Hotel Mandakini Jaya International

train to hyderabad

by 6aruna

travel in a second class compartment that is if you are ok with the summer heat and watch the scenery go by. You go through one of the most beautiful stretches in india. Parts of western ghats, green fields , acres and acres of fields with ripe chillies waiting to be harvested .Chillies getting dried in the sun , sunflower fields in full bloom, goats grazing.

Charminar

by Donna_in_India

Located in the middle of the Old City, Charminar is a major landmark of Hyderabad. It was built by Mohammed Quli Wutub Shah in 1591 at the center of the city's original layout to commemorate the end of the plague. Charminar is named after its 4 minarets, each of which rises to a height of almost 50m and is surrounded by 4 kamaans (grand arches) that open out onto 4 major roads of the city. There is a small mosque located on the roof.

Climb the stairs to the top for a great view of the area around - particularly Laad Bazaar with its jewelry shops selling pearls and bangles. The area around is very hectic with rickshaws, pedestrians, hawkers, stalls, stores, etc.

Open 9 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Admission Rs 5 for Indians, Rs 100 for foreigners.

Try not to go mid day for best photos.

Sanjeevaiah Park

by srhussaini

Sanjeevaiah Park see Sanjeevaiah Park's neighbourhood

Once popular Known as a lovers’ park (a place frequented mostly by couples), it has gradually grown into a major tourist spot and outing.

Now, huge families from all over the twin cities (and from outside too) come over to the place for a picnic. Located at the end of the Necklace Road, the park has a rose garden, a rock garden and a floral clock that can be a major source of inspiration for the tourists.

golconda fort, birla temple and more

by ozneb

10.30pm sat night maaz took us to an outdoor disco. a government park which had been leased out privately, the new owners turned it into a disco during the weeknights. rules of the disco however was couples only (a common practice in india apparently)
the outdoor disco is actually a pretty nice concept (think dancing in kings park looking out onto the swan river and cityscape). the only drawback being the mosquitos and stray dogs that hung around. there was even a beggar lying asleep in a darkened corner of the park- but i've seen so many ppl lying around sleeping in public places that i don't even notice them anymore. spent most of the disco sitting on a bench overlooking a small river. maaz had an interesting time trying to light his ciggarette in the windy conditions. conversation bordered on the dodgy end again with too many sexual connotations being thrown left right and centre. music wafted through from the dance floor...a lot of 90's stuff and remixed retro 70's indian music. oh! and they love enrique and ricki. got home after 2am.

next day was our big day out! first stop. hi tech city. contrary to what i wrote b4..hi tech city is actually made up of a few buildings. not just the one. the architecture is modern and contrasting to the rest of hyderabad. nearby is a theatre/concert hall (not film production house) and a few metres from that an arts and crafts market.
the crafts market to be honest is a little bare. not many visitors here. i managed to find a local artist there and bought a few of his works: a painting of krishna and festival, the sun during sunset, birds, and monkeys and elephants. each picture takes about 10 days to complete. I paid Rs550 for the 4.

next stop, the 7 tombs. as we were approaching the turn off into the tombs, we got stuck in some heavy traffic. despite the auto driver's ingenious solution (driving on the opposite side of the road) we were soon stopped by a traffic police. we decided to stop here and have a quick lunch before completing the remaining 4km trail to the tombs by foot.

the walk up was tiring. add to that an extremely hot day...and after declining several offers by auto drivers, we gave in and hitched a ride to the tombs. much to our dismay, the ride only lasted about 20 seconds as we were only THAT close to reaching the tombs! damn!!!!

after the tombs we headed for the fort. apparently it was a special relgious day and entry to the fort was free. i bought a map and a guide book about the fort but failed to read any of it. all i know is that it was built around the 1500s...

the view from the top of the fort is nice...but not spectacular. we failed to make it to the very top of the fort as we had bumpd into some of anna's friends from canada.

on our way down, we encounted a procession of drummers and a few floats. one of durga and one of shiva (i think?). there was a drunk guy who was shaking my hands and explaining the entire thing to me but i failed to comprehend much of anything he was saying. as it turns out, he wa a local police officer who had taken the day off to celebrate. he invited me over to his house for dinner and to see a "different part of india" but i declined... people here are very friendly.

tuesday night! renee, anna and i took an auto to the birla temple; a marble temple on the top of a hill in an old part of the city. the view from this is breath taking!! i think more so coz we arrived aroud sun set. from up here u can see the hussainsagar lake, the buddha, the legislative assembly...and much of the city lights. security here is good...you have to take off your shoes, check them in, as well as your cameras before you can enter the temple. all this is free!