old tiger's Blog

by train to Aurangabad from Hyderabad was not so easy..
a trip of half a day...in Aurangabad..stayed somewhere cheap..
don't recall the adress..since I was moving next day to visit Ellora..
I booked myself a conducted sightseeing tour of this place...
as far as I recall they visited *Bibi ka Maqbara*was this a copycat
of the famous Agra Taj Mahal??in my humble opinion..a good try..
but Agra..is of course much more refined..you can't copy Taj Mahal..
the Moghul rulers were active in this town..specially Aurangzeb..
so..this *bibi*was built for his wife..biwi=means wife in Hindi..
but..still..I did like the building..impressiv..lots of *Masjids*as well
in Aurangabad...the Muslim influence is still there..
a good example of this influece is Panchakki..actually it's a marvel
of Moghul waterworks..in this place a *pir*=Sufi saint is buried..
the watermill is still active..the garden is quite a pleasant sight..
there's a river running through Aurangabad as well..it's called Kham..
as far as I remember..it was very hot in this town..typical Indian..
so..next day..by bus towards Ellora..for these famous caves..
a bit over 30kms by bus..I intended to stay 1 night in Ellora..
Tiger

day 2 in Hyderabad..visit to Golconda fort.
inbetween both twin cities is Hussain lake..
I took a bus towards Golconda..very impressiv*qila*
reminded me a bit of Amber palace in Jaipur..
it's a place with history really..always interesting to know..
I don't remember all these names from gates,halls etc..
lots of tourists visit Golconda for its historic values..
in fact..this fort is a ruine..history from the 1500's..
I recall I met a young married Indian Hindu couple..
on their honeymoon..they were from Nagpur(Maharasthra)
they were only married recently..she was wearing her*mangalsutra*
with pride=a kind of a chain around the neck..I'll try to post a link
about Indian wedding ceremonies later on..mangalsutras are never
taken off..very funny..Indian traditions and customs,you know??
http://www.indiatravelite.com/feature/indiancustoms.htm
in this above link..you can read about mangalsutra...
sometimes..one meets very interesting folks while travelling..
maybe we were all gypsies and tourists,who can tell??
the fort visit involved lots of walking around as well..
took a bus back into Hyderabad town..had some cheap*thali*food..
usually every railway station in India got a restaurant..
where this thali food is available..not so bad...
next day...was gonna travell upto the regio Aurangabad..
and that was a real highlight...specially the Ellora caves..
Tiger

By train from Madras central towards Hyderabad via Guntakal..
trip of more then 14 hours..now..Hyderabad..was a Muslim town..
it's a twin town with Secunderabad..there's a lake inbetween..
and in Hyderabad itself the Musi river..nothing special...
I mainly came to Hyderabad because I heard about a museum called Salar Jung..
somebody told me..to go and see this..so..I did..my base was Hyderabad Railways..
where I booked a room for 2 nights in the retiring rooms..cheap..
Salar Jung..was a *nizam* of Hyderabad=kind of sultan status..
this dude..colleted items from all over the world..very rare pieces..
priceless..it's a bit stuffy in Indian museums sometimes..
but..I did enjoy these artifacts..worthwhile really..
there are some jade pieces in there...which are amazing..
it took me a few hours to go through all this stuff..
so day 1 in Hyderabad..I just took a ricksjah towards Charminar..
now..this is a minaret like gate..the landmark for this town..
old structure dating from the late 1500's...impressive..
one can go to the top of this whole thing..but..I did not go..
the Muslim bazars in the aligning streets..were a feast for the eyes..
don't miss the Lad Bazar..this town is know for pearls...
I enjoyed the perfume shops of this bazar..ask for *attar*scents..
these are concentrated oils in very small bottles..very strong..
in the direct neighbourhood of the Charminar..the unavoidable
Masjids..like the Mecca Masjid and the Jami Masjid..nice mosques..
no need to tell you..it's hot,stuffy,crowded..I sweated like a horse..
I took some mutton roll as food..kind of like a kebab really..
I was really tired..not only from the train trip..but from Hyderabad..
nowadays..Hyderabad town..just like Bangalore...
is very famous for computer technology..
so..day 1..gone..very hectic..
next day..was gonna visit Golconda *qila*=fort..and Secunderabad..
I'll try to get you peeps a link for Hyderabad town..
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyderabad,_Andhra_Pradesh
crazy Tiger..

so..return daytrip towards Mahabalipuram..about 60kms.from Madras..
this place was famous for its shore temple..yes..again a temple..
very ancient..with excellent architectural value..
my first impression..was the beach..and the temple on it..
it's supposed to be one of the oldest temple structures in South India..
it's a Shiva+Vishnu dedicated temple..with a row of*nandi's*=bulls..
all very impressiv..but..I had been in temples before...
in the end..they actually all start looking a bit the same..
Mahabalipuram is always full of tourists..the local inhabitants..
are good stone sculpture carvers..their work is amazing..
no doubt..touts abound..wanna buy a nice piece of sculpture,Sir??
also worthwhile is Arjuna's penance or Bhagiratha's penance..
this is related to the Hindu epos Mahabaratha..
it was in my eyes..a beautiful piece of stone carvings..
depicting the descent of the Goddess Ganga to earth..
Hindu mythology...aww...one needs to understand this..
I saw this structure as a piece of abstact??sculpture..
it always amazed me..how for heaven sake??could they make this??
Mahabulipuram..gave me an astonishing impression..on Indian art..
it's just beyond my reasons of thinking...that human hands..
can create such fine pieces of art...it made me feel..very small..
I took some food somewhere..don't recall what??
and took a bus back to Madras..was gonna go towards Hyderabad..
that's in Andra Pradesh..another state of India..
I'll try to find a link for Mahabalipuram..
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahabalipuram
Tiger

so..conducted sightseeing tour in Madras...
usually..conducted sightseeing tours in India..
were worthwhile their economical price..
they gave you a quick and often thorough glance..
at the major sights of a place...I did many of them..
now..about Madras..it's a very widespread city..
going to see everything on your own..
would cost lots more then a conducted sightseeing tour..
first stop was Fort St.George...very old building..
British raj history..next stop was the Government museum..
I found this very interesting..but the tour...goes to quick..
this museum needs half a day to discover its real benefits..
it's a delight for archeologist folks..I was not into that so much..
also Indian paintings from Moghul and Rajput style..
then we went on to Guindy snake park..now..this is amazing...
that was situated about 7kms out of town..
here one can see all poisonous and non poisonous snakes..
the king cobra..the python snake..very impressiv..
after that we went to Mylapore for a visit to a South Indian temple..
called Kapaleeswara...reminded me very much to Madurai..ahah..
lots of pandits performing *puja* well..typical Indian..
the tour ended on Marina Beach..I had been there the day before..
so..it was a flashback for me..I met an American dude on this tour..
in the evening..we went to see a flick..an American movie..
called *cool breeze*oh...I still remind that title..entertaining..
about crime and gangsters...well..well..after that..
back to my bed into YMCA..I was really tired..
next day..trip to Mahabalipuram by bus..return trip..
busy day..but worthwhile...South India,you know..
crazy Tiger