HYDERABAD

Hyderabad - with the twin city of Secunderabad - is the capital of Andhra Pradesh. In the heart of the city is an arcde triomphe, the Char Minar, built in the sixteenth century to mark the conquest of plague. The four minarets of the Char Minar stand 55 metres high. Hyderabad is picturesque sprawling city and its importance is that it is here that northern India blends with southern India.

The Salar Jung Museum is reputed to contain one of the finest oneman collections in the world, displaying what was brought together by Nawab Salar Jung III, one-time Prime Minister of the Princely State of Hyderabad. The museum's 36 halls are filled with some of the finest treasures in crystal and porcelain, statues, precious stones, miniature paintings, famous jewelled weapons like Empress Nur Jehan's dagger and the Nawab's own diamond encrusted sword. 10 kms from Hyderabad, on the summit of a hill, stands the fort of Golconda, circled by a granite wall with 76 bastions. Historically, the fort withstood Aurangazeb's imperial armies for a decade. The famous Kohinoor is said to have come from Golconda, which was a renowned market for diamonds from the neighbouring mines.