Auroville is an experimental international township 10 km north of Pondicherry, founded in 1968 with the aim of transcending nationality, religion, and politics to create a community dedicated to human unity. The aspiration sounds utopian but the place is surprisingly real: around 3,000 residents from 60 countries live and work here, running farms, construction firms, schools, and craft workshops.
The centrepiece is the Matrimandir — a giant golden sphere surrounded by formal gardens, built for individual meditation. Visitors need to register in advance at the visitors centre to enter the inner chamber; the surrounding gardens are accessible more freely. The town itself spreads through scrubby forest with walking and cycling paths between clusters of houses and community buildings. The visitors centre has a good introductory film, a café, and craft shops selling Auroville products. It is worth a half-day, especially if the spiritual ideas interest you — talking to residents gives a much richer picture than the official tour.