This week, The Musafir Stories speaks to Srikanth from the blog traveldiaries.vacations and the capter lead of RTC Hyderabad!

Today's destination: Gandikota gorge and Belum caves, Andhra Pradesh!

Nearest Airport: Tirupati Airport at Renigunta

Nearest Railway Station: Kondapuram

Prerequisites - Camping equipment if you're planning to camp

Packing - Gandikota can get hot during the day, plan to carry sufficient water and also extra layers for the night.

Time of the year - September

Length of the itinerary: 2 days

Itinerary Highlights:


Srikanth and team set out from Hyderabad towards Gandikota - a natural gorge formed by the Pennar river in Andhra Pradesh. A couple of stops enroute the destination and a navigation error on google maps led Srikanth to the foot of some magnificent wind mills in the vicinity of Gandikota!


After spending some time refreshing themselves at the APSTDC branded Haritha resorts, the group heads towards the Gandikota fort by about 3pm.


Please note that camping areas are present in the vicinity of the fort, so do not fall prey to scamsters asking for money to pitch tents.


Once the group had settled in on the camping area, they set out to explore the fort and its monuments. First up is the Mini Charminar that welcomes you as you drive through the fort city after passing through the gigantic darwaaza or fort gates. The mini charminar is modeled after the original monument in Hyderabad


The other important monuments within the fort include the Jama Masjid, the Ranghanatha Swamy temple and the Madhavaraya Swamy temple (from the Hoysala era).


Along with the religious monuments, there are several other structures like the Granery, Mausoleum, Jail, Ponds and water bodies are abundant. Unfortunately we did not have enough time to discuss some of the smaller monuments due to time constraints.


Once you have enjoyed the history and architecture of the monuments, move over to the view points for some great sunset views of the gorge and the river.


Indulge in star gazing as night falls, enjoy a bonfire, a sumptous meal and spend the night chatting away with friends.


Wake up early for wonderful views of the sunrise and the sun painting the gorge into different colors.


The group head out towards Belum caves - the second longest underground cave network in India formed by a river several centuries ago, over 3 kms long! A beautiful Buddha statue welcomes you to the monument complex, it is believed that both Buddhist and Jain monks have lived here centuries ago.


The cave network is about 150m below ground level and tends to get pretty hot during the day, even in September!


The caves are well lit with a number of formations like Pilidwaram, saint bed, Dhyan mandir or meditation hall, Kotilingalu chamber (thousand hoods), Banyan tree, Patalaganga and many more interesting formations!

Links:

Link to Srikanth's blog

Link to blog post

Checkout Srikanth on Instagram!

Follow him on Twitter.

Link to Elita's 'Be you for you' expressive writing workshops  

Follow the Musafir stories on

Twitter: @musafirstories

Facebook: @themusafirstories

Instagram: @musafirstoriespodcast

website: www.themusafirstories.com

email: themusafirstories@gmail.com

itunes - https://apple.co/2LPtTA3

Google podcasts - http://bit.ly/2toY7lj or voice or google search "Ok Google, play The Musafir stories podcast"

website - http://bit.ly/2xFZqOV

Saavn - https://bit.ly/2J5rIqi

Spotify - https://spoti.fi/2HLPSVi

pocketcasts - https://bit.ly/2xu3Ewg

castbox - https://bit.ly/2sqBDQi

Overcast - https://bit.ly/2LN9wnf

Stitcher Radio - https://bit.ly/2JiBbhw

audioBoom - https://bit.ly/2oZZowS

TuneIn - https://bit.ly/2xyQH4a

RadioPublic - https://bit.ly/2snY9u0

iHeartradio - https://ihr.fm/2xvOG8R

Deezer - https://bit.ly/2L7GmOo

This week, The Musafir Stories speaks to Srikanth from the blog <a href="http://traveldiaries.vacations">traveldiaries.vacations</a> and the capter lead of RTC Hyderabad!

Today's destination: Gandikota gorge and Belum caves, Andhra Pradesh!

Nearest Airport: Tirupati Airport at Renigunta

Nearest Railway Station: Kondapuram

Prerequisites - Camping equipment if you're planning to camp

Packing - Gandikota can get hot during the day, plan to carry sufficient water and also extra layers for the night.

Time of the year - September

Length of the itinerary: 2 days

Itinerary Highlights:

<ul>
<li>Srikanth and team set out from Hyderabad towards Gandikota - a natural gorge formed by the Pennar river in Andhra Pradesh. A couple of stops enroute the destination and a navigation error on google maps led Srikanth to the foot of some magnificent wind mills in the vicinity of Gandikota!</li>
<li>After spending some time refreshing themselves at the APSTDC branded Haritha resorts, the group heads towards the Gandikota fort by about 3pm.</li>
<li>Please note that camping areas are present in the vicinity of the fort, so do not fall prey to scamsters asking for money to pitch tents.</li>
<li>Once the group had settled in on the camping area, they set out to explore the fort and its monuments. First up is the Mini Charminar that welcomes you as you drive through the fort city after passing through the gigantic darwaaza or fort gates. The mini charminar is modeled after the original monument in Hyderabad</li>
<li>The other important monuments within the fort include the Jama Masjid, the Ranghanatha Swamy temple and the Madhavaraya Swamy temple (from the Hoysala era).</li>
<li>Along with the religious monuments, there are several other structures like the Granery, Mausoleum, Jail, Ponds and water bodies are abundant. Unfortunately we did not have enough time to discuss some of the smaller monuments due to time constraints.</li>
<li>Once you have enjoyed the history and architecture of the monuments, move over to the view points for some great sunset views of the gorge and the river.</li>
<li>Indulge in star gazing as night falls, enjoy a bonfire, a sumptous meal and spend the night chatting away with friends.</li>
<li>Wake up early for wonderful views of the sunrise and the sun painting the gorge into different colors.</li>
<li>The group head out towards Belum caves - the second longest underground cave network in India formed by a river several centuries ago, over 3 kms long! A beautiful Buddha statue welcomes you to the monument complex, it is believed that both Buddhist and Jain monks have lived here centuries ago.</li>
<li>The cave network is about 150m below ground level and tends to get pretty hot during the day, even in September!</li>
<li>The caves are well lit with a number of formations like Pilidwaram, saint bed, Dhyan mandir or meditation hall, Kotilingalu chamber (thousand hoods), Banyan tree, Patalaganga and many more interesting formations!</li>
</ul>

Links:

Link to <a href="https://traveldiaries.vacations/">Srikanth's blog</a>

Link to <a href="https://traveldiaries.vacations/2018/09/18/roadtrip-to-gandikota-belum-caves-and-yaganti-andhra-pradesh/">blog post</a>

Checkout Srikanth on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/travelwithsrikanth/">Instagram</a>!

Follow him on <a href="https://twitter.com/travelwithsri?lang=en">Twitter</a>.

Link to Elita's '<a href="https://nomadicthunker.com/be-you-for-you">Be you for you</a>' expressive writing workshops 

Follow the Musafir stories on

Twitter: @musafirstories

Facebook: @themusafirstories

Instagram: @musafirstoriespodcast

website: <a href="http://www.themusafirstories.com">www.themusafirstories.com</a>

email: themusafirstories@gmail.com

itunes - <a href="https://apple.co/2LPtTA3">https://apple.co/2LPtTA3</a>

Google podcasts - <a href="http://bit.ly/2toY7lj">http://bit.ly/2toY7lj</a> or voice or google search "Ok Google, play The Musafir stories podcast"

website - <a href="http://bit.ly/2xFZqOV">http://bit.ly/2xFZqOV</a>

Saavn - <a href="https://bit.ly/2J5rIqi">https://bit.ly/2J5rIqi</a>

Spotify - <a href="https://spoti.fi/2HLPSVi">https://spoti.fi/2HLPSVi</a>

pocketcasts - <a href="https://bit.ly/2xu3Ewg">https://bit.ly/2xu3Ewg</a>

castbox - <a href="https://bit.ly/2sqBDQi">https://bit.ly/2sqBDQi</a>

Overcast - <a href="https://bit.ly/2LN9wnf">https://bit.ly/2LN9wnf</a>

Stitcher Radio - <a href="https://bit.ly/2JiBbhw">https://bit.ly/2JiBbhw</a>

audioBoom - <a href="https://bit.ly/2oZZowS">https://bit.ly/2oZZowS</a>

TuneIn - <a href="https://bit.ly/2xyQH4a">https://bit.ly/2xyQH4a</a>

RadioPublic - <a href="https://bit.ly/2snY9u0">https://bit.ly/2snY9u0</a>

iHeartradio - <a href="https://ihr.fm/2xvOG8R">https://ihr.fm/2xvOG8R</a>

Deezer - <a href="https://bit.ly/2L7GmOo">https://bit.ly/2L7GmOo</a>

The Musafir Stories is an audio podcast that documents Indian travel tales. Each episode, we share the journey of travelers in their own words and relive their experience with you, our listeners. The sole aim of our podcast is to share the rich experiences of traveling in India and inspire listeners to take the leap of faith, grab those backpacks and set out to explore the beautiful and exotic country, India!

This week, The Musafir Stories speaks to Rajat Ubhaykar, a journalist from Mumbai who talks about his journey around India on trucks and highways!

Today's destination: India!

Nearest Airport: n/a

Nearest Railway Station: n/a

Prerequisites - n/a

Pa...

The Musafir Stories - India Travel Podcast

This week, The Musafir Stories speaks to Srikanth from the blog <a href="http://traveldiaries.vacations">traveldiaries.vacations</a> and the capter lead of RTC Hyderabad!

Today's destination: Gandikota gorge and Belum caves, Andhra Pradesh!</