Chennai is the capital city of the state of Tamil Nadu and the fourth largest and a metropolitan city in the country. The British started the East India Company in 1639 at Chennai which was in those days called by the name of Madraspatnam. Thus the city was called by the name of Madras and recently it was changed to Chennai. There are lots of temples and churches in the city. The Kapaleeswarar temple in Mylapore is the most famous one. The first place the tourists visit in Chennai is the Marina beach, that is the second largest beach in the world. In the Guindy, is located the Guindy national park which is a wild life sanctuary. The park is famous for the fauna variety of the spotted dear. The world famous Shore temple of Mahabalipuram is located about 60kms from Chennai. The rock temples in Mahabalipuram are very famous. The park dedicated to Crocodile, is the Crocodile Bank situated about 44kms from Chennai. There are lots of entertainment related parks and water sports park in and around Chennai. The other notable places in the city are the Valluvar Kottam, the Vandalur zoo, the Vedanthangal bird sanctuary, St.George fort, the Birla Planetarium and the government museum.