SOUTHERN SOJOURN
Andhra Pradesh Tourism
Development Corporation invited me to take up a whirlwind tour of
Telengana and Andhra Pradesh sometime in December, 2013. I had set
out on the tour with the purpose of having glimpses of the magical
attractions of Hyderabad.
DINDI:
My journey began with Dindi lying around 70 km from Rajahmundry in
coastal Andhra Pradesh.
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Hotel Haritha Resort, Dindi
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I had stayed at Hotel Haritha Resort and
moved on to Antarvedi sea beach, a mere 23 km drive. We enjoyed a
beach stroll in the afternoon hours.
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| Antarvedi Sea Beach, Dindi |
The 3 km sea beach is a scenic
spot where river Godavari meets Bay of Bengal.
Antarvedi temple, Dindi:
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| Antarvedi Temple, Dindi |
The ancient
shrine that belongs to the times of Sailavahana dynasty came up in
1745 AD, preserves the deity of swayambhu Lakshmi Narasimha Swami and
as the temple priest puts forth that a fisher folk named Kopanadi
Krishnamma was instrumental in building the shrine.
VIJAYAWADA:
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| A view of Krishna river |
The “City of Victory” on the banks of river Krishna is the
largest city in Andhra Pradesh that has the Kanaka Durga temple as a
pilgrim hotspot.
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| Kanaka Durga temple |
An enchanting river cruise offers unending views of
the river, Prakasam barrage and the Kanaka Durga temple snuggled on
Indrakeeladri hill is the major attraction of the city. We had to
climb a plethora of steps to reach the shrine that houses the deity
in gold.
BHADRACHALAM
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| Sita Ramachandra Swamy Temple, Bhadrachalam |
Our premier destination in Telengana was Bhadrachalam. The tranquil
pilgrim resort on the banks of Godavari has the 17th
century pilgrim landmark-Sita Ramachandra Swamy temple.
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| Carved walls of the temple |
The white
shrine houses the deity of Lord Rama popular as Chaturbhuj along with
Sita. The shrine has been the creation of Bhakta Ramdas, the saint
who was freed by Lord Rama.
WARANGAL
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| Bhadrakali Temple, Warangal |
The second largest city in Telengana, Warangal is a brilliant
destination dating back to 850 years and is an ideal hotspot for
those in holiday spirit. The city shot into prominence during the
reign of Kakatiyas. We made our way to the 1,800-year-old Bhadrakali
temple that fulfills the wishes of women folks.
KAKATIYA FORT
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| Kakatiya Fort, Warangal |
Built by one-time powerful dynasty of Andhra Pradesh- the Kakatiyas,
the fort has huge granite gateways that are profusely sculpted
soaring 45 feet high.
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| 1000-Pillar Temple, Warangal |
1000 PILLAR TEMPLE
Set up in 1163 AD, the age-old shrine stands on a raised platform at
a height of 1 metre from the ground. We entered the main shrine that
has 6 foot high statue of Nandi and there are three temples devoted
to Lord Shiva, Vishnu and Surya.
HYDERABAD
Resting on the Deccan plateau is the 400-year-old city of Hyderabad,
better known as the “City of Charminar”. The fifth largest metro
of India has scores of tourist attractions with its old city steeped
in history. For me, the charm of Hyderabad lies in its four wonders-
Charminar, Golconda Fort, Salar Jung Museum and Ramoji Film City.
CHARMINAR
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| Charminar |
A wondrous, towering edifice in the city hub is the symbol of
Hyderabad with four graceful minarets rising to a height of 48.7
metres above the ground.
GOLCONDA FORT
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| Interiors of the Golconda Fort |
One of the most renowned forts of India, founded by Kakatiyas in 13th
century, the fort has a massive granite structure with walls and
ramparts covering 7 km in circumference. The fort stands high in
acoustics and palaces. It is the sound and light show that brings
alive the glorious past and grandeur of the fort with magical sound
and light effects.
SALAR JUNG MUSEUM
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| Salar Jung Museum |
The museum, a national pride boasts of the largest one-man
collections across the world by Mir Yusuf Ali Khan, Salar Jung III,
the Prime Minister of Nizam. Usually, it takes around two days to
admire the fascinating collections.
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| Musical Clock, Salar Jung |
The most attractive object is the
Musical Clock that was made in England by Cooke & Elvey Co., and
assembled in Calcutta.
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| Mughal Glass Gallery at Salar Jung Museum |
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| Displays at the Salar Jung |
The galleries to look for are Indian sculpture
gallery, Indian textile and Mughal glass gallery, Ivory room, Western
art galley, Japanese gallery, Chinese, Egyptian and Syrian gallery. There are splendid statues in marble including Margaret and a veiled
statue of Rebecca.
RAMOJI FILM CITY
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| Ramoji Film City |
The largest studio complex in the world sprawling over 1,000 acres of
land in the outskirts of Hyderabad is even four times bigger than
Hollywood.
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| Shooting locales at Ramoji Film City, Hyderabad | |
There are a wide range of attractive sets for shooting
films and television serials.
KARNATAKA
SRIRANGAPATNAM
The historic city of South India and once the strongholds of Haider
Ali and Tipu Sultan, the huge fortified town of Srirangapatnam on the
banks of river Cauvery in Mandya district of Karnataka is a mere 16
km drive from Mysore. Also known as Srirangapatna, the historic city
was the bygone capital of Mysore during the reign of Tipu Sultan.
Srirangapatnam Fort
The
550-year-old fort with four gateways displays Indo-Islamic
architecture with Persian engravings.
RANGANATHSWAMY TEMPLE
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| Ranganathswamy Temple at Srirangapatnam | |
The 800-year-old shrine dating back to 9th
century is the second largest shrine in South India and was the
creation of Ganga dynasty.
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| A closer view of Ranganathswamy Temple |
Dedicated to Lord Vishnu and his consorts-
Sri Devi and Bhu Devi, the shrine dominates the historic town.
GUMBAZ
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| Gumbaz |
The spectacular mausoleum built in 1799 A.D in the eastern part of
the town and was established by Tipu Sultan in loving memory of his
illustrious father, Haider Ali. There are cenotaphs of Haider Ali,
his wife, Fakhr-un-Nisa and Tipu Sultan. The mausoleum rests on a
stone plinth with polished granite black pillars and a huge dome
representing typical Islamic architecture crowns the building
structure.
Tipu’s Summer Palace
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| Tipu Sultan's Summer Palace |
Well-known as
Dariya Daulat,
the Summer Palace came up in 1784 A.D and formed the summer resort of
Tipu Sultan that offers info about the history of Mysore.
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| Tipu's Summer Palace entrance |
We admired
the colourful paintings on the walls showcasing the Battle of Polilur
or the Second Mysore War (1780-1782 A.D). We took time to gape at the
mural paintings depicting the procession of Nizam of Hyderabad, the
war procession of Haider Ali and Tipu Sultan and the storming of
Srirangapatnam. One comes across significant landmarks of Mysore
including the victories of Haider Ali and Tipu Sultan. We had a
chance to take a look at the rare royal treasures like gold coins,
silver bowls, dress and furniture used by Tipu Sultan.
TAMIL NADU
COONOOR
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| Nilgiri Hills at Coonoor |
An incredible journey into the little-known outpost of Coonoor
soothes our tired minds and sipping a delightful cup of aromatic
Nilgiri tea rejuvenates a weary traveller.
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| A lush tea garden in the Nilgiris |
The Nilgiri destination of
Coonoor at an altitude of 1,858 metres was the bygone summer capital
of the Raj era, discovered in 19th
century and has lush tea gardens stretching over 5,000 acres of land,
British-era bungalows and churches.
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| A typical Toda dwelling |
Here we spotted typical dwellings
of ancient tribes of Nilgiris like Todas
and Kurumbas.
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| A view of the Nilgiris from Lamb's Rock |
The vantage points are Lamb’s Rock, Lady Canning’s Seat and
Dolphin’s Nose.
