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January 26, 2008
Hi From Hyderabad on this fine Republic Day...
...and one true American's quest for Coke in India.
So, I've moved on from Delhi (India's capital) to a smaller city called Hyderabad. I went exploring in what's referred to as "Old Hyderabad" today. If you are as unfamiliar with India as I was 2 weeks ago then I'll fill you in on the "New" vs. "Old" concept. India is in a time of extreme growth both economically and politically, yet even this massive growth can't provide the infrastructure for the evolution of a country the size of India. So there exists two distinct classes within the country. There are those who lead a very westernized lifestyle. They work in large IT or telecom offices or software companies, they are less likely to live with their families as is Indian tradition and so on.
Then, there are those who lead the traditional indian lifestyle in a village-esque area and practice the traits we would normally associate with the region like living with parents and supporting their families as a merchant in a local market or farming or what have you.
Thus, each major city will have sections dedicated to the lifestyle, for instance in Delhi you will see Old Dehli, and New Delhi. In New Dehli you will see the towering glass skyscrapers and traffic that you would find in any major city of the world. Whereas, in Old Delhi, you will find the culture that is clearly indian complete with the markets and buildings designed around cultural traits.
My hotel is in New Hyderabad but I prefer to explore the "Old" areas of the city because I'm somewhat of a history fanatic and obviously the historical interests are in the "old" parts.
Today was spectacular and moreso than most because not only was I on a historic site quest, but it just so happens to be Republic day which is similar to the American Fourth of July, but they also have a separate independace day. Republic Day is a national holiday and Indians go all out for it. They paint the tricolour (their flag) on their cheeks and do parades. It was quite the spectacle. I'm so happy I was here to see it because I've witnessed a lot of westernization stealing their culture while I've been here but today their culture come out in full force and they were so proud to be of Indian heritige and I was proud for them!
After the Republic Day fun, I went to the Charminar (the name translates roughly to four pillars). I will share some of the photos as soon as I can find a USB cable to upload them LOL.
The Charminar is not as grand as the Taj Mahal obviously but it's a great example of the historical design and structures of India. I actually climbed the central structure which is suprisingly fortified considering they let people just climb right in it and you don't have to wear any special foot gear to preserve the structure like you do at the Taj. Inside it's very breath taking and the acoustics are brilliant. You can actually hear the footsteps of the people climbing the stairs from the top which is part of the design that helped guards anticipate intruders.
The structure has great Islamic influences in both design and purpose. In fact Hyderabad in general seems to have a more significant Islamic community than any of the areas I've visited up until now.
I also went to a fort called the Golconda Fortress. It has a rich history that actually predates Hyderabad itself. There I actually caught a sound and light show and presentation of the history of the fort, but sadly it took so long to get there it was too dark to snap any good photos. That's a shame because this place is what the average American would think of as a castle, complete with watchtowers and dungeon and all. It's very spectacular from a historical standpoint because you can actually chart the history of India up until the modern era by the fort's past... oh, and did I mention that Britian stole the diamond that adorned the plaza of Golconda and it currently resides in the British crown jewels? Yeah Golconda was also a diamond mine. In fact, Hyderabad is known for it's perls and you would certainly know it based on the Old Hyderabad's market.
I also went to the market. It's pretty famous throughout India for the jewelry you'll find there, I didn't buy anything because I'm not good at the whole bartering system but I saw quite a few shops before my poor health got the best of me. Fat kids like me really shouldn't walk too much it endangers our pudge and all LOL.
On that note, you would not believe how tough it is to find Coca Cola in India! And god knows I refuse to deny my rightful American entitlement to a frosty cold Coke on a hot day! Oh yeah, it was like 80 some degrees today which is hot considering that back home it's like 40 at most. So, I made my poor driver stop at like every grocery store on the trip home to dash out and try and procure coca cola. Finally I hit a store that had some and cold ones at that so I bought them out. Pepsi certainly has the Indian market.
Later
Posted by Decemberice at January 26, 2008 09:02 AM
Comments
Hey,
Glad you are having so much fun. Enjoy that hot weather, we hit 11 degrees today with sleet. Can't wait to see more pics.
Posted by: jessie at January 26, 2008 08:32 PM
The other day at work the coke machine wouldn't take my dollar, and it made me sad. I refused to have pepsi so I drank shasta...lol. Vanilla coke is really good though.... my favorite abouve all.
Sounds like you had quite a day exploring...the history of that place is interesting.
Posted by: Austin at January 28, 2008 12:30 PM