Vishakapatnam
Vishakapatnam boasts of serene lakes, cool beaches,
beautiful hill ranges, caves and valleys. A visit to Vishakhapatnam
is sure to be an exciting experience with beaches, caves and temples. The city
is also known as Vizag and is surrounded by three hills, each of which belongs
to a different religion - Venkateswara temple, Baba Ishaq Madina Dargah and
Church of the Virgin Mary on Rose hill.
Vishakapatnam boasts of a beautiful beach with a long beach road ending at
nearly Bheemunipatnam on the northern end. The surrounding area is dominated on
the west by the well-forested Eastern Ghats and farther east is drained by
rivers Godavari and Indravati.
Vishakapatnam is an important shipbuilding centre; the
first steamer to be built in India was launched in Vishakhapatnam's harbors in
1948. There are major industries like ship building, oil refinery, fertilizers,
petrochemicals and steel mills. Agriculture is the main occupation of the region.
Vizag enjoys tropical climate with temperatures ranging from 25°C to 36°C in summers and 19.6°C to 28°C in winters.
History of Vishakapatnam
According to historical tales, the city was named after the
god 'Valor-Vishakha'. It was a part of the Kalinga Kingdom,under Ashoka's rule in 260 B.C. After the Ashoka rule Pallava, Chola and Ganga dynasties ruled the city. In the 15th century, Vishakhapatnam became a part of the Vijayanagar Empire.
The Europeans, the Dutch, the French and the English established themselves
from the 17th century onwards and used this as a major trading center to export
textiles, ivory, tobacco, indigo etc. You will find considerable documentation
about this port city in Indian historical records as also the histories of
these colonial powers.
Shopping in Vishakapatnam
Vizag is better known as an industrial centre, but in reality it is a city of shopkeepers. Earlier the
area around Kurupam market with its narrow lanes and small shops, was famous for gold and silver shopping.
Now jewelry shops have sprung up in the area in Dwaraka Nagar on the other side of TSR complex. Don't miss the area extending
from Jagadamba Junction to the Old Post Office as it is choc-a-bloc with shops selling a wide variety of items. You can pick up saris from Chandana Brothers,Bommana, Puchala, among other popular shops. The government owned Lepakshi is the place for handicraft.
Vishakapatnam tour
Visakhapatnam has some of the safest beaches in the entire south coast line of the country. The R K Beach is the best place to have fun with water within the city. For tourists, a museum is set up on the beach road. The Submarine museum, the first Museum in Asia was built off a submarine.
The Keertana Vanamu Beach resort developed by VUDA offers water Boat rides, theme Parks
- an ideal place to spend weekends.Bheemunipatnam is a beach town with good beach resorts which makes Vizag a preferred tourism destination.
Tourists to Vizag should not miss The Indira Gandhi Zoological Park which is located at the outskirts of the city.
The Simhachalam Temple - the temple of Lord Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swami, built
by King Krishnadevaraya is a famous temple. Boudharamam, Saligudam, Sankaram and Devipuram are
areas of ancient Indian heritatge. There are many Buddhist
Shrines in Visakhapatnam and also the temple of Arasavalli Sun God
- Sri Suryanarayana Swamy in Arasavalli.
Other Places to Visit in Visakapatnam
Light House, The Ross Hill, Dolphin Nose, Paderu, Dutch Cemetry at Bheemunipatnam, Chodavaram, Anantagiri, and
many more.
Araku Valley
The Araku Valley is a must visit for any one visiting Vizag, nearly 115-km from the city. It is
also popularly known as Andhra's Ooty with its bracing climate, orchards and silvery
stream. The Ananthagiri Ghats attract tourists
not only from India but from abroad too.
Marvel at the scenic beauty at Kailasa Giri where we can find
greeny meadows, beautiful and well spread parks. The famous attraction of Aruku
valley is the 1 million year old Borra Caves which shows the magnificence
of colors in the natural cave formations. The caves are
spread over an area of 2 square kilometers. The caves were formed as a result
of the action of the waters of Gosthani River on the limestone terrain.
GETTING TO VIZAG
Vishakapatnam is 650 km from Hyderabad and 350 km from Vijayawada.
Regular bus services are available to Hyderabad,Vijayawada, Bhubaneswar, Chennai and Tirupati.
Vizag is a major junction on the commercially important Chennai-Kolkata rail line. As such the city is well connected by rail with New Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata and Hyderabad. It is connected by flights from Hyderabad,Chennai, Kolkata and Bhubaneshwar.
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