The City of Pearls - Travel series 2

 THE CITY OF PEARLS - TRAVEL SERIES PART 2

The rays of sunshine through the window fell onto me and my eyes opened, it took some time to completely wake up and go outside. I got myself a cup of milk and went to see the rest. The time was 10:30 am. I was shocked. The worst part about it was we were supposed to wake up early that day to go sightseeing. But none of us woke up. Travelling for most people is waking up early and visiting more places than their plans and winding it up quickly. But for us, it is always different. It’s based-on comfort and convenience and as it runs in the family, we are never punctual when the sightseeing and all the planning is in our hands. Food also plays an important role in our travelling and that is why I have been describing and suggesting food and restaurants all this while. We keep trying new items, new restaurants and caravans. So, my uncles were going to complete their work whereas me and the others did nothing much except roaming on the streets of Hyderabad along with them or visiting few shops. We went through the other side of the city like Banjara Hills, Punjagutta and Begumpet. The overall experience was fine. I wasn’t disappointed with the roads or the shopping and of course there was a lot of snacking but we tried our best to keep it healthy. Then we had lunch at Chutneys Restaurant, it’s a vegetarian restaurant and its specialty is their chutneys, they serve with dishes like Guntur podi idli, dosa, uthappam etc. Later as weird it may sound, we decided we didn’t have anything to do so we will go and see Charminar.

 For the second time of the trip, the kids got the car for themselves. This time we weren’t overexcited and hyperactive like before but we were overwhelmed by watching the roads, buildings and people of the City of Pearls. The route was via the Hussain Sagar lake, Khairatabad, Nampally and somehow, we entered the labyrinth of old city of Hyderabad.

    The first thing that came to my mind was how different the two places were. This part of the city was completely overwhelming. It was so different from the part of the city I already visited. There was high contrast to the clean roads, posh shopping malls with large glass windows, stunning architecture and especially costly price tags over there and here there was nothing like that, yet it seemed grander. You could visit two whole new worlds within a range of 15km in Hyderabad. 

    The driver had no idea where he was going in that rush of people, we were to follow the adults’ Innova but we got lost in that ocean of shops and I panicked. But after lots of turns, we came onto the main road and as we were moving forward, I could see the beautiful structure, Charminar growing larger and larger in front of us. The hustle and bustle around me was all unheard for a moment when I just gazed at it and took in all the details of the architecture. That was the first time I was seeing the Charminar so I was excited more than anyone else. I quickly clicked pictures of the Charminar and the surroundings to save for later. We got down the car and started walking towards the Charminar. It was already around 5pm and closing time. But I took time to take in my surroundings rather than rushing towards the Charminar quickly. 

    The streets were filled with shops full of glitter. I bet you could find all sorts of things there for a very cheap price. There were loads of bangles in each and every shop. There were some clothes shops that had extravagant gowns and sarees. There were so many jewelry stores with pearls glittering in the light of the sunset. Everyone in the ocean of people were rummaging through the shops bargaining. It was such a sight! The Begum Bazaar, as it is called was beautiful. The Charminar was present in the junction of four roads all filled with stalls and shops brimming with customers.

       A bit of history and geography, the Charminar constructed in 1591, is a monument and mosque located in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. The landmark has become known globally as a symbol of Hyderabad and is listed among the most recognized structures in India. The Charminar's long history includes the existence of a mosque on its top floor for more than 400 years. While both historically and religiously significant, it is also known for its popular and busy local markets surrounding the structure, and has become one of the most frequented tourist attractions in Hyderabad. The Charminar is situated on the east bank of Musi river. To the west lies the Laad Bazaar, and to the southwest lies the richly ornamented granite Makkah Masjid. The English name is a translation and combination of the Urdu words chār and minar or meenar, translating to "Four Pillars"; the eponymous towers are ornate minarets attached and supported by four grand arches.  The fifth ruler of the Qutb Shahi dynasty, Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah, built the Charminar in 1591 after shifting his capital from Golkonda to the newly formed city of Hyderabad and also was built at the centre of the city, to commemorate the eradication of cholera", a deadly disease which was wide spread at that time.

    My granny could not climb the Charminar so she sat on a chair under the Charminar or rather inside the Charminar. And then when went to the line to climb up after so much difficulty, the whole 12 of us were denied entry by the guy at the entrance of the minaret. We were supposed to climb the stairs in the minaret to the top. We had to literally plead that guy to let us in and he eventually did. 

    We were the last ones to climb the Charminar for that day. Yay! That felt like some kind of an achievement, but sadly we had to get down fast. The minaret was kind of closed with very small windows for very limited air to get in and high steps which were less wide. They were also very slippery. So, if you fall, the person behind you does, basically like dominos. And the lot of people climbing the minaret at once makes it a not very comfortable experience for claustrophobic people. I was scared that I would slip half the time and there wasn’t much air to breathe also. But it was worth it.

    When we got up, we first observed the beautiful architecture and intricate designs, took lot of photos and listened to the guide when he talked about its history. We were not allowed to climb any higher. Then we saw the four streets leading to the Charminar. It looked much better from there. Then, we had to go down quickly since the time was almost up and it was getting dark. We quickly got down and went down to shop at the Bazaars. My mom got me a pair of multi colored bangles, that looked beautiful. We picked a few souvenirs and walked back to where we pulled over our cars. Then we took a ride back to our hotel, had dinner there and went back to our rooms. We all saw the photos clicked and went to sleep after having a fun day.

    This memory would remain with me forever as it first introduced me to the old city of Hyderabad in real life, other than in movies though😉. I had so much fun and what intrigued me the most was that despite the stark contrasts between the two places in all aspects like lifestyle, food, clothing and many more, they were all Hyderabadis at heart.❤️❤️❤️

An extract from 'Memories' by Srihitha Sowgandhi