Weekend Trip to Gandikota and Belum Caves

A small village tucked away in wilderness, that’s the first impression you get of Gandikota.

As you set out to explore the ruins of what was once a huge fort, walking through the pebbled paths, with the fresh air, rugged villagers and their cattle for company, you absorb the sheer tranquility of the place, the sound of silence it offers and the history it speaks of.

We booked an overnight sleeper bus from Hyd to Tadipatri (Diwaker Travels). From there we had to take a bus to a town called Jammalamadugu (took around 2 hours); then another bus to Gandikota (took about 20 min). The frequency of buses from Jammalamadugu to Gandikota is as low as twice a day. Autorickshaws are also available in this stretch.

Throughout the journey, you can see the generous use of Cuddapah slabs in the construction of tea shops, houses, temples, benches; practically anything and everything!

The only hotel and restaurant in Gandikota is the ‘Haritha Resort’ run by the APTDC. The bus stops right in front of it. The entrance of the hotel itself is built like a fort wall, complete with a watch point. The hotel has both A/C and non A/C rooms. Though the staff is not very technology-friendly, it is better to book your rooms online before reaching - especially if you are travelling during the weekends. Some of the rooms have a terrace which gives good scenic views.

The restaurant serves hot and spicy Andhra meals for lunch – complete with pappu, pickle, koora, rasam, papad, curd and rice, and offers limited choice for dinner like fried rice, tomato curry and roti.

You can explore Gandikota in about 3 hours’ time - request for a guide at the APTDC. (Un)fortunately, most guides were busy with folks from the Archaeological Survey of India as the officials are now trying for a Heritage status for the Gandikota fort.

So, we started on foot and headed for the fort, came across a ‘Charminar’ (yes, there’s one here too!). As we proceeded, we saw the Granary. A small diversion on the left lead us to the mighty Madhavaraya Temple, the gopuram is tall, beautiful and eroded at places. The temple is now a monument and the idols have been removed. Just outside the temple, we noticed a board called ‘Royal Bath’; the adventurers in us tread down the path, which lead to a rather deserted gorge (probably the fort gorge view point). A man driving his goats home told us there was a ‘cheruvu’ ahead. The water was scant, the climb was tough with thorns and wild grass catching at our dresses, but the view was terrific.

Charminar

Deserted Gorge

Deserted Gorge 2

We proceeded next to Jama Masjid, Ranganatha Swamy Temple and the Gandikota Gorge View Point. The gorge view point is breathtakingly beautiful. You can spend hours looking at the green waters of the Penna river passing through the deep valleys of red granite. So picturesque, that the colour contrast will remain vivid in your memory. We were the only proud folks who caught the sunrise at the gorge view point the next day morning. J

Gorge view point

We breakfasted, checked out and boarded the return bus to Jammalamadugu. The driver, however had a different plan for us and took us uphill to Gandikotala Palli. The journey consisted of hairpin bends which was marvelous for clicking panoramic views of the Gandikota fort walls. It was a treat to the eye-red against green! What seemed to be a quiet hill with a few houses was also a windmill farm for companies like Suzlon Energy Ltd!

Our journey continued from G.Kotala Palli to J.Madugu to Belum Caves, which took about 3 hours.

These caves are believed to be used by Buddhist monks for penance ages ago. Places of interest include – Banyan Tree Hall, Thousand Hoods, Patalaganga, Kotilingalu Chamber, Meditation Hall and the stalagmite formations. At the mouth of the caves, there is a list and a map showing the places of interest. Overall, a good experience of mazes underground.

We boarded a bus back to Tadipatri and dined at the sole AC restaurant (which we found after a lot of hunting) in the town. Headed home in a pre-booked sleeper bus (again, Diwaker Travels) with the satisfaction of having spent the weekend well.

Patalaganga

Points to note:

1.       Gandikota:  

·         You could probably trek down to the river from near the gorge view point, but better to do so with the help of a guide.

·         Kayaking is available – do get the details from the APTDC guys if you are game.

·         Though you may be the only tourist at a given spot at a given time, enjoy the tranquility. You will get it only as long as Gandikota remains non-commercialized.

2.       Belum Caves:

·         The caves are humid and mushy at places - it is advisable to wear light clothing and appropriate footwear/shoes.

·         Though there are plenty of places in the campus where you can take an afternoon nap, you can’t plan to lunch as only light refreshments are available.

A weekend trip to Hampi

Hotel booking – check

Train tickets – check

Bags, camera – check, check and..Action!

My better half and I boarded the 23:10 to Hampi from Nampally. We had chosen what seemed to be the last daily train from Hyderabad station, both the station and us were waiting for the train to come and catch up on our sleep!

Day1:

We started the day in the morning with hot and oily samosas at Guntakal station. The train reached Hospet Jn (the nearest town to Hampi) by around 10:30. We caught an auto to the Hospet bus-stand, which is about 1.5 kms from the station and boarded a bus to Hampi. They have buses every half an hour and we got comfortable seats for the journey to the old temple city of Hampi.

The hotel where we had reserved a room – Hotel Gowri is located on the other side of the river; we took the ferry and rented a bike. Let me warn you here, that the petrol is a hoarded commodity near the river, (as there is just a single petrol pump in this side of the river) and could burn a hole in your pocket at Rs.100 a litre! Apart from that, renting a bike is perhaps the best and most economical way to explore Hampi on the other side of the river.

We somehow drove through the narrow, busy, kuccha streets of Hampi and onto the main road, almost four kilometers in all to reach our quaint hotel by noon. The hotel is run by a father-son duo, warm and host-ly (I guess that is what brings them more customers, who are ready to take the long ride). The lush, green paddy fields smiled at us from the yard of our ‘bamboo hut’, energizing us with their freshness. We lunched at the hotel; they serve good, home-cooked food. We planned to tour this side of Hampi first.

Bamboo huts - Hotel Gowri, view from Sanapur Lake

We set off on our rented bike (a TVS Excel) on a 14km trip, the farthest point being Chintamani Temple (famous for Lord Rama’s feet carved in stone and the spot where Vali and Sugreeva fought). We next headed to Durga temple, which is located on a hill-top. Tired out by the scorching heat, we paused for our usual siesta, this time on the rocks at the foot of the hills. We rode next to Pampa Sarovar; the place has two small ponds and a temple of Goddess Laxmi. The now agreeable sun reminded us that we better pay him a visit as he sets down for the day. We drove forward to Anjani Parbat and climbed up a challenging 580 rock-cut steps to reach the birthplace of Lord Hanuman. There are temples dedicated to both the Lord and his mother. The mountain-top is a much sought-after sunset spot, which offers a splendid view of the fields and the hillocks below. Definitely worth the climb! (And the only way to manage the climb is either to count the steps or chant Hanuman Chalisa; I leave it to your imagination on what we chose).

It’s practically difficult to drive around in Hampi after 6 pm, given that there are almost no street lights and that you’ve to fight swarms of flies against your face instead of just the wind!

Having enough taste of adventure for the day and with no eagerness to taste flies, we went back to hotel and dined. We tucked in early, with the sound of the crickets chirping in the fields as our lullaby!!

Day 2:

We breakfasted, rode to the Boat Point and took a ferry across (it costs Rs.10 per head one way). The moment our boat reached across, atleast 8-10 auto rickshaw drivers were trying to get their savaari. Be warned! For their target customers are usually foreigners and they tend to charge you quite a bit; you can find cheaper rides near the Hampi bazaar covering the same spots. An auto rickshaw ride is the best way to travel if you are on a short visit.

We took a full-day tour package which covered the Ganesha temples, Lakshmi Narasimha Temple, Bidavilinga, Krishna temple & Krishna bazaar, Siva temple built by the emperor for his parents, Lotus Mahal, Elephant Stables, museum & watch Tower, Hazarerama Temple & Pan bazaar, ruins of old palace & the newly built stepped pushkarni and the Queen’s bath. We stopped for lunch at ‘Food Point’, a vegetarian dhaba with stone tables and mats instead of chairs.

Elephant Stables

Post lunch, we headed to the world heritage-UNESCO protected Vittala Temple (which has the famous stone chariot that comes to one’s mind when one hears the word ‘Hampi’). The temple is situated about 2km away from the gate; the archaeological authorities have battery operated cars which take you to the entrance of the temple. The temple complex has a lot of architectural marvels and history to it.

There are plenty of shops in and around all these spots, where you can stop for a lime soda, sugarcane juice (a must-have) or a popsicle to beat the heat.

Day 3:

We took a walk in the morning to Sanapur Lake (more a dam than a lake), which is very near to our hotel. We checked out from the hotel and went for a long ride by the fields before returning our loyal bike. Took a ferry across and killed time by shopping in Hampi bazaar. The Lambada women sell hand-crafted jewelry and bags; available only on this side of the river. I bought a couple of bracelets as a memoir :) We lunched and boarded a bus to Hospet, walked to the station, and boarded the train back home.

 A few things which may come in use to travelers:

a)      Most temples located on the other side of the river are active, you may want to pack chappals instead of shoes, not much trekking to do here except for the Anjani Parbat.

b)      All temples located on the main side except the Virupaksha temple are now monuments. Footwear is permitted inside the shrines as well.

c)      Petrol is available in local shops on the other side of the river at Rs.70-80 per litre.

d)      Many restaurants and hotels serve hot and refreshing chai in tall glasses-must try.

e)      Carry enough cash with you; most places do not accept cards.

f)       Check the weather before you pack; light clothing would be a good choice for the humid daytime and woolens/heavy clothing for the night.

Bidar Trip

Location: Hyderabad

Destination: Bidar

Day 1 Bidar – 6^th December, Saturday

We boarded an N.E.K.R.T.C bus near Shaikpet by 8:45AM*; a happy couple, we breakfasted and reached Bidar by noon. Witnessing a Punjabi wedding baraat procession marked our entry into the Central Bus Station (CBS).

On reaching, we went in search of a hotel and checked in to Aditya Lodge as the hotels which we had looked up in the internet, Mayura Hotel and Shiva International, were fully booked due to the Punjabi wedding. We lunched at an Udupi hotel.

We took a bus to Narasimha Zarani Cave Temple, being a Saturday, it was heavily recommended by folks at the lodge as well as the hotel, that we have a darshan.

After depositing our bags and spare clothes (which is a must-take) in the locker room, we waited for almost two hours in queue, in the scorching heat before stepping into the cool water inside the cave (which was muddy, by the way). The waterway leading to the temple is almost 4 feet deep; we waded through, with devotees, floating puris and cockroaches for company (this is why the temple closes by 6pm). It was quite a thrilling experience. J
Bathed and changed in the temple premises and on our way back to the bus stop, we stopped for refreshing lemonade and pineapple juice.
Boarded, rather, stuffed ourselves into the extremely crowded half-hourly bus back to CBS.

We headed to the Gurudwara after having piping hot tea at Sree Durga.
The approach road to the Gurudwara is quite a dark and steep descend. Inside, we found a colourful fountain, a carpeted prayer hall, water for washing the feet at every major structure/shrine, a huge building called the Guru Gobind Yatri Nivas, a dining hall (Langar) and well maintained gardens and courtyards. Tasty prasaad similar to the tambram 'thiruvaathira kali' loaded with ghee was being distributed in the prayer hall. The Gurudwara is famous for the Amrit Kund – a perennial fountain of clear sweet water.

We had dinner at Rohit restaurant, the pudina chutney was different and delicious (a must-have, I say), haribari roti and butter roti, paneer labab(i)dar and washed it down with yummy buttermilk and lassi.
   
Day 2 Bidar – 7th December, Sunday

We checked out and headed for a tea at yesterday's Sree Durga Family Restaurant who disappointed us today with the taste. Maybe the regular chaiwala there took an off on Sunday!

Set off on foot for the Gurudwara, took a few photos as our camera could capture good photos in natural sunlight. We had breakfast at the Langar where chappathi, green dal, aloo and chaawal were served.

Arch marking the approach road to the Gurudwara

Once again took the steep climb up towards the town, re-energized ourselves with a cup of delicious tea from tea point, compensating for the morning chai, and walked along satisfied.

We took an auto to the clock tower (choubara), madrasa and Bidar fort.  All of these spots are now archaeologically protected and have been declared as a heritage spot. The architecture dates back to the 15^th Century AD, the period of the Bahmani kings. The Mahamud Gawan Madrasa is partially destroyed, though one can still find fragments of tile work and marble inlay work and Quarani writings on the walls.

Inside the Bidar Fort, there is the Bronze canon, Solah Masjid – the mosque where the Mughal King Aurangzeb offered prayers to his father on conquering Bidar.

The old fort, partly in ruins, is said to have many underground passages leading to Hyderabad and other cities, though we were very much game to take that route back home, much to our dismay, they were gated and sealed, as were most of the structures inside such as the diwan-i-khaas and diwan-i-aam. The roads inside the fort run upto 5.5 kms, so you can imagine how big and strong a fort that would’ve been! Our photographer-cum-guide-cum-auto driver told us that a song (‘Ishq Sufiyana’) from The Dirty Picture has been shot in the fort.

We also wanted to visit the Rangeen Mahal, apparently it’s not open to public and one needs to take permission in advance.

We bought token curios of Bidari work from near the old fort area. The work is expensive yet intricate since the carvings are made of silver on zinc. (Husbands beware!)

Curios of Bidari work

We headed next to Papanash Shiva temple which is around 2km from the central bus stand. En-route to the temple is a park, which did not find a place on our agenda as it was a sunny day.
We lunched at Sree Durga and waited for bus at CBS. Since it was a Sunday, the buses to Hyderabad were heavily crowded, especially the A.P.S.R.T.C ones, we decided to skip a few crowded ones. As the wait and heat had both tired us, we went to Rohit Restaurant again for their wonderfully refreshing buttermilk.
At around 3:45 PM, fighting our way through, we landed ourselves seats in 'Suhas' bus (which goes from Hyd to Blr), reaching the city by around 7:00PM.

Overall, we felt Bidar was a secular place, with its mosques, churches, age-old temples and gurudwara, with each place having a tale to tell. It was definitely a good weekend getaway!

*Buses to Bidar usually depart from BHEL, Lingampally or MGBS at Hyderabad.

What will I do if I run my own office?

Again, related to CA-commerce..? Don’t groan..just read; I promise it’ll be fun! Not all accountants are boring, you’ll find!! J

Articleship, an ocean by itself, an albatross around your neck if you don’t ‘watch it’ and a boon if you know how to ‘handle it’! It’s actually a pretty much interesting phase as you get to meet the maximum number of clients, offices, corporate cultures, people at work and at the clients’, followed by the maximum number of files, assessment orders, returns, revisions, vagera vagera.. again followed by maximum amount of what-do-you-call-its from the clients as well and maybe even from your principal chartered accountant which maybe as a result of a client meeting!!! ;)

So typically since we have 3 full years here, we have a good scope to cover a lot of areas right? Broadly we have audits, tax, accounts mostly and consultancy which gets interlinked on and off. Being an articled assistant myself, I sometimes wonder what I would do when I start an office or when I run my own office. Ok reader, whatever you do, don’t dare to spill these out as my blog is my copyright!! We got a deal right? J

So here goes..a peek at the future..:)

“The day starts, as I walk in, my articles and staff greet by saying ‘Good morning ma’am!!’ ‘good day srini!!’ I give a warm smile and proceed to my office.”

Ok enough about me, now the real focus is not on me, but on my articles and staff, teek hain? So what would I do for them?

If new guy joins, I’ll give him a handbook about the firm’s clientele, a quick look at what work we do and have done and what he needs to read up on before starting an audit or a work. Also familiarise him with the office procedures, rules and task allotment-performance-reporting-follow up flowchart . . which will be the ultimate flowchart of brilliance!! ;) Timely guidance, updates, discussions at the end of each assignment/ team meetings and what not!!

Let me tell you that going for audits in corporates educates you on the practicality of organisation structure and management stuff you might have come across such as delegation of responsibility, authority, etc. It is the clarity in the structure and the fact that you can actually adopt it is what enhances its awesomeness!

One interesting thing I noticed during one of my recent audits was this client company of ours..they have a huge LCD tv in their cafeteria and also a billiards table!!

“All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy”..Eureka! an idea strikes!! When I see my friends cringing in their seats, not able to sit and watch the full final of FIFA or IPL or World Cup, mercilessly poking their mobile phones, craning their necks to peer at the next guy’s monitor to catch up on the scores..!! it makes me think about our brilliant client here, I say why not a tv in my office where people can actually take time off in between work while feeling tired or exhausted; where they can catch up on the news as well! (as we now do, secretly hoping for strikes or hartals!!) and maybe even sit and watch a Federer - Nadal final game-set-and-match point as a full office team and shut out the clients for a while?! Let’s call it a stress-buster?!

Party!!! Atleast once a year..maybe on foundation day (we have that in our office..kinda)..that’s good enough as we aint being partial to anyone’s birthdays!!

Road trips..weekends off..client-staff-convenience timings..bonus half day off to go watch a movie if you complete your work before your target time or if a client’s really happy with you..treat if anyone gets an Income tax refund.

Adequate seniors and knowledge bearers to guide the freshers and just like how the MCA site offers info about companies if you feed in the name, maybe I’ll have a site or program whereby each client’s status and diverse scope or areas can be viewed and updated by us, of course paper files are inevitable but this would be awesome too, don’t u think??..oh and also something similar for my staff too, where they can update their work status online for their seniors or me to review and comment so that one doesn’t have to physically wait for another..Just like how factories have plant shut-down, I’ll also have an office shut-down for a couple of days, especially after the return filing rushhhh!!!

Yes yes I know I’ll make a brilliant CA.!! J

Management: Manage my every nazhikai of time.

Hey, this is my very first attempt at blogging. So to start with, I thought I’d just write about, rather try writing about something I’m quite comfortable with.

So here we go! We all muse, don’t we? Well one day, as I was sitting in the terrace on a breezy evening, I was just musing (as it always happens, cool breeze brings more clarity to my thought process!) ya I was basically thinking as to how do we go about being confident and inspirational like management gurus. I happened to have read a short story on how Narayana Murthy built his empire as it stands today...how Subroto Bagchi gave insight on a lot of aspects of simple and yet sophisticated management principles and ethics with his crystal clear examples. Needless to say, I was and still am fascinated by these real-life examples and would love to experience something interesting in my life too!...in fact, i think I have started to! Surprised? Read on..!!

Lesson History 1... (No, it aint a history lesson!)

We seldom realise that the first lessons of management come from our own home, our own family. When I was a kid, my amma, resident management guru 1, used to tell me to keep my study table tidy ,iron my clothes, polish my shoes, set my next day’s time-table for school, keep my clothes in my wardrobe, no picking up fights at school, no dirtying my uniform, etc..you know, the list could go on...you would probably think she might actually stop bossing you around when you are nineteen, but no, amma will always be amma, she will grow with you as you grow and always help you manage your stuff in a better way and the bossing becomes a blessing!! J  My father, resident management guru 2, used to make sure that he spent enough time with me and my brother in spite of his hectic schedule, gave us also his love for travel, and his inherent specialty of analysing situations from a zillion angles leading to utter confusion, but ultimately it was he who made me choose this particular stream of career for which I am only too happy to be part of! Speaking of my brother, resident but not-ordinarily-resident management guru 3, with whom I can share anything and expect him to understand because of the maturity of age, even something silly bothering me will sound even sillier as he makes it goes away with his humour..that gives me a lesson of attitude; my grandparents who are still way more patient than my mom and dad...;) ; my teachers at school who imparted discipline in me and shaped up my character in addition to academics; friends who actually show me what is lacking by teasing me, helping me out in situations of despair; and seniors who became role-models of leadership and motivation. Ok listen...I really did not intend to make it sound like a vote of thanks but you know, it is true, and all I want to say is that my basic sense of management comes from my mother and father, my brother, grandparents, my teachers, friends and seniors too!

Lesson History 2

You might be expecting me to write something about life at college? Na, instead I can tell you how people at an accounting firm can give you your management lessons! (This may also explain as to why I chose to write on this topic and why my first blog post might sound like I borrowed some lines from an audit report..;) and also I have never been to college so I can’t go about making up stuff about that now, can I? ;) !!!)

So one year at a firm and what do I learn? Timings...deadlines...clients...client history...moods, tempers...audits...return filing...punching & setting files...meetings...sleepy hours at work and how a cup of coffee and some chit-chat can help you socialise and recover from the not-so-interesting-at-the-moment files! To observe, learn and understand your boss and the people with whom you work is very important in an office environment. In your first few months, you learn the basic stuff, such as punching papers and filing them, how to prepare working papers, etc...as you progress, you learn about professional conduct and ethics in a client’s place; why, even in my own office, I get to interact with people of different age groups, their experience and maturity has moulded me into a better person!  How ... Well, if you must know, a firm has a clear set of objectives to be achieved which is not the case as in Lesson History 1; but this doesn’t mean that I can’t apply my basic sense of management’s foundation lessons ; in fact only when I start applying my basics do I actually have any scope for improving myself!! Luckily for me, I have good seniors and my best buddies with me at office, so I can always knowingly or unknowingly ‘manage’ myself. Well I still have many years to go and let’s see how I turn out to be..years which will make up the rest of my "lesson history"s!

Well I sure hope that I can keep making my life interesting with experiences and who knows, maybe one day I’ll become a famous Management Guru! ...:)