C for Chowmahalla Palace #AtoZChallenge

Durbar hall

Chowmahalla Palace is just 2 kms away from the famous Charminar in Hyderabad. 'Chow' means four and 'Mahal' means 'Palace', thus it is known as 4 Palaces, which were built around 500 years ago under Nizam rule. This Palace is known as a replica of Shah's palace in Tehran, Iran, which contains Durbar hall, palaces, gardens and fountains.

After i visited 'Mysore Palace' in Mysore, i never thought i could see another royal palace as rich as that. Fortunately, we visited Chowmahalla Palace few months ago and were mesmerized by the elegance of royal Nizam culture. It has an entry fee of Rs.25/- which is completely worth and another ticket to take photos. Khilwat or Grand Durbar hall at the center is the heart of Chowmahalla Palace. It is a 3 storey building with many beautiful chandeliers and several exhibits on photos of Asaf Jahi dynasty rulers, their empire, their lifestyle objects, cutlery, clothing etc.,

Khilwat

Customized RollsRoyce for Nizams

Gardens and well maintained fountains are another attraction. Even though back side fountains are not ON, front side water fountains are  a treat to watch with ducks swimming in water. Dont miss to visit Car garage with vintage cars and buggies on display! Also, a custom made Rolls royce for the Nizams :) There is also a display of old Khuran books collection. Clock tower is another big attraction which is ticking from 500 years.

So, overall a fantastic place for one time visit in Hyderabad if you are interested in heritage and culture. I wonder, why this place is not as famous as Charminar, as i feel its completely worth a visit and should have been a famous tourist spot.

I hope you liked my photos and will a give a thought to visit this place if you get time :)

Until next time,

This is my entry for AtoZ blogging challenge 2014. 

Pin it for later!

B for Book reading #AtoZChallenge

I can't think of anything else other than Book reading for letter 'B' :) I enjoy this hobby to the core, so much that i dream of getting locked in a room for days with heaps of books. Don't know how would i feel, if it really can happen :o

So, all this love for books started very late in my life. When i was in 10th standard, i borrowed one novel of Sherlock Holmes authored by Arthur Conan Doyle and the craze didn't leave me till now :) It was fantastic time after completing 10th standard, since i got bored concentrating on academics from long time :) It was a refresher. Immediately, i bought all 4 novels of Sherlock Holmes, completed them and went on to complete 156 short stories. I have that golden collection still with me! I lend lot of books to my friends and colleagues regularly, but this Sherlock Holmes collection is my prized possession so far and i wont give this to anyone :)

The hobby of book reading has many advantages. It increases concentration, enhances vocabulary, improves memory and shows the world that you haven't experienced. 

So, kudos to this hobby and best wishes to all the book worms around :)

Until next time,

This is my entry for AtoZ blogging challenge 2014. 
Image courtesy: from Google images

A for Alzebra #AtoZChallenge

Joining this A to Z challenge one day late. Though iam super excited to participate in this challenge daily, time is not permitting. Let me give a try :)

I don't love Maths usually, but i like algebra very much. It's interesting to assume an unknown with a variable 'x' and come up with a strategy to find it's value :) I have started learning algebra in school days and never knew how to apply it practically in this world. But, started using algebra for most of the maths problems and puzzles gradually.

As a Telugu speaking person, we all might have read "Eenadu" news paper at least once in our life time. If so, did you remember the magazine that we get on Sundays with kids section? Bujjai jokes, simple moral stories, drawings to fill colors, crosswords and puzzles? I love all these sections from childhood, i would never miss coloring the drawings, filling the crossword, enjoying the soft humour in Bujjai jokes and solving the puzzles :) This was a habit i learnt from my father. We used to solve maths puzzles and crosswords together. When my father used to try solving the puzzle in traditional ways, i used to choose algebra for most of them. Obviously, i would get result fast with algebra. 

So that is my story about algebra, hope you like it.

Until next time,

This is my entry for AtoZ blogging challenge 2014. Image courtesy: cliffmass.blogspot.com from google images

Wow Malaysia - A dream trip :)

When i saw the tourism site of Malaysia, i was wondering that a place which is as near as just 4.5 hrs from India has sooo many things to offer for tourists :) Yes, i would list top 5 places that i would like to visit, if at all i plan a trip.

Batu caves

Batu caves, Selangor
You might have seen this 140 ft tall Murugan statue in many films right? Whenever i saw in movies, i wished to go there :) There are 272 steps leading to the temple cave which is the biggest of three caves. The place is famous for 'Thaipusam festival'.



Mulu National Park, Sarawak

Mulu national park

I love nature. So obviously, this UNESCO world heritage site which is world's largest cave chamber cannot be missed in the list! Sarawak chamber has the capacity to accommodate 40 Boeing 747 air crafts, can you believe it? This national park is also home for limestone spikes known as Pinnacles.

Petronas twin towers, Kaula lampur
Many of us saw these towers in many movies. These towers are so unique that you will easily find out that it is Malaysia after seeing them. This is the world's largest twin structure and 5th tallest skyscraper. The sky bridge connecting both towers is also world's highest two storey bridge!

Petronas twin towers

Langkawi, Kedah

Langkawi

Part of an archipelago of 99 tropical islands just off the coast of Kedah, Langkawi Island is as much shrouded in age-old myths and legends as it is filled with natural beauty. It dates back to more than 500 million years. Langkawi is also a popular duty-free destination. Mystery, myth and Legend, that forms the Langkawi :)

Sipadan Island, Sabah

People should surely have great underwater experience if planning for a trip to Malaysia! This island gives a breathtaking underwater experience. Situated in the heart of Indo-pacific basin, world's rich marine habitat, it is surrounded by exciting dive spots such as the Hanging Gardens, Barracuda Point and the Turtle Cavern. One of its most thrilling features (and certainly not for the faint-hearted) is the Drop Off, where knee-high water suddenly gives way to a 600m drop.

Sipandan island

After browsing the site, i found many other places which are worth visiting like Kinabalu park (Sabah), Lego land and Hello kitty town (Johor), Genting higlands (Pahang) and Central market, China town and Little India (Kaulalampur). 

Hope i would plan this trip someday :o

I am participating in the MalaysiaJao Blogathon Contest in association with BlogAdda.com.

Until next time,

Image courtesy: All images from Google.

Childhood memories with Nature

Many of us have very good memories with nature in our childhood. At least, I have a few as my grandmother’s house is in East Godavari district which is famous for its coconut trees and greenery.  It is not a village actually, a mandal head quarter. Our grandparent’s house is a big house with 3 portions where 3 families can live together happily. The house has a big garden behind with all types of trees you can think of, our favorite ones being mango, guava, orange and Nandivardhanam trees. We cannot assume these kinds of houses in modern days and can mostly hope for a balcony with many artificial plants in flower pots arranged as per our taste.

hibiscus flower in our grandma's garden

Our bond with nature developed slowly, as it became part of our life in many ways.

For ex:

• All cousins used to gather in our grandmother’s home for summer holidays and we used to play hide and seek behind different trees and varieties of plants.
• Our cousin’s duty was to cut raw mangoes from tree with stones and our duty is to get salt and chilly powder from kitchen without any elders knowing it :) and then of course eating them together :)
• Daily fetching water from hand pump (borewell), plucking flowers for Puja especially bright red hibiscus flowers, yellow, white, orange chrysanthemums and white nandivardhanams which give a pleasant fragrance throughout, watering the plants in the evening, trimming them etc are a few fun tasks we all used to do. You can assume the amount of exercise it gives to the body in pollution free weather :)

I feel, today’s children miss out all this fun in cities as we don’t have gardens behind each of our flats/ apartments and we don’t have time to enjoy the nature. Travelling to scenic places or hill stations might be a good way to enjoy nature. How about travelling to Goa, Kerala, Coorg, Uttarakhand, Shivalik Hills in Punjab, Maharashtra, Sikkim etc., When did you see a Sun rise / Sunset peacefully enjoying it?

Other option could be introducing kids to this site.. welcome to Kissanpur :) I know, what comes to your mind by the name 'Kissan', none other than the mixed fruit jam and tomato ketchup.. yummy :D This site has a guide to grow tomatoes at home, that too with tips for kids. What a fun it is, to introduce mother nature to kids with small tasks!

So, register your kids in the site to grow up juicy tomatoes and for a chance to have their photo featured on Kissan tomato ketchup bottles.. Let me know about your journey :)

Until next time,

This entry is for the contest by Kissan, http://www.kissan.in/ #NaturesFriends

Coorg Chronicle - Day 3

Read on Day 1 and Day 2 details..

Elephant bathing demo - Dubare

This is the last day in Coorg tour :( Since we planned to visit Brindavan Gardens in Mysore in the evening, we bade farewell to Coorg by afternoon itself. So, the places that we covered on Day 3 are on the way back to Mysore.

Our first destination was to Dubare Elephant camp. It is about 28kms from Madikeri. There is a ticket for boat ride, as the Elephant camp is on the other side of the river. It seems expensive as there is a ticket to buy for every small thing like boat ride, Elephant bathing, feeding, demo on Elephant grooming etc., But, overall experience is good, as you can see Elephants from near and also bath them with the help of guide and Elephant splashes water on you :) There are many Elephants in the area, i don't say, place is very dirty, but manageable.

Looks so innocent!

Nisarga dhama forest resort

Golden temple

Buddhist monastery, Kushal nagar

Our next destination was to Forest resort 'Kaveri Nisarga dhama', which is 12 kms from Dubare. This resort is not well maintained now. There is a hanging bridge at the entrance over river cauvery and the resort has cottages for accommodation. When i visited Coorg 8 years ago, this place was fantastic with greenery, but now, all the trees and plants are dried. There is deer park, small canteen and river gushing besides. There is a place to step into water and play, which is the only best experience in Nisarga dhama. There is a shopping complex outside with homemade chocolates, spices etc., So, you can shop here if you missed to shop something in Coorg. 

Our last visit was to Budhist monastery which is a golden temple. It is a Tibitian monastery, also called Namdroling monastery situated in Kushal nagar. There are around 7000 budhist monks studying there today. Temple is a must visit with 40 ft tall golden Buddha statues. Surroundings are clean and peaceful. Don't miss shopping the traditional Tibitian wind chimes and hand fans.

So, this was our trip details.. Hope you liked it. We couldnt go for white water rafting due to time constraint, Please plan in rainy seasons for rafting in Dubare. 

Until next time,

Day 6 - Date - List of best veg restaurants for a special day

This post is written for A story for a picture challenge by Marathon bloggers.
Today's theme: Date

There is a significance for this date in my life Feb 22nd.This was the date 6 years ago which became important in my life. Yes, it is our sixth marriage anniversary this year :)

Coincidentally, today is the date when i have to write about the theme 'Date' :)  This cannot be a couple date as we will be going to some restaurant with our kid. Actually, I have installed an app called zomato and iam in search of the best veg restaurant in Hyderabad.

So far, figured out the following list:

Rajadhani - Banjara hills - good for authentic Indian cuisine. A bit expensive too. Many varieties to taste!
Bikenervala - Banjara hills - good for sweets and north indian
Barbeque Nation - Banjara hills - good for barbeque
Ohris - Many locations - best for families , you will love ambiance and tasty food. A bit expensive too.
Chutney's - Many locations - best for authentic Andhra foods, especially tiffins
Little Italy - Hitec city - Italian and continental, best for different salads
Zaffron Exotic - Banjara hills - good ambiance for candle light dinner, rooftop garden, Thai, continental food
A'la Liberty - Banjara hills - North indian, continental, asian
Utsav vegeterian restaurant - Jubilee hills - North Indian, South Indian, Chinese, continental
Basil - Banjara hills - Indian, continental, Chinese - Read many good reviews, but quite expensive

So.. this is the list that i collected, now i have to choose one for today.. Me in thinking mood...

Until next time,

Day 5 - Tea - Tea breaks and my language problems

This post is written for A story for a picture challenge by Marathon bloggers.
Today's theme: Tea

Tea breaks are quite interesting in office. In my earlier organization which was in Chennai, whole team used to go to tea breaks. Tea/ coffee breaks are good for relaxation, gossiping, team bonding, teasing other team members, chit chat on silly non-work things and what not?

It's not that iam endorsing Tetley :p

Mine is a different case. I don't know Tamil and most of my team mates are Tamilians and they prefer to talk in Tamil in Tea breaks. Completely justified! We want to talk in our convenient language while hanging up! But, in the initial days, i cannot understand Tamil, so i used to simply stand and try to understand what they say and never used to enjoy those breaks. There are few, who used to translate their jokes and chit chat to English for me, but fun is only when you can enjoy a joke/ talk in it's native language. Right?

After a few months, i learnt Tamil to an extent such that i can understand everything they talk and could speak small sentences too. Fun started then, they used to tease me for my Tamil words and slang :) We used to have discussions on non-work life and it was a good relaxation between work.  It surely helped team to bond well and collaborate with each other :)

PS: In tea breaks, i used to drink hot water in those days, as i had strong feeling that i shouldn't get used to having Tea/ coffee daily :) My parents used to have tea daily and if they miss for one day, they used to get head ache. So, i didn't want that addiction. Silly me, i laugh at my thoughts now. In my current organization, iam having green tea, that's the pic :) Many asked me, how i became this lean so fast, now they know its due to green tea :)

So, this is my chai story.. what's yours?

Until next time,

Day 4 - Shadow - conversations with my kiddoo

This post is written for A story for a picture challenge by Marathon bloggers.
Today's theme: Shadow

Here is the beautiful pic that i took yesterday afternoon under hot Sun with the help of my colleague.

When i think of shadows, i remember funny faces and shapes that we used to do with hands in my childhood for summer holidays. Especially creating shapes depicting small baby, dog, smiley etc. with shadows. But, don't you think, this heart shape is easy to make and looks wonderful? The thought came so quick to my mind, it might be due to the reason that we are completing 6 years of colorful married life in this month :) 

A heart and shadow

Now, coming to the conversations with my 3 year old kid about shadow, here they are:

Kid: Amma what is this black thing on the wall?
Me: It's shadow nanna, if you don't sleep quick, it will come and eat you. See, it's moving. (It is very difficult to make him sleep, that's the reason these tactics are used :)) 

After few months he understood, shadow wont eat him :p

Kid: Amma, what is this shadow doing?
Me: It will do whatever you do dear, tell hi to him, it will also say 'Hi'
(He did so and very happy now)

After few months,

Kid: Amma, why my shadow is not there now, did it sleep? (Btw, it's night)
Me: There should be light falling on you nanna to see the shadow
Kid: Oh, then switch on the light and show me?
(I did, he is satisfied)

Kid: Amma, why shadow is very tall than me?
Me: Shadow's size depends on the angle on which light falls on you baby. (Iam afraid, if he asks more questions technically, i have to google before it :p and tried to divert the topic)

PS:I call him Nanna sometimes, with love

So, the question bank continues like this.. iam getting ready to google out more details.

Until next time,

Day 3 - Links - Trains and coaches

This post is written for A story for a picture challenge by Marathon bloggers.

When i think of links, other than hyper links in web pages, i remember tracks and trains :).

Below are some photos shared by my colleague Sreeram. (His flicker link here) A train with all the coaches linked together following same pace with beautiful rythm is nice to watch. Once my dance teacher told me, "Everything in this world is rythmic". Even trains, birds etc., How true!

All coaches linked!

See how curvey is the track :o

Once we were travelling to Annavaram from Eluru for a dance performance with our teacher. We were a big group of around 15 students of different ages from 6 to 15 or so. We played anthyakshari, dumb charades, a game called 'Name, place, thing, animal' etc., After we all were bored of the games and there is one more hour to reach our destination, we found one more fun way to enjoy. Each person used to go to Canteen in the train which is the last coach and get something to eat for the whole team. By the way, we have around 10 coaches to cross :p to reach canteen. Isn't it good that all these coaches are linked?

So, that's the story behind these pics and our love for trains and links :)


Until next time,

Day 2 - Streets

This post is written for A story for a picture challenge by Marathon bloggers.

I remember our strolls on New york streets. Myself and my colleague ventured to New york together without knowing anything about what to visit. It was a good learning experience :)

After reaching New york railway station, first thing we did is to take maps of Subway train routes and tourist places from tourism department stall. Our first priority was to visit The Statue of Liberty and it was easy to reach. Next in plan was to visit wallstreet, Empire state building and end our tour with Times square. 

Sky scrappers in New york city

Crowded Times Square

Actually, we lost our way at Wallstreet after visiting the famous bull :) we were searching for the right sub way station to travel to Empire state building. There are maps showing different toutes and tourist places displayed over pillars near signals. We took photo from our windows phone and at last searched for the right sub way. It was thrilling to roam in unknown streets only by reading maps. We loved it though :) So, this is the story behind these pics, got it? 

Until next time,

The Little hearts - [Book Review]

Book Details:
Title : The Little Hearts
Author : Ravi kumar R
Publisher: Biblica publications
Price: Rs.190, ofcourse, its Rs140/- in flipkart.com
Source: Book sent by Publisher

As i said in my earlier book reviews once, there are two types of books. One, which enlighten you, make you learn something new, which interest you till the end and Second type, which are good for time pass. The later category are easy going books which will interest you to read till the end, make you involve in the story, make you think in protagonist's shoes, but will leave your memory the day you finish the book. The Little Hearts goes to the later category.

Brief:
This story is about a teenager Surya, his thoughts as a teenager, fun days in his college,his love interest etc., Story narrates how his thoughts matured from a college goer to a responsible adult. Author also touches upon some interesting issues like cast system in India, Govt officials Vs Software professionals, Books, good movies etc., through different characters in the novel.

What i liked?
The way story is narrated from Surya, his innocent thoughts, his perspectives surely let you understand a teenager and his questions in mind about different things in society in a better way. Surya once mentions how caste system develops, his grandfather allows children in the family to watch movies of their caste hero only, he praises him only, he appreciates his action only, he feels his caste hero is better than anyone and makes whole family believe the same. When same thing is said multiple times, children believe it to be true and continue the patronage of their caste hero. Thus caste system and racism develops. Right? It's simply explained. There are other mentions about communism, capitalism, differences between them, how USSR failed even though it was once a Super power. There are many interesting and thought provoking debates in the story. The way his love blossoms with Priya, his all efforts to impress her, flirt with her etc., are realistic and show you the teenage behavior. Surya's character is innocent and sensitive, with many questions in his mind. He understands hypocrisy in society and how people change from childhood and support their religion, their caste only.  Sometimes, he feels guilty, that he is also one of them. He leaves you with some thoughts and many questions lingering in your mind by the end of book.

What i didn't like?
 I felt, at many places book suddenly gets boring with lengthy conversations between Surya and Priya, between IAS bhayya and S/w bhayya and becomes too much like a lecture. At one point i felt like leaving the book in the middle and stop reading. Editing might have been good. At many places, some letters are missing in words, iam not sure if this is intentionally done, as i dont understand any reason behind it. Else, these might be print mistakes :) Surya's characterization is realistic for sure, but Priya's characterization is not. Even though Priya knows that Surya will die for her, it seems very dumb of her to leave him and go and die at last. Comon! Priya seems matured than Surya, cant she understand that she has to enjoy present and leave past behind? Actually, it seems, her passion on books and movies didnt teach anything at all. 

So, a time pass read, except for a few boring pages. 
My overall rating : 2.5/5

Until next time,

Image courtesy: flipkart.com

Fly high in the sky - Day 1 - Fly

This post is written for A story for a picture challenge by Marathon bloggers.

There was a dream from my childhood to fly high and reach the sky. You might have heard the story of Hanuman who assumed the bright Sun as fruit and flied high to grab and eat it :) My dream was not that big, it was just to fly in a plane to some exotic location, basically to travel to a foreign country. 

This photo was taken in a domestic flight when we (myself and hubby) flied for the first time to Chennai for my friend's marriage. Though i traveled to US later, this was my first flight journey and thus most memorable. 

I planned to capture many photos on that day, especially to capture Chennai beach while landing. Unfortunately, our place was nearer to the wing of the plane and so couldn't capture as expected. Excuse me for this bad quality pic :) Every first in our memories will be cherished for lifetime. My first snow fall in US, my first flight journey, my kid first time calling me Amma, each and everything is wonderful. Hope you too have these kind of memories and cherish them for life time :)

Until next time,

Coorg Chronicle - Day 2

Day 1 details here.

Our second day started afresh after taking rest in KSTDC Mayur valley. Cloudy mornings are wonderful in Coorg. Good for a walk. 
We have planned to visit maximum places on this day.

Tala Cauvery - Birth place of Cauvery

Our first destination was to 'Tala cauvery' which is around 48kms from Madikeri town. It has a temple and it is famous as birth place of river Cauvery.There are a series of steps to reach the top for an excellent view point, where we can have a 360 degree view of Brahmagiri hills. Even though climbing those many steps is difficult, its completely worth. 

Tala Cauvery - Entrance

Triveni Sangama - Bhagamandala

Returning back to Madikeri, around 8 kms on the way, we can see a tourist place called 'Bhagamandala', which is considered as 'Triveni sangamam'. It is a confluence of three rivers Cauvery, Kannike and Sujyothi. There is also a beautiful temple of Lord 'Bhagandeswara' to visit there.


After a sumptuous lunch in our hotel, we started to another famous tourist place in Coorg, which is 'Abbi/ Abbey falls'. This fall will be fantastic in rainy season. It has a hanging bridge just opposite to fall to have a good view. Water splashes on you with force in rainy season. It's awesome experience. Our next destination was on the way to Madikeri. It is 'Gaddige/ Raja's tombs'. This is a historic place with tombs of Raja Dodda Virajendra and Lingarajendra II. It is not very well maintained though. Many local people are using it for jogging and walking :)

Abbey falls - My fav place in Coorg

Gaddige

Other important tourist places within the Madikeri town are 'Madikeri fort' and 'Omkareshwara temple'. We returned to 'Raja's seat' to have a beautiful view of sunset in the evening. It gets dark early in Coorg, so there is not much to do in the evenings except for nature walk and shopping. Coorg is famous for coffee, home made chocolates and spices. Don't forget to buy some :)

We planned to visit Nisargadhama forest resort, Golden temple and Dubare elephant camp for Day 3 before returning to Bangalore through Mysore. So, more details on Day 3 in upcoming post :)

Hope you liked these details and pics.. 

Until next time,

Coorg chronicle - Day 1

We have planned for a peaceful 3 day trip to Coorg in December. Here are the details of Day 1:

Travel details: 

Bangalore to Coorg 

Distance: around 516 kms

Road condition : Very good (if, via Mysore)

Sunset from hotel

Started from Bangalore in the morning by car after analyzing 2 to 3 alternate ways to reach Coorg. Main route is through Mysore, Google suggests some other alternative to travel on Mangalore highway. I would say, going through Mysore is the best. Road condition is good, but since we didn't knew this, we went through some alternative route suggested by google maps which is in very bad condition. Roads were very narrow and at one place there is no road at all, only muddy road with bumps. Another advantage of Mysore road is availability of food on the route. There are a plenty of Cofee days on the way. Because of alternate route and bad roads, it took around 6 hrs for us to reach Kushal nagar which is 30kms from Madikeri town.

View from Raja's seat

We had lunch at Shanthi Bites restaurant in Kushal nagar, which is good only for Chinese varieties. We reached madikeri by afternoon and checked in to hotel 'KSTDC Mayur valley', which is nearer to a tourist place called 'Raja's seat'. It is both economical and comfortable. A non A/C Deluxe room costs around Rs.3000/- per day. All rooms in first floor have fantastic view of the valley. Even the restaurant has good view and it is excellent to have snacks in the restaurant watching sunset . It becomes dark very early in Coorg and the only place that we could visit on that day is 'Raja's seat' near our hotel. It is a normal park with a toy train, excellent view and nothing much. 

Cloudy Madikeri town - View from hotel

We planned a busy itinerary for next day. Will give details in next post.
Day 2 details here.

Until next time,