Hyderabad Diaries Day 2

Streets of HyderabadMy visit to the former capital of Nizams has definitely been one of the most memorable ones.This city has a certain old world charm co-existing with the elements of modernization and urbanization.

So, on the second day, I decided to visit the old part of this city. The city that houses the iconic Charminar, the old alleys, and rows of old dilapidated shops. It also has old mosques and shops selling the “attar” scents. It is here where you will get to see the “Real Hyderabad”.The first stop was the iconic “Charminar”. Well, who doesn't know Charminar? It is the first thing that comes to one’s mind when someone thinks of Hyderabad.The ride to Charminar itself is fascinating because driving from the urbanized, new and developed part of Hyderabad, one slowly comes closer to the old part of the city and slowly you get to see the change.

The tall skyscrapers and multistory buildings slowly start getting lesser in number and there is an abundance of old buildings. Old restaurants having haleem and Biriyani on their menu boards outside their establishments, burqa-clad women bargaining with the street side shopkeepers selling bangles and Hyderabadi pearls is what you get to see as you reach the monument. The new part of Hyderabad is developed with broad roads but in part of the city, the old world charm is retained through its narrow alleys and roads.

The Charminar is a square structure with each side 20 meters long with four arches facing the streets with minarets on top of each. It was built by Qutub Shah in 1859 and there are various theories as to why it was built. Some say it was built by him for his love “Bhagmati”, whom he had first seen at this place and she later changed her religion to Islam and was named “Hyder Begum” and it is from here the city derives its name.Another theory says that the king had prayed for the eradication of plague that had affected the city during that time and was built after that. The monument is fascinating and shows the rich craftsmanship of the Indo-Persian artists of that time.

The Makkah Mosque is situated just a quarters away.Now that it was lunch time, I, on the recommendation of the car driver decided to have lunch at a famous restaurant called “Kamat Hotel” which is located at the nearby Nampally. The restaurant though didn’t look very impressive from the outside but, later on, proved to be really good. The restaurant is situated close to the state legislative assembly and happens to be a popular eatery for all the MLAs and MLCs. The restaurant seemed to be extremely popular among the people of the city.I had to wait outside for a brief amount of time to actually get myself a place to sit and eat. However, the wait was worth it as I got to taste a really good local Thali named as the “Limited Edition Kamat Thali.” The thali is the most popular dish on the menu and everyone seemed to be ordering it.Small Puris, Rice, Sambar, two Sabjis having the local flavor, Rasam and Payasam as sweet dish left me satiated gastronomically.I had also ordered the Moong dal dosa or Pesarattu which was also different and something I hadn't tasted before. “Kamat Hotel” was really impressive. It being so old still continues to be popular among people. Very few restaurants can actually hold onto this kind of clientele for this long.

With the stomach totally full, next destination was the Salar Jung Museum.The Salar Jung Museum is one of the three national museums in India. It was a former property of the Salar Jung family who ruled Hyderabad from 1720 to 1948 and was donated to the government to be developed as a museum having the collection of precious stones, articles, and paintings which were collected by the Salar Jung's. The museum is huge having 38 galleries each having detailed topics to showcase. I especially loved the gallery housing beautiful glass pieces and dishware which were used by the emperors and also the painting galleries. It highlighted their royal and classic taste for art and culture. The wardrobe of Tipu Sultan and Emperor Aurangzeb’s sword are other important things to see here.A superb place to history lovers.

The final destinations for the day were Lumbini Park and Hussein Sagar lake. The Hussein Sagar Lake was constructed during the Qutub Shah era and is spread across a very large area.It is one of the main sources of water supply to the city. A huge Buddha statue stands amidst the lake on an island.Boating facilities are also available. The Lumbini park situated in this complex has various amusement rides and eating outlets for people to enjoy and rejuvenate.A laser and musical fountain show are also organized here every day in the evening.Hyderabad I love you.

This trip was originally published on ROADSREELANDFOOD

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