Hyderabad

Next stop was Hyderabad...which is more in the center of India in rocky terrain. Our coworkers took us on our tour one morning. First we went to Birla Mandir, located on top of of a small mountain. It is a sparkling white temple with amazing views of the city. My favorite part was when our coworkers were pointing out a statue of the Hindu god Ganesh and I said "Ganesh is the remover of obstacles, right?" They were shocked that I knew this - yep, I paid attention in my Live Lean classes at Core Power Yoga! Before we left they gave Ann and I both gorgeous pink pashminas and they gave me a little statue of Ganesh - so thoughtful, which I found was typical of the Indian population - extremely genuine and hospitable people.

Then on to Golconda Fort.

There most facinating part of the Fort was the echo/architecture system built into it that the ruler used as a communication/spying system. There were several spots where you could test out the echoes. We drove around Charminar which literally means "four minarets." It was built at the very spot at which Quli Qutb Shah prayed for the end to the plague epidemic and is the icon of Hyderabad. No trip to Hyderabad is complete without shopping for pearls! I had them string a necklace for my sister.... Other than that, time was spent at the office. It was pretty funny because Ann and I were part of several office celebrations...honorary guests if you will...birthday celebrations, anniversaries, etc. Good times!