After beginning this year with a visit to the UAE, then Singapore, Malaysia & Thailand later in the year, I capped off my 2010 travels with a trip to Hyderabad. The main purpose of the visit was to attend a friend’s wedding, but we (my usual travel buddies Ramesh and Loiyumba) decided to go a bit early to do a bit of sight-seeing.
This wasn’t my first visit to the capital of Andhra Pradesh. I first came to Hyderabad in 2002 to visit my brother when he worked there briefly.
In some ways I was looking forward to this trip because it was after a span of nearly 9 years that I got to travel by train again. We boarded the Kacheguda Express from Bangalore Cantonment station in the evening.
Loi didn't wait too long to cuddle up in his sleeping bag and doze off
We arrived in Kacheguda station (not Hyderabad’s main railway station) at a chilly 5:45am. We had reserved a room for us three at Nand International, a nearby hotel, so we figured we could walk it there. But after walking for around a minute or two, we couldn’t spot the hotel and the auto drivers we passed by were telling us they could take us there for just Rs. 10. Figuring it was cold and we had luggage, we got in… and literally 5 seconds later, up the same Station road we were at, we were dropped at Nand International! Pissed at the fact all he had to tell us was to walk a few steps further to get here, we shouted at the auto driver — but relented from ruining our morning and just paid him Rs. 10 to get lost.
We checked in to our three person bedroom/family room.
Costs Rs. 870 ($19/€13) per night for this centrally air-conditioned room
Since we were still sleepy, we crashed for a few hours.
Got up around noon, had tea and pondered about where to have lunch. In a city famed for its food, we weren’t keen on hitting up the street food joints near Charminar straight away. So we decided to go to a place called Eat Street.
Cost nearly Rs. 60 to get here by auto from Kacheguda Station Road
Eat Street is just some food court by Hussain Sagar Lake, one of the largest man made lakes in India. We passed through scanners (apparently security is pretty tight in Hyderabad) and walked in to a not-so-busy food court.
We checked out the various stalls, some open open for business… some not. You get your usual choice of South Indian, biriyani (of course), chaats, western fast food, etc. But despite being in the city famous for its biriyani, I wasn’t going to eat it from just about anywhere.
So I had burger, fried chicken strips and fries instead. Lame, I know.
Ramesh and Loi both tried out the biriyani and they described the food as: “sucks” and “horrible”. So there.
Loiyumba took this photograph using his cameraHussain Sagar lake (Photograph by Loiyumba)There are boat rides in the evening to go to the Buddha statue (Photograph by Loiyumba)
Post-lunch, we already feeling a sense of ‘boredom’ and wondered what to do next.
We left Eat Street and aimlessly walked through the park around the lake
There was book fair going onIt was the annual Hyderabad Book Fair
Considering none of us have the habit of reading books much, we left fairly quickly
Crossed the road over to Prasads
The one good thing about Hyderabad is that they have an IMAX screen, and it can be found at Prasads on Tank Bund Road. The security was pretty tight before entering here as well (I take it’s because of the Telangana issue?). We checked out the mall a bit before going to collect our pre-booked tickets for Tron which was playing.
After checking out Prasads, we stepped out, took an autorickshaw and went to see Charminar, Hyderabad’s iconic structure.
There are many old bazaars leading up to Charminar... and traffic was very congested
We eventually asked the auto driver to stop and decided to walk it further up.
Plenty of pearl stores here, Hyderabad pearls are quite famous
The road goes all around CharminarI ate from here on the third day, really good South Indian food!
Charminar literally translates to “four towers”. Minar or minaret being the towers or pointy structures you find in just about every mosque and char which just means four.
Built by ruler Qutb Shah in 1591 ADThere was a queue going half way around CharminarOld coins for sale. Genuineness unconfirmed.We queued up, paid the Rs. 5 entry fee and entered
You climb narrow stairs up one of the minars
The walls were quite coldYou obviously get a better picture of the surrounding from up here
But walking through the halls, I couldn’t really help but not ignore something.
The wallsIt's quite apparent how badly the walls have been vandalized the past few years by callous visitorsAt least the ceilings were hard to reachIt's an appalling sight in many of our heritage monumentsDespite the efforts to curb the practice and a law making it a punishable offence...... even to this day, to some worthless citizens of this country, it's still a joke. As if these historical monuments are just another building to them.
Laad bazaar a.k.a 'bangles street' -- guess why it's called soThe open hall in between the four minarets
Five pigeons
Traffic is quite messy (and very busy) around CharminarMecca Masjid, where we were headed nextNizamia Unani Hospital, opposite Mecca Masjid
It was time to head back downDown another minar we went
Charminar done, we decided to sit in a cafe to have something to drink.
Ramesh played it safe with Pepsi, while myself and Loi had *extremely* sweet faloodaAs seen inside the cafe Looks like there is a parallel film industry within Hyderabad making low-budget unofficial sequels to mainstream film releases
Excessive sugar intake complete, we decided to quickly step inside Makkah Masjid.
The markets are quite bustling in these partsMecca Masjid is the biggest mosque in Hyderabad and one of the oldest in India
You have to leave your bag and shoes at the counter and walk barefoot once past the gates.
People had gathered to see hundreds of pigeons being fed grainsNot very exciting... but still
It's always such a photo moment when hundreds of them fly away at onceI decided to check out the mosqueThe main prayer hallWonder what those honeycomb-like bags holdWent around the mosque
Pigeons, pigeons... there are a lot of themNeedless to say, there's a lot of pigeon poop on the ground
We left the mosque and decided to call it a day.
Took a rickshaw back to our hotelThat's a heap of bread crumbs and rusk being sold in bulk. Not very hygienic in these conditions I would presume.
Once back in Nand International, I was quite cheesed off. Despite claiming to provide 24 hours hot water, when I opened the tap, I only got cold water. Went to the reception to complain and the man with a straight face told me it only comes on from 6am to 6pm. I then raised my voice and told him “well, that’s not what it says on your website!” and demanded I need hot water as it was quite cold (which it was outside). Only then did I get a bucket of hot water. So a big thumbs down for Nand International because of that.
Post rant, we concluded day one in Hyderabad with dinner at nearby three-star hotel restaurant where we had, yes, biriyani.
It was alright, but I would have much better biriyani in the next few days.
My final day in Thailand… and I still made most of the time I had before flying out.
Even though I still had an entry ticket to DreamWorld theme park which I got for free via Cleartrip, I decided to chuck that and opted instead to do something I couldn’t do last year.
I booked myself for a floating market tour via the lady who owns Thai House Inn and she got it for me for ฿600 (Rs. 890/$20/€14).
Left Bangkok at around 6am; headed to the neighbouring district of Ratchaburi, a 100km drivePassed by a lot of shrimp farms. Turns out Thailand is largest exporter of such shrimps. (That explains the abundance of prawn crackers)
After an hour long drive, the van reached a canal where there were other tour groups gathered near some boats.
We would then be split up into groups for each boatI grabbed the spot in front
No roads from here on out, just canals all the way to the ‘floating’ market
It was a lovely morning ride
It was a charming sight to see houses and entire villages live by these canalsKind of appears as though the ‘roads’ are flooded
That’s where we were heading
Once we reached the market, we got out of our boats and were informed by our guide that we had nearly an hour here. But, if we wanted to boat ride around the market, we would have to pay ฿50 (Rs. 75/$1.6/€1.16) and it was not included in the tour package. Obviously, none of us wanted to simply walk around the ‘floating’ market, so I paid up.
I sat right in front again
Mind you, there are many boats carrying tourists around the market all morning. The market closes by afternoon.Plenty of hawkers (on boats of course) pull your boat over to try and sell you their wares
A lot of the stuff for sale are souvenirs and other Thailand memorabilia
No shortage of eateries as usual
And as usual, you can haggle for a much lower price than what they initially quote
Even under a bridge there was no shortage of hawkers
From preserved animals….. to even getting photographs with a massive snake. All available under the bridge.
Nicely shaven coconut
After much pandering, I ended up buying two of these hats for my nieces. The hats can be folded into fans as well. Paid around ฿100 each.Best advised to keep your hands inside at all time. The boats do ram into each other.It was time to turn around and go back
This is what a floating market traffic jam looks like
And this is what it sounds like
Durian. Ugh.Yes, lots of hats
After riding for around half an hour, we were dropped back on to the platform.
Continued taking photos on foot
The floating market is one of those ‘must see’ places in ThailandYes, you can get a massage just about anywhere in Thailand
How paddle boats are ‘parked’I would have liked to have gone through there
How heavy must the boats be to hold the weight of two gas cylinders?
I walked back to the designated meeting point for our tour group. It was time to leave, so we all got back to our respective vans.
I was under the impression the floating market tour was over and that we would be on our long drive back. But no, instead, the van took us to a nearby Elephant Village.
It’s ฿600 for an elephant ride -_-I wasn’t interestedInstead, I sat at the cafe and read up trivia
After waiting for nearly half an hour for the few from my tour group who wanted to go for the elephant ride, we finally got moving again. Next up, the Cobra Show.
Again, they only drop you here, you still had the option to pay and enter
Even though I had seen videos from the ‘most exciting show in the world,’ I did not want to wait outside in the heat again. So I paid the ฿30 or ฿50 it was for the ticket and went in.
The arena inside (Panorama comprised of 6 shots)
They start off with the announcer welcoming everyone and explaining in fairly understandable English that the purpose of the facility is to ‘educate’ visitors that snakes are not all that dangerous as people make them out to be.
A badass-looking Thai staff member showing us how they extract snake’s venom
The also bring around snakes to you in case you want to take photos with one around your neck. And since I hate snakes…
I thought I’d give it a try They have all kinds of snakes, like huge pythons as well
The ‘exciting’ parts kick in when they demonstrate how the trained staff catch snakes. Which has to be seen in action:
The guy also caught three cobras, one by one, which was quite impressive.
The excitement continues when they bring out a snake’s worst enemy in the animal kingdom, the mongoose — and then make the two fight.
“Snake, meet mongoose”“Snake… meet mongoose!”“Snake… snake…snaaaaake!”*Introductions over I guess
Here’s a video of the mongoose fight some more:
Thirty minutes of, erm, animal cruelty, the show was over. The staff went around seeking donations from the visitors, and I tipped ฿100 to the guy who caught the snakes with his bare hands, because that’s quite some skill.
Outside, there have a mini-zoo with a few reptilian creatures.
If you want photos with much bigger snakes, you can take them hereBut I wanted to sit in the air-conditioned van as it was quite hot!
I asked our guide if the ‘tour’ was over, but he said there was one final stop. Ugh.
This was some handicrafts showroom where they specialize in wooden sculptures.
But I must say, quite impressive wood work (That sign seems a bit ironic btw)
Scratch that, some *very* impressive wood work!Wonder how many weeks it takes for such stunning works of artThey’re all for sale but it’s not like they’re easy to fit into a suitcase and take back with you
Needless to say, none of these wooden sculptures carved out of teak wood come cheap. Most of them were in the thousands of dollars (yes, dollars, not Thai baht)!
They have a showroom with some smaller pieces of wood work inside
After another half-an-hour spent here, we headed back into our vans. I was finally done with the ‘floating market’ tour. As touristy as the above sights may seem, I still feel a visit to the floating market is a ‘must-do’ in Thailand. Damnoen Suduak is the most popular floating market, thus the hordes of tourists. There are a few other floating markets across Thailand.
The journey back into the city took a lot longer for me as I was going to be the last one dropped. I eventually got down at MBK to have lunch… at KFC.
Last year, KFC Thailand introduced a sweet ‘n’ spicy variant of their chicken, and it was my last meal before leaving. This year, KFC introduced a seaweed infused variant. It was alright, better than last year’s sweet ‘n’ spicy.
With my final meal in Thailand complete…
Oh for god’s sake Thai people, there’s NOTHING special about Krispy Kreme!
Anyway… I headed back to Thai House Inn to pack up and check out. I sat down for a bit before stepping out again, but this time, without my camera bag for a change. I wanted to give my shoulders a rest after the nearly two weeks I strained them. I walked further down from Nana BTS to see whether there were better sub-฿1000 accommodation available so that next time if I do choose to stay in the Sukhumvit area, I don’t have to stay to at Thai House Inn.
Hopefully, next time I’m in Bangkok, if I don’t have much shopping to do, I’ll stay in Khao San road.
At around 5:30pm, I took the BTS to Phaya Thai station. They had only recently opened the new skytrain link directly to Suvarnabhumi airport, saving passengers both time and money.
The Phaya Thai airport link stationAnd as an introductory offer, the ticket to Suvarnabhumi was a cheap ฿15! I paid nearly ฿500 last year for taxi!
The journey took just 30 minutes. Clearly a better option for those with less luggage. I was early enough for my 9:20pm Thai Airways flight to Bangalore.
The entry into the airport from the BTS station is at the basement
Walking up to the departures section, I was quite stunned to see just about every Indian passenger heading back to Mumbai with a massive LCD/plasma TV in tow. It’s as though everybody knew how much to pay off the Mumbai customs officials upon arrival.
Quite ridiculous really, especially seeing many of them pleading with the check-in personnel not to impose excess baggage charges… because some of them were (unsurprisingly) way over the allowed limit!
After checking-in, I headed to the VAT (value added tax) refund office to declare my purchases and get my VAT refund forms stamped by the officials. Then came the rather long queue at immigration.
Passport stamped, I was through
I checked out the Duty Free, bought two bottles of liquor that my friends requested (prices and selection are fairly good here) and then went to the VAT refund counter to get my cash refund. Submitted my form and got 7% of the total value of my purchases back in cash. I mentioned this last year and I’ll mention it again: for the VAT refund, one needs to shop at stores that participate in the VAT refund scheme for tourists. Upon purchase, you will get a VAT refund form from the store and it’s only upon showing that same form at the airport will you be eligible for a refund. You can’t simply show a bunch of store receipts and expect a cash refund (‘cos I’ve seen people do that).
Sitting at my gate, I had plenty of time for a flashback. Another trip to Thailand that didn’t feel ‘complete’. Had I successfully covered the big lantern release in Mae Jo, Chiang Mai, I would have scratched North Thailand off my list and only focused on South Thailand for my next visit.
I wasn’t even in the best of health the first week, which sucked. Still… all I can say is that I did the best I could and I hope my readers enjoyed this series.
So until Thailand 201_, it’s back to India for now!
A lot of financial firms have offices in SilomDTAC is Thailand’s second largest mobile service provider
Drove through China Town againGot down at Chakphet road
Batter-fried fruit
Reached Pahurat road
I could see a sign stating Gurudwara Sikh, but all it pointed to was a wall of shops on the side of the road I was on
I still waded through Pahurat market
Figuring the gurdwara was behind the shops, I found a gap and walked into an alley. There, an old Thai man saw me and just raised his arm to point to where I needed to go. I guessed I wasn’t the first Indian he may have come across in search of the elusive gurdwara.
Kept wondering how much more I had to walk to find it……but there it was (finally!)The ‘desis’ were in sight
Gurdwara Siri Guru Singh Sabha
You can read about the history of the gurdwara at their official site, but apparently Sikhs have been in Thailand since the early 1900s. All non-Sikhs have to cover their heads with a scarf, which they provide by the stairs in the main hall.
Pick one
You also have to take off your shoes if you want to go upstairs. They have a big shoe rack in the main hall and you get a token.
The Sikhs were being their charitable self today with a blood donation campThe 6-storey gurdwara is one of the largest outside IndiaThe first floor is a Langar hall, where visitors and devotees had sat down for the free mealsThe floor above it looked like it was hall used for weddings and other eventsAbove that was the main prayer hall
This kid was waiting for his chance to ‘photobomb’ this shotThe fourth floor is a schoolThe fifth floor was a hall with rooms…… with priests (I assume?)Not sure what this signifies or what they preach
That looked like a more accessible entryI had reached the topSo naturally, I went back down
The sexes are segregated in order to maintain ‘concentration’ it seems
Assuming the prayers were over, I went downDecided to eat
As much as I love Thai cuisine, after nearly two weeks, eating simple dal curry, sabzi (vegetables) and chapathis felt soooo good.
Feeling full, I went all the way back down, collected my shoes and left the gurdwara.
Stepped out to a world where samosas and spring rolls are sold side-by-sideNow to get back out…I walked through the Pahurat textile marketI finally came out through hereRajamangala University of Technology was across the road
Here’s a map to give you a better idea:
(Image source: Google Maps)I moved on
I was on the hunt for Sampeng Market nextThe traffic scene here is *quite* different from the Sukhumvit side
After a bit of asking around, I was directed to Sampeng Market.
This wasn’t the main entrance or anything. Just one of many lanes in.Sampeng market is known to be an integral part of China Town
The lanes eventually all meet at one main straight path……which extends a long way
Sampeng market is a massive space with stores selling, well, just about everything: clothes, Chinese medicines, other Chinese specialties, toys, households items, pirated CDs and anything else China mass produces.
Today being a Sunday, it was very crowded!Thus, very stuffy… and quite suffocating at times
It’s through one narrow lane visitors, traders and porters all the pass through
Sampeng isn’t for everyone. It’s quite congested inside (or I assume it’s like this every weekend) and it can get very hot. Also, I didn’t find much of the merchandise to my liking, so unless you want loads of stationary for your kids, cheap, then Sampeng is the place… if you feel it’s worth the effort. I only stopped to buy one of those inflatable travel pillows/neck rests (cost ฿50).
I finally got out and I had the option to move to the next sectionInstead, I wasn’t confident I’d find anything more worth buying and therefore, decided to end my Sampeng trekIf you want to get a good starting point at Sampeng market, this is the road to get to firstThe main China Town area was just a few steps away
I still felt like ‘buying something,’ so decided to head back to my favourite ‘market’ in Thailand.
Took a taxi to the nearest BTS stationVictory Monument, as seen from inside the train
“Thai Prince” Nichkhun was selling something (one of the many products he shills for in Thailand)Yup, back to Chatuchak marketThat’s what it looks like from up aboveWalked past the park againI plunged inI was eying some more good t-shirts, among other things
Though most clothes shops sell more or less the same merchandise, there are a few (relatively speaking) independent studios selling something creative that sets them apart from the rest.
This was one such shop
Called Paracetamol Studio, the guy in the photo above says he does all the drawings and art himself, and then prints them on t-shirts and bags. I really liked his art and ended up buying three t-shirts at ฿300 each. He wouldn’t allow for bargaining but if you bought more, the price per t-shirt comes down.
There are more such ’boutique’ storesYou also have studios selling paintings and other works of art too
I just can’t recommend Jatujak market enough! There’s a reason why I like coming here. The variety of things you find is simply amazing. A lot of it is inexpensive and the rest, still rather affordable.
But do get here early in the morning if you plan to cover as much of this place as possible
Because despite coming here for a third time, I still can’t tell you how much of Chatuchak Weekend Market I have covered!
If you asked me where Paracetamol Studio is located on this map, I couldn’t possibly tell you
So if you wish to return to a store you once shopped from, take my advice, note down the store number.
This clock tower is one of the most important landmarks at Jatuchak. Important, because it stands high above the shops and can be used a point of reference in case you get lost (which will happen!)The clock tower is also where you can find porters in case you buy more than you can carry
It was lunch time and I reached the phase where one wonders if they are walking around in circlesTried this on the way outThis guy is a bit of a celebrity here at JJ market
Just as I was rushing out, I stopped by a store that sells genuine rock band t-shirts, many of which are seconds, but in very good condition and well washed. I finally managed to score a Def Leppard (my favourite band) Hysteria t-shirt and got it bargained down to ฿300 with the excuse it was my last night in Thailand. I was quite happy
Back at Siam Paragon, there was still a big line for Krispy Kreme
I called up my friend Sawmteii as we had agreed to meet for lunch, but she was still busy with family.
Siam BTS interchange. One train plys the Siam line, the other, the Silom line
I therefore headed back to my room, freshened up and got my ticket printed for tonight’s Jay Park fan meet at Siam Paragon.
I have already written about the Jay Park fan meet in another post, which you can read here.
After the fan meet, I went to a supermarket to pick up snacks and other items to pack in now itself as I was leaving Thailand tomorrow.
Bought some prawn chips, and this one had Nichkhun and his fellow 2PM members on the packet
As I was packing and trashing unwanted covers, I ended up having a right laugh reading the instructions on the Chinese travel pillow I had bought from Sampeng earlier in the day.
My Thai Airways flight was at night, so I still had tomorrow morning to do something. Which means, there’s one more post before I conclude this trip!
We checked out the various stalls, some open open for business… some not. You get your usual choice of South Indian, biriyani (of course), chaats, western fast food, etc. But despite being in the city famous for its biriyani, I wasn’t going to eat it from just about anywhere.
But walking through the halls, I couldn’t really help but not ignore something.
Charminar done, we decided to sit in a cafe to have something to drink.
We left the mosque and decided to call it a day.
