attraction today.

Marina beach is located on the eastern side of Chennai, adjoining the Bay of Bengal. Watching the sun set and rise from the beach is an enthralling experience. Though bathing and swimming can be dangerous, as the undercurrent is very strong, even then people come for swimming here. In the evenings, the beach is virtually a fair ground with various kinds of entertainment and food stalls lining the beach.

PRIME ATTRACTIONS
Some of the most beautiful buildings in Chennai such as the University of Madras, Senate-House, Chepauk Palace, Presidency College, P.W.D office and Ice House are located on the beach drive. At the other end of the beach is the new lighthouse. In between, sentinels on the promenade, are several statues of Tamil scholars and two splendid bits of sculpture- the Victory of Labour and the Mahatma Gandhi.

Aquarium: Close to the Marina beach is the aquarium, which has some of the most exotic collection of tropical sea fishes and fresh water fishes. The aquarium gives a chance to have a closer look at the aquatic life. The Ice House, which was used to store ice brought from Great Lakes in North America, is south to the Aquarium.

Anna And MGR Samadhis: Situated on the beach, the Anna and MGR Samadhis, which are the memorials of the most popular, former Chief ministers of the state, attract good crowd everyday.