India Guide
Orissa
The beach
If a peaceful swim and a lie in the sun are your top priorities, you may be disappointed with Puri beach; the stretch in front of the fishing village has become a three-kilometre-long open-air toilet and rubbish dump. For a more salubrious dip, press on beyond the Sanskrit University, 3km further east.
In the west end of town, along Marine Parade, the atmosphere is more akin to a British Victorian holiday resort. This stretch is very much the domain of the domestic tourist industry and the beach is much cleaner here. It's a pleasant place to stroll and becomes highly animated after sunset when the nightly souvenir market gets going.
Local fishermen patrol the beach as lifeguards; recognizable by their triangular straw hats and dhotis, they wade with their punters into the surf and literally hold their hands to keep them on their feet – the undertow claims victims every year, so weak swimmers should be careful. When not saving lives, the fishermen are busy at the CT Road end of the beach, engaged in the more traditional industries of mending nets and boats. The fishing village is one of the biggest in Orissa, with dozens of tiny sails tacking to and fro off the coast during the day. Once landed, the catch is taken in baskets to the fish market in the village.