Essential Andaman in 8 night / 9 days - Detailed Travelogue - Day VII

Day VII - Ross Island, Chatham Saw Mill and Chidya Tapu beach

On this day our schedule was visiting Ross Island, the oldest penal settlement, and seat of Andaman's British Administration of British India (Till Cellular Jail was built) and Chidiya Tapu Beach.

Starting the day peacefully, we got ready and reached Water Sports Jetty (the same one which we had used earlier to go to  North Bay island) which happens to be right opposite Ross Island. This time we had time in hand. We decided to use it to explore the Jetty and do photography. First important landmark we stumbled upon was Sunami Memorial. It is a memorial built to honour those who got killed in Dec 2004 Sunami.

In Remembrance of those who died in Tsunami

After visiting this memorial, we went to jetty and we both young couples decided to do little more photography.

On the Water Sports Jetty

 We got into the boat around 0930and by 0950 we were at Ross Island. Ross Island is under the administrative control of the India Navy which maintains a very small detachment of sailors on the island for administrative duties.

Arrived at Ross

Ross is where first British formal settlement was built by prisoners. Once the settlement was built the prisoners were transferred to Viper Island (Viper was the name of the British ship that got the first batch of Prisoners to Andamans).

Ross island was what a best small city could be. Chief Commissioner's Bungalow, other bungalows, accommodation for subordinate staff, A Church, Bakery, clubs, Tennis courts and above all a heated swimming pool, all this is in the era of around 1857 and thereafter. It was known as Paris of the east (should have been called little Paris though). While the jail moved from Viper to Ross to Cellular Jail, Ross remained administrative HQ till 1941 when an earth quack struck that area and damaged the buildings, after which people started abandoning that place.

Vegetation has taken over a Building

Old Boilers for  Feeding the Swimming Pool

Deer for the Company

Renovated Bakery

Coconut trees

Subordinate's Club

Introduction to Church

Stairway to Church

Church Must Have been Majestic, once upon a time

A visit to Ross really makes one feel the opulence with which the British lived at Ross. I guess many thousand miles away from their home and many hundred miles away from the main land India, they had to create a haven for themselves.

Stairway to Commissioner's Bungalow 

After visiting Ross, we returned to Jetty and took our boat back to Water Sports Jetty.  After a quick lunch at Port Blair, since we had time, we went to visit Chatham Saw Mill. A saw mill established by British in 1883, it is Asia's oldest and biggest saw mill processing the abundant timber of various types that gets produced by forests of Andaman & Nicobar. This mill can process over 18000 logs per year if work is carried out in three shifts. The mill has various sections for sorting, seasoning, cutting, etc.

Other highlights of the mill are a Timber museum having historical photographs, wood artifacts and many other exhibits.  There is also a gift shop in the mill premises selling wooden items. There is a memorial to commemorate 125 years of forestry. This was erected in 2009. There is also a Bomb pit created by a Japanese bomb dropped in 2002 (which we did not visit).

Timber Museum, Off cuts and Furniture

Timber Museum

One More View

Forestry Memorial

Log Processing Section

After Chatham Saw Mills visit, the final destination for the day was Chidiya Tapu. A beach about 30 km from Port Blair and a place famous for the best Sunset around Port Blair. Chidiya Tapu also is the start point for Munda Pahad trek, which is a whole day affair.

There are few Playground equipment available for Children, There are also few uprooted trees with massive roots laying around and also a huge hollow tree for passing through its trunk. After enjoying in the children area (don't laugh, we all have a child inside us) we did some more Monkey Tricks on trunks of fallen trees.

Entry to Chidiya Tapu

Way to Hallowed Log

Let me Crawl 

Trying my Hand on Horse Riding on a Log

Hanging on to the (Massive) Roots

Stunts with the Roots 1

One More

Man hi Nahi Bharata

I am Happy Here

After all this, it was time for The Sunset. Sunset was obliviously fabulous and we enjoyed it.

Starting to Set

Going

Cloud is Spoil Sport

After sunset, it was a drive back to Port Blair, have dinner and sleep. Early sleeping was vital as we had to go to visit and we had to start early morning (really early) at 0300 hrs.

Essential Andaman in 8 night / 9 days - Detailed Travelogue - Day I

Day I - 17th Jan 17

Mumbai - Chennai - Port Blair

Departed at 0615 and reached Port Blair at 1240 hrs via Chennai. Chennai layover was short. The replica of one of the temples of Mahabalipuram opposite Security area was the highlight of the short stay.

We were picked up by the travel agent’s car that dropped us at Hotel Shreesh. We were skeptical about this small hotel but realized later that it is a reasonably functional hotel. Post Check-in at hotel it was lunch time.

Our visit started at 1430 post a quick lunch. First place that we visited was Cellular Jail, a jail built by British to intern dreaded criminals from the main land India. Sadly, to the oppressive British, a freedom warrior of 1857 failed war of independence  or revolutionaries of later years from the main land were at par with the dreaded criminals.

Model of Cellular Jail

On Top of the Watch Tower

Roof Top of Two existing wings (only Three wings have survived)

Two childhood Friends between Two Wings

Sitting in mainland India, very few of us actually know anything about how badly  our freedom fighters treated were by that regime. The enumerable sacrifices given by our forefathers must be known.

Ways of putting Fetters (Hathkadi N Bedi)

Oil Extraction Mill that had to be worked by Prisoners

Tied up for lashing Punishment

A visit to Cellular Jail is thus not a visit, it is a pilgrimage to the holy land of India’s freedom struggle.  A place where those who fought for us were inhumanly tortured by the British.  It is a must visit place by every Indian. 

Even if one has no interest in beaches and under sea sports in rest of Andamans, Port Blair should be visited to even if only to  pay homage to these brave men who gave up  everything for us. 

While there were many freedom fighters that were jailed, Swatantra Veer Shri Vinayak Damodar Savarkar and his brother Shri GD Savarkar were the famous prisoners of Cellular Jail.

Veer Sawarkar's Cell with his Photo

Savarkar in Fetters

One of the Eternal flame

As this visit wound up by about 1600 hrs, we went to a government aquarium near by. It was a small setup but it had many corals and fishes of Andaman water displayed in it. The information on exhibition is also very good. Time and inclination permitting, one should visit this place.

We were booked for 1700 Light and Sound Show at Cellular Jail. As we reached the jail gate, there were queues for entry to the jail. On the lighter side, I thought, here is one jail, where people are queuing up to go (in) to Jail in hundreds whereas in actual life, everyone inside the jail queues up to go out of it.

It is a show that moves every one. I though felt that it could have had more information component and little less of emotional component. I would not fault the producer for keeping the show emotional; the place is worth all the emotions, it is just that I gave my view that it could have been more informative. The visit to Cellular jail is incomplete without attending the Light and Sound Show.

Entrance of Cellular Jail, Illuminated at Night

The day has been hectic. As for Port Blair is concerned, we hardly had any time to look at the city. But we felt that the day has been well spent, after all, did not we did a national pilgrimage to Cellular Jail. 

View of Ross Island, Administrative Headquarter of British those days