South India Archives - Holiday and Travel Guide to India

Why Shopping In Hyderabad Is Not All about Pearls

As a child and a teenager, I knew Hyderabad to be the city of Sultans, and that the Hyderabadi pearls are the best of the kind in India. Growing up a little, I learned about the famous Hyderabadi biryani. But … Read more

Kanchipuram – City of Temples

Kanchipuram is also known by the names Conjeeveram, Kanjeevaram and Kanchi is a small town situated at a distance of 75 km from Chennai in Tamil Nadu. Kanchipuram is famous for the cotton and silk industry and imposing centuries old … Read more

Complete guide to Mysore city

Mysore, locally known as Mysuru was the prominent city of Karnataka prior to Bangalore. This mystical and mythological city derives its name from the buffalo headed demon Mahishasur who is known to have been slain atop the Chamundi Hills by Goddess Chamundeshwari, an avatar of Parvati. The 10 day dussehra festival is organized every year to celebrate this victory of the good over the evil. The city can boast of its rich past given to it generously by the dynasty of the Wodeyars, which has created such an appealing charm about the city that it can enthrall tourists even to this day.

Badami Caves – Rocks with story to tell

Badami, situated in Bagalkot districtof Karnataka, was once capital of mighty Chalukya Empire, but is now famous as tourist destination for its historical monument – The Badami Caves. These caves are considered to be the most spectacularly carved caves found in South India. The four major caves, hewn out of the hill at great height, are temples dedicated to different deities of Hindu and Jain religion. They are considered to be places of utmost importance by the architectures and archaeologists, for the reason that these caves hold significant clues to the styles followed by the south Indian architectures of past. The caves were carved out of the Deccan sandstone that is abundantly available in the area, during the 6th century, under the rule of Chalukya Empire. The color of the Deccan sandstone is believed to have given the place its name, i.e. the color of Badam which means almond in local dialect.

Town of Badami seen from the caves. Source: Andrea Kirkby’s photostream Flickr

Bengaluru, which was earlier known as Bangalore is one of the most sought of exotic tourist destinations in South India. Bengaluru is the capital city of Karnataka and is the blend of ultra modern cosmopolitan culture and the traditional extravaganza. It is known to be the silicon city of India and the capital of information technology or the IT world of the country. It is the house for numerous multinational companies and is also recognised as one of the growing economical cities on the world map. It is also known as the ‘Garden City of India.’

Visiting places in Hyderabad

Hyderabad is fondly referred to as the city of Nawabs and sometimes also as the city of Pearls as till the 20th century it probably was the only global center for large diamonds. Hyderabad is also famous as the birthplace of Tollywood besides hosting a thriving IT industry. But probably the most distinctive aspect of this historical city is that it is the only city in South India with a distinctly North Indian culture. This makes Hyderabad a veritable treasure house of amazing buildings and great food – and me like a kid in a candy store.