Indian Travel

THE DECCAN, Monday January 25th to Wednesday February 10th 2010
With George Michell and Quo Vadis Pvt Ltd

Mon Jan 25 depart London on a daylight flight, arriving Bombay late night; on arrival, met and transferred to hotel. (Taj Lands End)

Tues Jan 26 transfer to airport for the flight to Indore (Jet Lite S2- 661 – 10:50AM/11:50AM); picnic lunch en route to Maheshwar (97 km/2.5 hours) (Ahilya Fort) (BLD).

Maheshwar is situated on the great Narmada river and is one of the seats of
the Holkar dynasty. Queen Ahilyabai, who ruled over a large part of
Maharastra, built the temple that lies beside the fort. Maheshwar is famous
for its silk weaving and we shall visit the weavers as well as a local school.

Wed Jan 27 sightseeing and leisure time at Maheshwar (BLD)

Thurs Jan 28 drive to Mandu (63 km/1.5 hours); sightsee all day
before returning to Maheshwar. (BLD)

Mandu, or The City of Joy, is situated on a high plateau in Madhya Pradesh. Occupied from the eleventh century it contains exquisite palaces, a mosque and the celebrated pavilion built by the poet prince Baz Bahadur to celebrate the love for his queen Roopmati.

Fri Jan 29 morning at leisure. Afternoon drive to Indore to connect flight to Hyderabad (Kingfisher Airlines IT2802 – 7:00PM/10:15PM); met on arrival and transferred to hotel, a drive of about one hour (Taj Banjara) (BLD)

Sat Jan 30 sightseeing and leisure time at Hyderabad (BLD)
In Hyderabad we shall see Golconda Fort, the Qtub Shahi tombs, the Purana Haveli, The Chowmahallah Palace, the Salar Jung Museum and the British Residency. There are further sightseeing opportunities. We shall also visit the workshop of Mrs Hasan, famous throughout India for her handloom silk weaving and her cottons. Mrs Hasan also runs a school for 400 children.

Sun Jan 31 sightseeing and leisure time at Hyderabad (BLD)

Mon Feb 01 sightseeing and leisure time at Hyderabad (BLD)

Tues Feb 02 drive to Bidar (136 km/3 hours), sightseeing all day before continuing to Gulbarga (110 km/2.5 hours)

(Sun International Hotel) (BLD)
Bidar lies at the start of our journey through the Deccan. It was the 15th century capital of the Bahmani dynasty and contains an enormous fort, a palace as well as the tombs at Ashtur, just outside the city.

Gulbarga was the Bahmani capital from 1347 until 1424. We visit the fort and the mosque as well as the tomb of the mystic Hazrut Gesu Daraz. This is a popular place of pilgrimage for Muslims from all over India.

Wed Feb 03 morning tour of Gulbarga; in the afternoon, drive to Bijapur (160 km/3 hours) (Hotel Madhuvan) (BLD)

Thurs Feb 04 full day sightseeing in Bijapur (BLD)
The prime minister of Bidar, Yusuf Adil Khan, established his headquarters here in 1494, bringing in a succession of Adil Shahi rulers, who flourished until the mid 17th century. The most important kings were Ibrahim II (1580 - 1627) and his son, Muhammed I (1627-1656).

There is much to see here but the three principal sites are the massive Gol Gumbaz, the Jami Mosque with its lovely mihrab and the incomparable tomb of Ibrahim Rauza, widely regarded as one of the most beautiful monuments in India.

Fri Feb 05 drive to Badami (162 km/4 hours); afternoon tour of Badami (Badami Court) (BLD)
At Badami we step back in time to the Hindu Chalyukas and visit the magnificent rock cut temples dating from the sixth century. Sat Feb 06 day excursion to Aihole and Pattadkal (65 km roundtrip) (BLD) both sites contain some of the earliest examples of temple
architecture in India. Pattadkal is a UNESCO world heritage site.

Sun Feb 07 drive to Hospet (170 km/4 hours); afternoon at Hampi/Vijaynagara (Krishna Palace) (BLD)
Hampi is one of the villages encompassed by Vijayanagara, the powerful 14th and 15th century Hindu kingdom of southern India. Set in a dramatic landscape of boulders and palm trees beside the Tungabhadra river, there is much to see here, including great temples, the royal enclave and the elephant stables. Hampi is also a UNESCO world heritage site.

Mon Feb 08 full day at Hampi/Vijayanagara (BLD)

Tues Feb 09 drive to Hubli (149 km/3 hours) to connect flight to Bombay (Kingfisher Airlines IT212210:20AM/12:05PM); met on arrival and transferred to hotel, with rooms held until the late night transfer to airport (Taj Lands End) (BLD)

Wed Feb 10 depart Bombay

Nett costs, valid for the dates stipulated for the tour, are as follows:
Per person twin sharing GBP 2,975/00
Single room supplement GBP 578/00

A deposit of GBP 350/00 per person will be payable by July 25, with the balance due by November 30. Cheques should be made to Quo Vadis Pvt Ltd and sent to our London address given below.

These costs exclude international flights to and fro India, on which we can give you advice if needed.

The per person twin sharing costs are inclusive of:

• 16 nights at hotels named, inclusive of applicable taxes
• breakfast, lunch and dinner (BLD) daily January 26/February 09 – table d’hote throughout except at Hyderabad where a la carte is offered – with soft drinks/bottled water at meal times, and all applicable taxes
• overland transportation in Bombay and Hyderabad/Hubli by airconditioned coach, with soft drinks/bottled water provided
• overland transportation Indore/Maheshwar/Indore in airconditioned Toyota Innova (three persons per vehicle), with soft drinks/bottled water provided
• economy class airfare Bombay/Indore/Hyderabad + Hubli/Bombay
• all tour related gratuities to drivers, waiters, porters

Excluded are:
International flights to and from Bombay
Alcohol, laundry and shopping
Visa fees.

George Michell trained originally as an architect in Melbourne, Australia. He then went on to study Indian archaeology at the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London. Dr. Michell has headed various survey projects of historical monuments in India, notably Vijayanagara in southern India of which he is universally acknowledged to be one of the greatest experts. Among his many publications are: The Penguin Guide to the Monuments of India, Vol. One: Buddhist, Hindu, Jain; Royal Palaces of India; Blue Guide Southern India, and Hindu Art and Architecture as well as several books on Hampi. Dr Michell lives in Goa
and visits the Deccan as well as other parts of India very frequently.

http://www.vijayanagara.org.

The Blue Guide to Southern India by GM is an excellent starting point, available on www.abebooks.co.uk And

Architecture and Art of The Deccan Sultanates by GM and Mark Zebrowski, (New Cambridge History of India, Cambridge University Press) is the book to read about The Deccan.

Quo Vadis Pvt Ltd
26 Parsons Green Lane
London SW6 4HS
07770 385675 (m)
sarah.mahaffy@zen.co.uk
sarah.mahaffy@quovadis.in