Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Wedding Invitation
Today someone walked up to my cube and handed me a wedding invitation. He didn't introduce himself but apparently he knew my name because it's on the invitation! Turns out all of the expats on our floor were invited, although we're still confused about who this guy is!
Taj Krishna
Here are some pictures of my hotel. It's really nice.... I'm getting spoiled. I'm going to expect Phil to wear white gloves and call me "Madam" when I come home.
View of the grounds from my room. In the distance you can see the lake and there's a Buddha statue in it.
This is my new room. I like the wood floors better than carpet. I'm usually obsessive about always wearing flip-flops or slippers in a hotel room, but these floors are brand new.
Fishies in the pools & fountains outside
Sitting area just down the hall from the lobby
View of the grounds from my room. In the distance you can see the lake and there's a Buddha statue in it.
This is my new room. I like the wood floors better than carpet. I'm usually obsessive about always wearing flip-flops or slippers in a hotel room, but these floors are brand new.
Fishies in the pools & fountains outside
Sitting area just down the hall from the lobby
Thank goodness for globalization
Indian McDonald's may be gross, but Indian Subway is hardly any different from home! Although they do measure the subs in centimeters, I can still get a turkey sub, which was a nice change from the Zone bars I've been having for lunch every day for the past 2 weeks. But beware the Subway club... instead of roast beef it has roast lamb!
Monday, October 29, 2007
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Christmas Comes Early for Court
Hyderabad is known as the "City of Pearls." Here's the history:
The storied wealth amassed under the 200-year reign of Hyderabad's Nizams naturally called forth a precious-jewellery industry. From the year 1724, when the Mughal governor Asaf Jah titled himself Nizam al-Mulk and established his rule over central India's Deccan plateau, until 1948, when the Nizam VII Osman Ali Khan's authority was forcibly superseded by the Indian Army, untold quantities of gems and pearls passed through the Hyderabad's jewel shops on Patthargatti Road. Under the Nizams there was always peace and always a strong demand for gems. The mines close to the Golconda fort gave the world the Hope and Kohinoor diamonds, now in the Smithsonian Institution and the British coronation crown respectively. Diamonds aplenty there once were, but it is pearls that have, over time, left the boldest mark on Hyderabadi culture and trade, and today it is the city's pearl dealers who are champions of the jewellery market.
Once retrieved from the fastness of the sea, pearls in historic days reached India in two ways: from the Gulf of Mannar in Ceylon (modern Sri Lanka) via the south Indian city of Madurai, and from the Arabian Gulf via the port of Goa. Then, the finest quality pearls were said to be Ceylonese; they were uniformly white, and they were rare. Today, Ceylonese pearls are unknown in Hyderabad, but the slightly yellowish ones from the Arabian Gulf, known as Basra pearls, are readily available both in newly restrung necklaces and in precious old settings. In Patthargatti's shops—some open to the hot city breeze, others crisply air-conditioned—the pearls most commonly sold today are the freshwater variety from China. Emeralds and rubies aside, however, Hyderabad does seem an odd city to be at the top of the pearl trade. The ocean is some 325 kilometers distant, and, commercially speaking, the city is a relative backwater compared to booming Mumbai and Bangalore. But any expert will tell you that Hyderabad's commercial position is due to "the high quality and low cost of labor." A visit to his processing centre confirms that behind almost every door in Patthargatti there are pearl sorters, drillers and stringers, each with hundreds of years of family experience.
So, after our brief trip to Charminar, Muzzafar took Tim and me to a jewelry store. I have always wanted to own a nice pearl necklace. And Tim needed to buy some to placate his wife because he's been gone 6 weeks! Muzzafar knew just the place, a store called Swati. I swear, I only intended to buy one single-stranded pearl necklace and I didn't want to spend more than $100. I have never really cared much for jewelry so I figured it would be easy.
I seriously underestimated the power of jewelry over a woman.
After over an hour of hard bargaining with the owner, I walked out of Swati a thoroughly satisfied customer. For less than his original asking price of the single-pearl necklace with the hanging diamond (pictured below), I got that necklace plus a double-strand of pearls plus a pair of earrings. Oh my gosh!!!! I am so happy!!!!
The storied wealth amassed under the 200-year reign of Hyderabad's Nizams naturally called forth a precious-jewellery industry. From the year 1724, when the Mughal governor Asaf Jah titled himself Nizam al-Mulk and established his rule over central India's Deccan plateau, until 1948, when the Nizam VII Osman Ali Khan's authority was forcibly superseded by the Indian Army, untold quantities of gems and pearls passed through the Hyderabad's jewel shops on Patthargatti Road. Under the Nizams there was always peace and always a strong demand for gems. The mines close to the Golconda fort gave the world the Hope and Kohinoor diamonds, now in the Smithsonian Institution and the British coronation crown respectively. Diamonds aplenty there once were, but it is pearls that have, over time, left the boldest mark on Hyderabadi culture and trade, and today it is the city's pearl dealers who are champions of the jewellery market.
Once retrieved from the fastness of the sea, pearls in historic days reached India in two ways: from the Gulf of Mannar in Ceylon (modern Sri Lanka) via the south Indian city of Madurai, and from the Arabian Gulf via the port of Goa. Then, the finest quality pearls were said to be Ceylonese; they were uniformly white, and they were rare. Today, Ceylonese pearls are unknown in Hyderabad, but the slightly yellowish ones from the Arabian Gulf, known as Basra pearls, are readily available both in newly restrung necklaces and in precious old settings. In Patthargatti's shops—some open to the hot city breeze, others crisply air-conditioned—the pearls most commonly sold today are the freshwater variety from China. Emeralds and rubies aside, however, Hyderabad does seem an odd city to be at the top of the pearl trade. The ocean is some 325 kilometers distant, and, commercially speaking, the city is a relative backwater compared to booming Mumbai and Bangalore. But any expert will tell you that Hyderabad's commercial position is due to "the high quality and low cost of labor." A visit to his processing centre confirms that behind almost every door in Patthargatti there are pearl sorters, drillers and stringers, each with hundreds of years of family experience.
So, after our brief trip to Charminar, Muzzafar took Tim and me to a jewelry store. I have always wanted to own a nice pearl necklace. And Tim needed to buy some to placate his wife because he's been gone 6 weeks! Muzzafar knew just the place, a store called Swati. I swear, I only intended to buy one single-stranded pearl necklace and I didn't want to spend more than $100. I have never really cared much for jewelry so I figured it would be easy.
I seriously underestimated the power of jewelry over a woman.
After over an hour of hard bargaining with the owner, I walked out of Swati a thoroughly satisfied customer. For less than his original asking price of the single-pearl necklace with the hanging diamond (pictured below), I got that necklace plus a double-strand of pearls plus a pair of earrings. Oh my gosh!!!! I am so happy!!!!
Trip to Charminar
Today began with a trip to Charminar, which is a landmark here in Hyderabad. It was kind of crazy. I guess the locals here aren't as used to tourists as they are, say, at the Taj Mahal. I went with my driver, Muzzafar, and another expat named Tim. The first time someone asked to take our pictures, Tim was like, "Wow! This is awesome! I'm famous!" But the novelty wore off quickly. We posed for a few pictures with people who asked. Then I had about 5 Indian guys surround me for a picture and that was kind of awkward. So after that I just pretended not to hear when people asked for "snaps"!
Here I am at the top of Charminar with a view of the city street below. Like my shirt? It's one that I got from Sakhi's sister! It's very comfortable!!!
The inside of the structure (picture taken from upstairs)
Yup, this is pretty much what traffic is like here. And no, I have not ridden in one of the little 3-wheeled cabs, nor do I intend to.
Here I am at the top of Charminar with a view of the city street below. Like my shirt? It's one that I got from Sakhi's sister! It's very comfortable!!!
The inside of the structure (picture taken from upstairs)
Yup, this is pretty much what traffic is like here. And no, I have not ridden in one of the little 3-wheeled cabs, nor do I intend to.
Saturday, October 27, 2007
Trip to the Nehru Zoo
Sadly, there were no elephant rides at the zoo as promised. I will spare you all of the boring animal pictures that I took. There are just 2 post-worthy pictures.
1) Is this a potato tree? For the life of me I can't figure out what kind of tree this was. Yes, I know that potatoes do not grow on trees, but it sure looks like it.
2) Priceless.
1) Is this a potato tree? For the life of me I can't figure out what kind of tree this was. Yes, I know that potatoes do not grow on trees, but it sure looks like it.
2) Priceless.
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