I always wanted to go on a trek and when I came to know that some people are going for a 4 day trek in the forests near Vizag, I thought to join them. The plan was to start from Shivalingapuram and then trek for 4 days to reach Borra caves. The leader was an experienced trekker and he took care of all arrangements for complete journey(including all necessary permissions). However, just 2 hrs before startng from Hyderabad, we came to know that due to some reasons, forest dept has cancelled the permission of all treks in the area. We were left high and dry wondering what to do with our plans. We had already applied for day off in our office...train tickets had been booked...backpack was packed with clothes and other necessary stuff...and most importantly, all of us were in holiday mood. We decided not to let go of this opportunity and instead, go and see Vizag and its surroundings. Obviously something is better than nothing and hey, Vizag is actually a holiday destination.
The train was (surprisingly) on time. We reached Vizag on the morning of 25th December(Xmas day). We were thinking of catching another train (Kirandul Express) to go to Araku, which is a hill station. But when we saw that their is no place to even put a foot in train, we decided that we'll stay in Vizag for that day and visit Araku some other day. (Now you know that it was a
totally unplanned journey.. we even had no idea in which city we will be going to). Anyways, we quickly found a dorm to put our luggage in and freshened up...had breakfast and then arranged a cab to go to a beach called 'Yarada Beach'.
Until now, I had seen Mumbai beaches and Marina beach(Chennai) and politely speaking, they are dirty. Especially in mumbai where the coastline is actually marked by polythene bags. But this beach(Yerada) was different.. it was clean and not much crowded. Actually, this beach is separated from the main city by a hill called Dolphin Hill (it looks like a dolphin when you see it from far) and this is the reason for a comparitively lesser crowd. We spent couple of good hours there..'twas fun. After this, we went to Kailashgiri. It is another hilltop near the Beach Road. There are big statues of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati at the hilltop. Also, this place has some viewpoints which give you a beautiful view of the sea, hills and city. The place was, albeit, crowded as lot of people had come due to holiday. There was a very long queue for ropeway and a traffic jam on the way to top of the hill. But anyways, the place is worth a visit.
Next day(26th De
c), we went to Borra caves and Araku by an APTDC package tour. Borra caves are naturally formed caves believed to be 150 million years old. The place was beyond my expectation. I was expecting a small cave but this place was big ..and extremely crowded. The rock formations were fascinating. Indeed a marvellous place for geologists and nature lovers alike..One wonders what nature can do!!! After this, we set out to Araku which is a village inhabited by tribal people. Nothing much to see over there. The bus driver took us to a garden and museum.. but I was still captivated by Borra caves :). We were quite late in reaching Araku and hence missed a tribal dance :(. Anyways, after "watching" the village, we headed back to Vizag...reached there at about 9PM, had food and dozed off.
Next morning(27th Dec), we woke up at 5.30AM and headed to RK beach to s
ee sunrise. Seeing the sun rising from the horizon is a beautiful sight indeed. Its reflection in water is a sight to behold. We stayed there for sometime before going back to room. After that, we went to fishing harbour to do a boat ride into the sea. Later on, in the afternoon, we went to Simhachalam temple (Temple of lord NaraSimha Swami), which is about 1 hour journey from Vizag. We were back to city in the evening. We were already weighing our options of what to do next day. We were left with submarine museaum and couple of more beaches. Some people among us were planning to visit their relatives while I, along with couple of guys, had already decided to head back to Hyderabad. We boarded a volvo and reached Hyderabad next morning.. It felt kinda nice to be back among the busy streets and wayward traffic..kinda home.
Thats how this trip, which was never meant to happen, actually happened. Overall, considering the kind of fix we were in at the start of this trip, we did pretty well..and we were back in time also. All in all, a good vacation!!!
xed upon something bright..it was moon. C'mon, I know that I've seen it many times earlier but something seemed to be different.
totally unplanned journey.. we even had no idea in which city we will be going to). Anyways, we quickly found a dorm to put our luggage in and freshened up...had breakfast and then arranged a cab to go to a beach called 'Yarada Beach'.
c), we went to Borra caves and Araku by an APTDC package tour. Borra caves are naturally formed caves believed to be 150 million years old. The place was beyond my expectation. I was expecting a small cave but this place was big ..and extremely crowded. The rock formations were fascinating. Indeed a marvellous place for geologists and nature lovers alike..One wonders what nature can do!!! After this, we set out to Araku which is a village inhabited by tribal people. Nothing much to see over there. The bus driver took us to a garden and museum.. but I was still captivated by Borra caves :). We were quite late in reaching Araku and hence missed a tribal dance :(. Anyways, after "watching" the village, we headed back to Vizag...reached there at about 9PM, had food and dozed off.
ee sunrise. Seeing the sun rising from the horizon is a beautiful sight indeed. Its reflection in water is a sight to behold. We stayed there for sometime before going back to room. After that, we went to fishing harbour to do a boat ride into the sea. Later on, in the afternoon, we went to Simhachalam temple (Temple of lord NaraSimha Swami), which is about 1 hour journey from Vizag. We were back to city in the evening. We were already weighing our options of what to do next day. We were left with submarine museaum and couple of more beaches. Some people among us were planning to visit their relatives while I, along with couple of guys, had already decided to head back to Hyderabad. We boarded a volvo and reached Hyderabad next morning.. It felt kinda nice to be back among the busy streets and wayward traffic..kinda home.
