Puri is a beautiful beach town in Orissa.You can visit Puri to get away from the humdrum of everyday life. For this you need to stay a little out of the town. There is nothing much to do except taking a swim in the sea , walking along the beach and eating plenty of fresh fish.
There is another side to this beach town. The religious aspect of it. Puri is the home of Lord Jagannath.There is a beautiful temple in the city which you can visit. Try and go early in the morning to avoid huge crowd of devotees.
If you visit during the month of the Rath(Chariot) Festival then you can watch a huge Rath(Chariot) being pulled by millions of devotees.Try and watch it from a rooftop near the temple as the crowd can be sufocating.
Outside Puri you can also visit the Sun Temple of Konarak.These are the temples built in honour of the Sun God. They are intricately carved with figures from the mythology. The main temple is in the shape of a Chariot of the Sun God, so it has huge wheels carved out at the sides.
You can also visit the Chilka Lake and take a boat ride. If you are lucky then you can get a glimps of the Chilka dolphin.
If shopping is your favourite past time you will not be dissapointed. Lots of locally made handicrafts are available, which are very pretty.Beautiful knicknacks made of shells are also available. The local prints used on materials are called "Kotki Prints".Sarees, both silk and cotton with Kotki prints may be a valuable buy for some.Scarfs with such prints are also good gift items once you return home.
Puri gets very hot in summer and during the monsoons it is best not to travel as the sea gets unruly and Orissa is prone to flooding. The best months to visit this wonderful town is between October and April.
So go out there and have a wonderful time.