What does a city look like at night from a hill top?

The last evening of the year that has just gone by provided me the opportunity to get that look.

On a whim, Vasanth and I decided to take a path less taken, on 31st.

We crawled out of West Saidapet and hit Butt Road – our destination, the hill of Saint Thomas.

We drove very slowly around the base of the hill, little lighted stars which hung from the inner courtyards or drawing rooms of houses on the fringe showed up. As we climbed up, the stars got a better life in the 11 p.m. darkness. From one house, the strains of Christmas carols escaped on to the kutcha road.

More lighted stars, dangling from the gates and corridors of the many Christian institutions on this mount, greeted us – this was indeed Christmasland. The best such sight I had enjoyed before was the legendary Moore Market, now no more.

Then came the first eyesore – dozens of gaudy, green tubelights, dozens of stars of all sizes and a few stuffed Santa images, all part of what was called the Christmas Park.

At the top of the mount, we expected quiet stillness and darkness. But the second eyesore greeted us – a shocking excavation close to the historic little church, granite- paved floors on the mount and a garish open-air stage.

We fled to the serene side of the mount – Vasanth wanted to greet the nuns of the Home for Abandoned Children. It was peaceful here – the kids had all gone to bed. From the edge we gazed at a city bathed in orange – cars, buses and bikes crawling about madly–and heard a faint roar from the distant airport.

The mount that night had a life of its own. (Courtesy: Mylapore Times)