Semmozhi Poonga, Chennai

Semmozhi Poonga, the 'Classical Language Park', is a 20-acre botanical garden at the junction of Cathedral Road and Anna Salai in Chennai, opposite the American Consulate. It stands on the site of the Woodlands Drive-In, the city's first drive-in restaurant, which closed in 2008 after a long legal battle. Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi opened the garden on 24 November 2010; it was the city's first botanical garden and was named to mark the Classical Tamil Conference held that year.

More than 500 plant species grow here alongside 80 older trees, some over a century old. The garden is divided into themed areas such as a tree court, palm court and bonsai, herbal, fern, sunken, butterfly, water and rock gardens, with a duck pond and a cascade garden at the far end. At the entrance plaza an arch forms a vertical garden of about 7,000 plants from 35 species. There is also a mural walk and an amphitheatre for cultural events, and the park is closed on Tuesdays.