Travel & Vacation
Travel & Vacation: Charminar – Hyderabad, India
Jake & I in front of the Charminar – Hyderabad, India
We are actually standing on a small divider between two streets, thankfully it wasn’t during rush hour! Charminar is known as the Emerald City in Hyderabad. The Charminar was a beautiful building made of granite and marble.
Charminar – Hyderabad, India
Charminar was built in 1591 during the rule of Sulltan Muhammad Quli Autb Shah. It was built to celebrate the elimination of a plague from the city. Historians say that he prayed at this very spot for the plague to come to an end and promised to build a “masjid” mosque to remember this prayer. While building the Charminar Quli prayed “Oh Allah, bestow unto this city peace and prosperity. Let millions of men of all castes, creeds and religions make it their abode, like fish in the water.” *
View from one side of Charminar
Looking out from Charminar towards a large temple in the center of Hyderabad, India
Looking down to the sidewalk below from the top of Charminar
Standing at the top of Charminar and looking across at the people on the other side. The various designs and architecture were pretty amazing!
The older part of Hyderabad that you can see from the top of Charminar
Jake and I at the top of Charminar.
It is quite funny the unintentional scene we make walking through the streets, markets, and historical places because many people had never met anyone from “The United States of America!” and they were intent on watching what we did and the really brave ones talked with us. I had to laugh looking at this picture afterward and seeing all the people standing behind us “posing” for the picture too! It was a neat experience meeting and talking with so many people on our journeys.
Our Driver was a great tour guide through this part of our trip.
This was the only location he would not let us go into alone. He came with us and we were very grateful! They people at the ticket counter would not allow us to pay for his ticket because it was not “appropriate”. He was an awesome driver, cheerful, knowledgeable, and it was neat to get to know him. We got to see the village where he lived and found out that he and his wife had their first kid, a little girl, this past November 2011.
One of the locals wanted us to put together our hands like we are holding the carving on the wall. Always an adventure!
It was so neat looking out over the city of Hyderabad
Looking at Charminar from the street
According to the local historians it has been said that one of the Charminar towers (or marinets) fell after being struck by lightening. It was repaired immediately and since then no major reconstruction has been done on the Charminar.
Charminar – Hyderabad, India
Charminar is built on four corners of the square with a tower (also called “minarets) in each of the four corners. Each side of Charminar opens to the plaza and you can see local vendors selling goods, food, and many items on the street. Every tower (minaret) is four stories high with approximate total height of 159 feet.
The “Travel and Vacation” series is an insight into our trips together as a family and ways we relax. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Explore with a good attitude, look for fun, and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Travel & Vacation: Chowmahalla Palace – Hyderabad, India (part 2)
This was a really neat room, it had the various weapons that had been used on display
I am continuing my pictures from our trip to the Chowmahalla Palace in Hyderabad, India. Jake and I packed in several amazing events, learned a lot of great history, and toured the city of Hyderabad. This one one of the neat places we were able to see that day. In the picture above you can see a wall of weapons. It was pretty fascinating to see the various weapons on display. Many of them were made by hand and were used by royalty or famous people in India. They had two huge rooms from floor to ceiling with displays.
More weapons….ouch!
Jake had to explain to me what these seat / basket looking items were
I cannot remember the official name for these….yes there is one, but these are the chairs royalty would set on when riding on an elephant.
Garments and hats worn by royalty
It’s hard to tell from this picture but the royalty wore a lot of gold in their clothing. They would weave threads of gold throughout the pieces making them sparkle in the sun. I have noticed that the people in this area really do like brightly colored and gold items, they wear a lot of “bling-bling”.
Nizam’s Rolls Royce Silver Ghost Throne Car
It was a beautiful canary yellow car (only driven 356 miles)!
Story behind the Rolls Royce Silver Ghost Car
Pretty cool car. They had someone in the display hand washing it when we were there. It is a fun and cheerful colorful, it would be cool to go for a spin in it!
Royal stables with a bunch of old carriages
Pretty flowers in the courtyard at the palace
Bright and beautiful flower at the Chowmahalla Palace, one of my favorites in India!
I had a blast touring the Chowmahalla Palace in Hyderabad, India. It was filled with amazing glimpses into the history of India and it’s royalty. One piece of advice for anyone traveling to this area from USA or overseas, you will probably get stopped a lot, asked questions, pictures taken, and hands shaken.
The “Travel and Vacation” series is an insight into our trips together as a family and ways we relax. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Explore with a good attitude, look for fun, and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Travel & Vacation: Chowmahalla Palace – Hyderabad, India
Looking from one side of the palace across the middle fountains to the other side
It was a beautiful palace with a lot of history. Like many of the historical or tourists places to visit in Hyderabad the local price and the tourist price was different. Jake and I had to pay more because we were tourists but we our lines were much faster. Also, another thing that I didn’t realize until after going into various places was that it cost extra to bring in your camera and take pictures.
Chowmalla Palace in Hyderabad, India
The Chowmalla Palace was a place for royalty. The royalty would entertain guests in this beautiful palace in the heart of Hyderabad. This was the first of the Asaf Jahi Palaces. Construction began on the Chowmahalla Palace in 1750 which resided on 45 acres of land, it was a replica of Shah of Iran’s Palace. When the Nizam dynasty took over they expanded and added even more palaces to the Chowmahalla complex. The heart of the palace is the Khilwat Mubarak which has a grand ballroom and throne made of marble. Noblemen and officials were invited to come to the palace for a variety of celebrations with the royal family.
Map of the Chowmahalla Palace – Hyderabad, India
HEH Mukarram Jah Bahadur Asaf Jah VIII and Princess Esra decided to restore the palace with the help of experts. In 2005 the palace for the first time opened its gates to visitors and guests from around the world. The palace was given the Award of Merit 2010 by the UNESCO which was the first of time in Hyderabad’s history. Chowmahalla Palace won the INTACH Heritage Awards in 2002 and 2005 for best maintenance.
In the Chowmahalla Palace courtyards we saw a couple cannons, this one is near the gardens and water fountain.
The cannon had a dragon-lizard like animal on the top and the India royalty crest. I am not sure how much they actually used the cannon since it was inside the courtyard and more decorative. It may have been just stored there as a piece of history, but it was cool to look at and much different then other cannons we have seen.
This is where the royalty would host plays, dances in their huge ballroom and had a throne were the king would sit.
This was a beautiful part of the palace full of history. I really wanted to go up onto the top balconies and look out over the entire palace. It would be really neat to see what it looked like back when it was active with the royal family and guests.
The Chowmahalla Palace had many buildings and courtyards to explore.
The English Bracket Clock
We walked into the ballroom just a few moments before noon. There was a room next to the front door and we noticed a large crowd of people sitting on the floor and looking at the clock. Of course we were curious too! We soon discovered that the people sitting on the floor were waiting to see what would happen when the clock struck noon, so we waited since it was only a minute away. When the clock struck noon a little drummer boy came out and tapped a drum 12 times.
Chowmahalla Palace’s ballroom
Beautiful ballroom with high ceilings, marble floors and columns and crystal chandeliers. It was a pretty impressive room.
Pieces of original stationary from royalty that lived in the Chowmahalla Palace
This shows some of the names and royal crests from the families that lived in the Palace.
Jake & I in one of the royal cloat rooms that displayed garments, furniture, utensils and items from the royality who lived in Chowmahalla Palace
The royal throne in Chowmahalla Palace
The king lounged in his throne in the middle of the ballroom.
Cool chair in the palace
There were rooms in the palace where we could take pictures and other areas where we were not allowed to take pictures. It was really neat looking at all the furniture, paintings, and cool pieces of history.
Window facing one of the courtyards
In the stairwells they had windows that they could open up which provided a nice breeze through the palace and many had beautiful views overlooking the courtyard. This is on one of the stairwells that had an open window overlooking a courtyard. I love how the tree has grown to perfectly match the shape of the window! A few more pictures of the Chowmahalla Palace will be coming soon.
The “Travel and Vacation” series is an insight into our trips together as a family and ways we relax. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Explore with a good attitude, look for fun, and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Intentional Living: Weekly Goals
Now that I am back into a more normal schedule this week I realized how much catching up I have to do with all the travel and family visiting over the past couple of months. It is amazing how much stuff gets put on hold during the really busy days but I am thankful for the wonderful opportunities and memories that our family has been able to create over the past few months. The 2012 year is going by quickly and I have a lot that I want to accomplish in the remaining months so hopefully I get some items tackled this week.
Here is the update on last weeks goals
Family Goals
Connect with each family member at least once a daySpend quality time with our GuestsSpend quality time with Jake- Date Night with Jake – didn’t happen but hope to get it on the calendar soon
Participate in a fun kid activity (go to the park, play, or explore)Do a creative craft with the kids
Personal Goals
- Exercise – walk at least 5 days this week – didn’t get to this but re-started some of my regular routine
- Finish reading How We Love Our Kids by Milan & Kay Yerkovich – somehow in all my travels I lost this book (maybe on the plane from India) because I have searched everywhere and cannot find this one….hmmmmm….
Home Management Goals
- All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one day – we had a lot of laundry from all the house guests, bedding, and from not doing laundry for over a week so it took me 2 days to get it tackled and I still need to remake the guest bed
Weekly Dinner Menu & Schedule planned out for the weekSpend 30 minutes every day picking up / cleaning the house –probably spent more then 30 each day and still have some work that needs to be done
Business Goals
Work on ideas for upcoming blog postsKeep up with the day to day items that need my attention1o minutes a day Cleaning / Organizing my desk
Ministry Goals
Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or LunchTake time to talk, listen, and encourage the people I encounter this weekBe a blessing to a total stranger this week– let someone go ahead of me in line
Financial Goals
Stay on track with budgeted amount for the week
Here are my goals for the upcoming week:
Family Goals
- Connect with each family member at least once a day
- Schedule a Date Night with Jake
- Prep for upcoming Family Trip
- Schedule a Family Game & Fun Night
- Read at least one book to the girls every day
- Listen to the girls read at least one book to me or Jake every day
- Family Yard Sale
Personal Goals
- Exercise – walk at least 5 days this week
- Review my upcoming goals
- Finish reading How We Love Our Kids by Milan & Kay Yerkovich (if I cannot find this book after I finish cleaning I will start on my next one)
Home Management Goals
- All laundry for the week washed, folded, and put away in one day
- Work on Spring / Deep Cleaning the House
- Weekly Dinner Menu & Schedule planned out for the week
- Spend 30 minutes every day picking up / cleaning the house
- Prepare for our upcoming Yard Sale
Business Goals
- Work on ideas for upcoming blog posts
- Keep up with the day to day items that need my attention
- 1o minutes a day Cleaning / Organizing my desk
- Work on upcoming speaking engagement
Ministry Goals
- Meet a friend or family member for Breakfast or Lunch
- Be a blessing to a total stranger this week
- Email the updated praises, prayer requests, and schedule to our Community Group
Financial Goals
- Stay within Budget on Groceries $40 for 4
- Emergency Fund – save 3 months worth of living expenses
- Put money aside for upcoming trips
- Put cash aside for 1 year of Jake’s College Classes
I think it is important to share and encourage each other as we seek to improve our lives and the lives of those around us. I want to live intentionally not just hope all my dreams and goals come true. When I focus on small steps of improvement I am able to see results as I get closer to my goals. Some weeks I get closer to the goals I have in my life and other weeks a take a few steps back (life happens, emergencies occur, people get sick). Once the goals are written down and shared it provides a guideline for what I aim to accomplish this week.
Why Share My Goals?
- To keep me accountable
- To share a piece of my life with you as I strive to be a better Child of God, Wife, Mom, Friend, Homemaker, Entrepreneur and the many other roles I have each week
- To have my goals consistently written down so I can gauge progress more accurately
- Create healthy habits in my life
- To encourage you to share your goals with me as you continue to grown and learn
How did you do this week on your goals? Feel free to share or link to your list of weekly goals.
The picture above is one that I created for my own purposes, however, The “SMART” acronym was originally coined 30 years ago by Peter Drucker in his classic work, Management by Results
Travel & Vacation: Exploring Hyderabad, India
Young boy putting sugar cane stocks into a juicer
Juice from the sugar cane
You could buy a drink from multiple street vendors who were making sugar cane juice. Jake and I decided that since there was only one cup and we were not sure about the process it was better to pass on this one although it was fascinating to watch.
Watering a herd of goats on the side of the road
It was not uncommon to see a small herd of goats, cows, or chickens on the side of the road. Sometimes they would be laying under vehicles, on the sidewalk or on hard clay dirt. There were not a lot of grassy areas in the parts of Hyderabad that we went so the animals would be fed or have to find food various ways (we even saw a few eating out of dumpsters or trash piles).
Make shift homes on the side of the road
It was pretty common to see make shift homes like the ones above near the road. Basically the people didn’t have the means to build or buy a home so they would collect items they found on the side of the road or trash to build a shelter for their family. Many of these homes were so small and open you could see right through them.
I did not see a lot of horses in Hyderabad but was able to find this one on a side street
Brina and Karlie wanted to know if I saw or rode any horses while in Hyderabad. At least in the city of Hyderabad I only saw a handful of horses. This one was on a side street and was beautiful so I took a picture of it for the girls.
Local Bakery in Hyderabad
Most of the stores and people selling goods to the locals or tourists would set up shop on the side of the road in these little stalls. Anyone could come to the “market” and shop at the stores along the road. According to our driver the stores did not open until late morning but would stay open late at night. Many of the shops would bring everything they could to sell every day and at night they would pack everything up to take it home. The “stalls” were not rented it was first come first serve so if you wanted to get a good location you would arrive early to set up your store for that day.
Hyderabad “general store” on the side of the road
As you can see from part of the sign this is a General Store which sells anything from balls to play dough to toys to chips and more. The family would set up shop and sit until someone came to shop. When you came into the store they would try to sell you almost anything while trying to convince you it is a great deal. Bartering is very common in this area too, although foreigners tend to a pay a premium price.
Notice the balconies and rooftop
This building is a combination store set up and apartments for residents. If you look closely at the picture you will notice that all the balconies (even the top ones) have bars covering the entire opening. Why? Because people are desperate enough that they will climb up the building, over the balcony, and break into the apartment to steal. One of the major problems with these bars covering the balcony is when they have a fire, there is no place to exit other than through the stairwells inside the building which can be dangerous. Now look at the roof, see the barbed wire at the top. Why? If people could climb or get to the top of the roof then they can climb down into the apartments below so they place barb wire at the tops of buildings to help keep the residents and their apartments safe.
Do you see the spiked object on the front of this car?
I noticed that on the front of some cars there was a “spiked” object. After seeing them in a couple different spots where Jake & I were sightseeing I asked about them and found out that these were on the vehicles of government officials. It really isn’t a spike but an India flag rolled up and on special occasions they will unroll the flag.
Bicycle loaded down with goods
The streets were very busy in Hyderabad. You would see cars, trucks, rigshaws, auto-rigshaws, bicycles, people walking, animals and more. It was pretty common to see someone pushing a bicycle or cart full of goods down the street. It looks like this guy is planning to work on plumbing or sell plumbing hardware.
Roadside market
They love brightly colored items. These are two more stores on the side of the road. You can barely see the divider between them. One store is selling kids clothing, peacock feathers, and knickknacks and the other store N.K. Store was selling “All Marriage Items and Meena Herbal Powder” according to the sign.
Hospital in Hyderabad, India
We wanted to walk through some of the street markets so we parked in the hospitals parking lot. Next door was a walk-in free health clinic. Made me very thankful for the health care and hospital we have only minutes from our home in South Carolina. You will often see people walking with a limp from an earlier injury that they never got medical care for or when they got care it wasn’t set right.
I saw and experienced so many things during my brief stay in Hyderabad, India. The people I met and interacted with the regularly were extremely kind, hospitable and generous. Several times while driving down the street you would have an old man with a missing limb or someone begging you for money. At one spot as we were walking one lady came up to me, knelt down, held out her hand and said “Sister….Sister…..please help”. It broke my heart to see so many people pleading for help. While I couldn’t help everyone it was nice to share what little we had with those around us.
The “Travel and Vacation” series is an insight into our trips together as a family and ways we relax. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Explore with a good attitude, look for fun, and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Travel & Vacation: Golconda Fort – Hyderabad, India (Part 2)
At the top of Fort Golconda looking down on the front of the fort and the old city of Hyderabad
The highest point on Fort Golconda is approximately 394 feet and the exterior wall is 6.2 miles in circumference. There are four smaller forts within Fort Golconda.
Fort Golconda had a lot of huge boulders, these two were on the top of the temple area. The wall in front was a 10 to 15 foot wall and the trees were large.
Fort Golconda had cannons, drawbridges, royal chambers, temples, mosques, stables, markets, and many other things to see.
Large India coachroach was running along the wall beside me as I was going down the stairs…..ewww……
The bottom sole of someone’s shoe laying with some other trash along the path in Fort Golconda.
I am convinced that some people literally wear their shoes until the walk right out of them….all that is left laying on the side of the path (in several areas) are the bottoms of their shoes. Just shoes how random things can be!
Looking down onto the a section of the Fort Golconda, it was a huge fort!
Yes, I walked down several flights of those stairs. The stairs were steep and uneven but it was a neat experience. I cant count the number of times Jake and I were stopped inside the Fort to shake someone’s hand, talk with them, and let them take our pictures. Many of the people we met had never talked or seen with anyone from “The United States of America” and were super excited. It made me chuckle but also gave a lot of great opportunities to talk with people from the area!
Looking up to the area where the royalty chamber overlooks the rest of the city
The rock wall that you see next to the picture is full of many stones, several of them coming lose. On one of the stairways one of the stones broke lose when Jake was walking by and fell out.
These are a crazy set of stairs and these are just one set.
I cannot imagine all the soldiers during the old days running up and down these stairs in their full gear. I kept thinking if I fall….I am going to bust out all of my front teeth out.
The place where the women in the fort went to worship, beautiful!
It was pretty amazing to look at, I can only imagine how beautiful when it was full of people.
Ladies Mosque, the men and women had separate places to worship.
Most places we went you had to take off your shoes prior to going into a temple. I am assuming “chappals” must be sandals?
Men’s place of worship, it looks awesome even after many years!
Picture taken with ones of the guys we met in Fort Golconda.
This picture was after going through the part of the fort that had bats flying around and whispering through the channels in the walls. Several of the people we met showed some neat parts of the Fort (well….maybe not the bats)
Delivering the goods in the fort with a tractor
The clapping portico is a place in the fort that when you stand in a specific spot and clap your hands you can be heard throughout the entire fort.
If you stand on this tile and clap everyone in the entire fort can hear you.
The place this tile was put allowed noise to travel quickly and easily throughout the entire fort even all the way to the top where the royalty chambers were located. This was one of the ways the soldiers would communicate and alert the royalty of danger.
We were told that Golconda Fort now does an amazing “Light and Sound” show in the evenings. They use light, sounds, and narration to tell the history and stories of the Golconda Fort. Jake and I decided to not go after several friends recommended that we avoid it at night because mosquitoes and bugs were really bad during the evening event. It would have been neat to see but we figured staying healthy and not getting munched on by bugs was a better choice for us.
The “Travel and Vacation” series is an insight into our trips together as a family and ways we relax. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Explore with a good attitude, look for fun, and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Travel & Vacation: Golconda Fort – Hyderabad, India
Golconda Fort in Hyderabad, India. The external walls of the Golconda Fort in Hyderabad, India and my “tour guide” (aka Jake) waiting patiently for me to snap a picture.
Jake and I were able to spend one Saturday and see several places in Hyderabad. Thankfully we had a great driver that got us from place to place, there was only one spot he wouldn’t let us go by ourselves. The Golconda fort is over 400 years old and was once famous for its diamond mines. It is said that the world-renowned “Kohinoor” diamond came from this fort.
A map of the Golconda Fort, the girls are fascinated with maps!
We had many people offer to give us a tour of the Fort (some were quite persistent too) but since Jake had gone with a guide previously he knew enough of the details and history to show me around. The Golconda fort is built on a granite hill and has 8 gates (or Darwazas as they are called in local language).
Inside the main gate (called Fateh Darwaza )at Golconda Fort
In the 16th century the Qutub Shahi kings built the Golconda Fort. The fort was originally called “Golla Konda” in Telegu which is the official state language of Hyderabad.
Place where they set up a farmer’s market in the fort
The area next to the market was the gardens where they would grow fruit trees and other vegetation. When we were there it looked like they had replanted several trees in the gardens.
The view as we were hiking up Golconda Fort in Hyderabad, India
The story regarding the fort has been told many different ways and has variations like any piece of history….. Around 1143 a shepherd boy found an idol in the rocky hill called ‘Mangalavaram’ which was given to the king, Kakatiya, who built a mud fort. Over the next 60 plus years the Qutub Shahi rulers transformed the original mud fort into a beautiful granite wonder. Golconda Fort remained a marvelous granite fortress until the Mughals invaded and plundered the fort.
The “Queen’s Pool” at Golconda Fort.
Pretty massive pool, not sure if it was used as a pool or a water retention for the rainy season or both. We went to the first in the early morning because while we were in Hyderabad the temperatures were getting over 100 degrees with humidity and not always any breeze. Thankfully they had trees planted along the way so we could enjoy a little bit of shade as we hiked up the fort.
Looking through the fort to the city of Hyderabad below us
It was pretty amazing thinking about how much time and energy it must have taken to build this huge fort. The fort overlooks the old city of Hyderabad.
There are stray dogs everywhere and since one of Jake’s co-workers got bit by a wild stray dog (and had to go to the hospital) I decide it was safer to give the dogs a pretty wide path….you never know!
This dog was actually looked pretty healthy but I wasn’t taken any chances.
Entrance to the Sri Jagadamba Mahankali Temple inside Fort Golconda
The sign lists the people on the “trust board” for this particular temple. The temples were one spot that I didn’t notice any litter and seemed to have people in the area watching the activity going on in the temple.
Jagadamba Temple inside Fort Golconda
We had to take off our shoes to go up to see this temple. The guy is currently lighting the candles and preparing the area for the next worship. It broke my heart seeing people praying, worshiping, and giving to this idol (and to many other idols throughout our trip)…..they have to work hard to “earn favor” and good standing from this idol made out of rock.
An altar where they burn incense and hang items to bring good luck before entering the Jagadamba Temple.
Seeing this brings tears to my eyes. The people I met were amazing, kind, and generous yet this altar is a reminder of how traditional Indian religion affects many generations.
I was amazed at all the liter inside the Fort which is a historical monument.
This made me appreciate those who work hard to keep our national parks and monuments clean. On the flip side there were not a lot of places to dispose of your trash. Many of the local people will go completely barefoot even on the hot stones or rocky ground. I lost count of the number of shoe soles I found laying along the paths like the person literally walked in their shoes until they fell off their feet.
Entering the royalty chambers of Fort Golconda.
I bet it was pretty amazing during its height season, wouldn’t it be neat to get a glimpse of what it looked like during that time!
India wild “squirrel” oh how Skipper would have loved to chase this one scurrying around looking for food in Fort Golconda
Aw….we found a trash can with the words “Use Me” written on it….funny part is there is trash all around it but not much in it!
Hyderabad has several official languages, one of them being English. Thankfully almost everyone we met could speak English so it was fairly easy to have a conversation with people and they were eager to talk with us too. I did notice that the men and boys would walk right up to us shake our hand and talk. The women and girls were much more reserved, often times I would feel someone looking at us or hear giggles, if I made eye contact or extended the invitation to start the conversation only then would the majority of women speak to us.
The “Travel and Vacation” series is an insight into our trips together as a family and ways we relax. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Explore with a good attitude, look for fun, and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Travel & Vacation: First Day in Hyderabad, India
Alligator made out of bread at the breakfast buffet in the hotel. Some of the animals they made out of bread everyday were pretty amazing.
I was so excited to finally see Jake again after being apart for almost a month! He was waiting patiently at the airport when I arrived at 2 am in the morning in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India. It took me over an hour to get through security, customs, and find my luggage. Jake had to work that day so after breakfast together at the hotel I was left to entertain myself. It was pretty easy to stay entertained, there are so many things to see. I literally could have stood at the hotel window and watched all the activity on the street below with all the cars, trucks, people, rigshaws, auto-rigshaws, stray dogs, and everything else it was quite mesmerizing.
I explored a little bit but stuck near the hotel, went swimming, and tried to keep myself awake so I could adjust to the different time zone. India is 9 1/2 hours ahead of our time here in South Carolina. Thankfully Jake didn’t have to go in until later that morning and he had a driver come pick me up late that afternoon to take me to his place of work so I only had a few hours to entertain myself. Here’s a few pictures from my first day in Hyderabad:
I loved the Hotel’s packs of sugar, each sugar pack had little ants printed on it.
It was so much fun to meet the people Jake had been interacting with for several weeks. The guy that brought us coffee the first morning I was there for breakfast always had one waiting for us at our table before we sat down. A couple of the hotel staff said it was great to finally meet me, Jake had talked about me and they had seen me on Skype. The service and people at the hotel were amazing.
The hotel had a beautiful roof top pool.
After exploring for a little bit I decided to get my vitamin D and go for a swim. It was refreshing and relaxing, I only saw two other people in the pool the entire time I was at the hotel maybe it was the time of day or just not a popular activity. It was a very peaceful place to hang out.
Watching traffic from the hotel, the red box looking item in the back right of the picture is a police box (you can actually see the police officer sitting in it).
You see these a lot at busy intersections in town that don’t have traffic lights. During rush hour the police officer will come out into the middle of the street and direct traffic. It looks pretty crazy seeing a person standing in the middle of cars going every direction. As you can see in this picture cars, motorcycles, auto rigshaws and everything else are sharing lanes. There were many times I could have rolled down the window and touched the person next to me because the vehicles get so close in traffic (especially the motorcycles) and many times there are no lanes marked or you’ll meet a vehicle going the wrong way. With all the traffic there is also a steady stream of honking even during the night.
A lot of construction going on in HiTech City, Hyderabad.
Jake was even there when the first McDonald’s in the HiTech City of Hyderabad opened. These are just a few of the buildings going up next to the hotel where we were staying.
Guards at the gate outside the hotel, before a car can enter the hotel property it must be checked by the guards.
Twenty-four hours a day they had a set of guards on the outer perimeter at the gate and another check point with guards prior to entering the hotel. See the shiny rectangular object in the middle of the picture, that is a mirror they use to check under the cars for bombs. Every car had to be checked prior to entering the property.
Taking a few minutes to relax and catch up on all the news in India on my first day in Hyderabad! The Times of India newspaper – March 16, 2012
Pepsi was in India but it looked and tasted different.
I am not a huge soda (or pop as some call it) drinker but I noticed in Hyderabad Pepsi appeared to be more popular. The can looked different and when I snagged a sip from Jake the taste was noticeably different too. Another interesting thing I noticed is that our cans are 12 oz cans the ones I saw in India were 11 oz cans.
Jake received a beautiful boutique of flowers upon his arrival in Hyderabad. By the time I arrived several weeks later the flowers had dried but they were still really pretty!
It was a really sweet and thoughtful gesture from the people he worked with overseas. The people we encountered during our time in India were very gracious and hospitable.
Part of Jake’s team in Hyderabad. It was really neat to meet everyone and spend a little time with them.
I came over towards the end of the work day and was able to talk more with the different team members over their evening snack. Two of the workers gave Jake & I their snack so that we could see what it tasted like. This is just another example of the kindness and generosity we experienced while visiting India.
Jake’s office in Hyderabad
Even though we saw this office many times on Skype during our time apart it was nice to see it in person!
Catching up on my current events with “India Today” while waiting a few minutes in the lobby for Jake.
We ended the evening with a quiet, romantic, and delicious dinner together.
After a busy day of trying to stay awake so I could adjust to the new time zone this was the perfect way to relax and catch up. The food was amazing and the service from the restaurant staff was excellent! Jake was so thoughtful, he had picked out and bought a pearl necklace for me which he gave to me that evening. I didn’t realize until reading about it but Hyderabad is also called “Pearl City” and well known for its pearls.
Just as we got back to our room at the hotel a beautiful display of fireworks started going off outside our window, talk about perfect timing! A lot of times on Friday evening during a Holiday (and I arrived on a Holiday week) they will celebrate by lighting off fireworks. I arrived on the weekend of the Hindu “Ugadi” Holiday which is celebrated as New Year’s Day and the celebration of Spring.
It was a great first day in Hyderabad. I am thankful for the opportunity to travel and experience such an awesome culture!
The “Travel and Vacation” series is an insight into our trips together as a family and ways we relax. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Explore with a good attitude, look for fun, and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Travel & Vacation: Flying Overseas with Qatar Airways – Doha, Qatar
The airplane was huge! I was not able to get a picture of it because I boarded at night, this picture was taken the next morning and yes that is ice frozen onto the window! Beautiful views from the airplane!
Recently my husband spent a month in India working. Thankfully I was able to go over to spend some time with him and visit family. My parents were sweet enough to watch the girls for us and take them to school so I could fly over and see Jake. I was super excited to see Jake after being apart for almost a month. I am not sure how military and other families handle all the travel time because a month was a very long time for us to be apart and there were some tough days. Being apart a week here and there has been fine but by the time it came for me to spend two days traveling I was a little nervous going through several different airports and countries by myself but it was worth it knowing Jake was on the other end. I was gone for two weeks, went through 12 airports, and thankfully my luggage never got lost! Aww….there is so much that has happened over the past couple months, looking forward to sharing with you!
Traveling on Qatar Airways was very pleasant considering how long we were on the airplane. The “moving map” was probably my favorite thing to keep up on my TV screen as I was reading I would occasionally look up and see all the details of the flights.
This screen shot shows:
- Local Time at Origin: 9:41 am
- Local Time at Destination: 4:41 pm
- Outside Air Temperature: -44 degree Celsius
- Ground Speed: 568 mph
- True Airspeed: 561 mph
- Altitude: 35000 feet
Since we were going to several different locations we actually were traveling on several different airlines – US Airways, United Airlines, Qatar, Kingfisher, and IndiGo. Kingfisher was the only one that we had any major complications with and that was because the government froze all its assets and it went bankrupt the week we were flying with them. All our scheduled Kingfisher flights got canceled, at one point they re-routed our flight to a different city, the schedule had to be juggled around, and we had to switch airlines for one of the flights but otherwise it was pretty smooth trip. Qatar was my favorite, which is good since it was the longest leg of our trip both ways. They had bigger seats that reclined more, individual TVs, headphones, pillow, blanket, delicious meals, and a goody bag (with items like ear plugs, socks, toothbrush & toothpaste, a blind fold). I flew coach the entire way and it was a great experience for me.
When you look at the map it really doesn’t look too far, until you realize you just flew halfway across the world! The longest part of the trip was from Washington, DC to Doha, Qatar.
What an amazing blessing it was to fly overseas. I met some of the most wonderful people from around the world during my trip. I was able to share stories and experiences, learn about many different cultures and families, laugh with other women over silly stuff even though we couldn’t understand everything each other was saying, give out disposable toothbrushes to fellow travelers, and so much more. Even though a couple weeks have passed since traveling I am still processing all the great things about the trip. I am thankful for the wonderful opportunity and the people I was able to meet during my trip. It really was a true joy just talking with people from around the world and I pray that through my conversations, actions, and interactions that I made a positive impact on the lives of the people I met.
Almost to the end of my long flight! On the map you can see Ad-Dammam, Bahrain, and Qatar. It is my first time in Doha, Qatar!
Even though I traveled over on my own it was a really pleasant experience. I am thankful for the many people I met. I sat next to really neat and thoughtful people. Only one person had a panic attack in flight which was a really “interesting” experience. The guy having a panic attack was in the back of the airplane (row 37 and I was in row 13 with my headphones on watching a movie) and I could hear him yelling. He was yelling for one of the guys sitting next to me. Thankfully the stewardess didn’t have to restrain him but I did have a several different people that I sat next to since the stewardess had to juggle around some passengers. My heart went out to all the families with small children as they tried to keep them content for so long, they must have been exhausted by the end of the trip. There were many exciting stories and crazy little things that happened along the way which made the experience a fun adventure!
The girls are convinced they are ready to go overseas now! They really want to go this summer but since we were just there, they don’t have their passports yet, and the summer is already full we told them maybe the next time we travel overseas they can come. I think the best part of the flight, according to the girls, was that they served us ice cream for a snack (they’ve never had ice cream on a plane before)!
My family loves to travel, both flying and road trips. Over the years (and after many trips) we have discovered ways to make the trips more enjoyable for whole family. Do you travel overseas a lot? What airlines have been your favorite? Do you have any tips for flying with your family?
The “Travel and Vacation” series is an insight into our trips together as a family and ways we relax. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Explore with a good attitude, look for fun, and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Travel & Vacation: “We Love You” Folder
Jake’s Folder of “Love” Notes
Awhile ago the girls and I made a “We Love You” folder for Jake to take with him when he travels. Even though we love the opportunities when we can go with him it is not always possible to go with him on every trip. When he goes on a trip and we cannot tag along we send our “We Love You” folder with him along with notes or drawings from each of us. Jake enjoys seeing the pictures and reading the notes while he is away. We have a blast putting something special in the folder for him.
Here are a few examples of items we have put into his “We Love You!” Folder:
Love note to Jake
Karlie’s love note to Daddy
Brina’s love note to Daddy
Drawing from Karlie
Sweet note from the girls
Note to Daddy from Karlie
Note to Daddy from Brina
I Love You note to my Handsome Man!
