"V" for "Vizag"

Located in south east India in the state of Andhra Pradesh Visakhapatnam/ Vizag is a port city which is also called "City of destiny." It is the second largest city in A.P. and luckily my in-laws city. As it is my favorite place I can visit quite often! It has a huge ship yard , naval base and a steel plant. Slowly IT giants are also trying to get their space in the city. It is called "Goa of the East Coast." Today I am here to present you few magnificent snapshots of beaches in Vizag. The city is situated among the hills of Eastern Ghats facing Bay of Bengal.

There are many beaches in Vizag. The below are my favorite ones . I shall start with Bheemunipatnam/ Bheemli which is just 3-5kms from my In-laws' house. I deeply love this beach as it is mostly vacant . You can spot fisher men here and there but they mind their own business and it always feels like I own the beach ! Late evenings beach gets crowded and it is the only busy time for all the vendors who usually sell coconut water , chat , corn , bhelpuri or anything chat pata and spicy. I sit for long there just to admire God and his creation.

One of the Bheemli beaches. This one is most vacant

This is Vizag beach road. My friend asked me if I clicked this in Mumbai :)

This was at the harbor road.

One should have Mirchi bajji and garam garam (hot hot ) Onion pakodas and soda from soda hub while lazing on the beach road.

Totlakonda Buddhist complex

The above magnificent view is at Totlakonda Buddhist Complex. It is about 15 kms from the city on the way to Bheemli. It is 128 mts above sea level.

The Telugu name Thotlakonda is derived from the presence of a number of a rock-cut throughs hewn in the bedrock of the hillock (cisterns).Thotlakonda was well within the influence of ancient Kalinga region which was an important source of dissemination of Buddhist culture to Srilanka and various parts of south-east Asia. It provides an insight into the process of Trans Oceanic diffusion of Indian culture, especially Buddhism.(Source : wiki)

The monasteries of buddhist monks and the calm and peaceful sea surrounding them gives a sense of peace. The view is breath taking too . It is as good as the Dil chahta hai view of Goa:) There are many other scenic spots like Pavuralla konda and Bavi konda which I didn't visit yet.

The below is the snapshot from DCH movie.

At the Buddhist monastery remains

vast and lavish greenery of Totlakonda

The rooms of Buddhist monks. I don't think any other place
can be as holy as this . The only sound came from the
splashes of distant waves.

Rushi konda beach is one more awesome beach of vizag. It is little crowded. Nevertheless best place for love birds , friends and kids. At few points the depth is unpredictable and many accidents happen here. Hence one should be careful after entering the sea.

Late in the evening the waves started roaring.
Beyond this point the sea is dangerous and every
one is warned not to go in to sea beyond the rocks!

This is my favorite capture at Rushikonda !

Sunset at RK beach

Yaarada beach is the mother of all beaches in Vizag. It is 35kms from the city . One can see the Dolphin's nose on the way to Yaarada beach. The way is uphill and then down the hill with beach in between the hills. I have never seen such a beautiful sight in my life. Lush green shrubs around, sharp rocks and roaring waves made me fall in love with nature all over again. It is not advisable to swim or go in to depths here as currents are unusually high. Many people tried swimming and got drowned it seems. We did not go to depths. The sea was deep even at the starting point which scared me.

Milky white Yaarada beach. This proves the intensity of waves

Our foot steps. walk ,jog, walk steps

A high wave attacked us and my husband was standing on
a 4-5ft rock which was totally covered by the water. 2-3 waves were speeding up
when he was thinking of ways to escape :P

The Araku Valley, 112 km (70 mi) from Visakhapatnam, is a tourist destination. The Araku hill station is at an elevation of over 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) and known for its gardens, valleys, waterfalls and streams.On the way to the Araku hill station are the Borra Caves, (from Wiki)

Araku valley is inhabited by different tribes and best place to visit during summer. If you go there bamboo chicken should be tasted for sure. The bamboo when kept on fire oozes salt which gives a spicy salty taste to chicken. Its unbelievably yummy, For 500 /- you will get unlimited chicken sufficient for 5-6 people. Below are few snapshots from Araku.  Araku is close to orissa border.

At botanical gardens- Araku

Tree house cottages in botanical gardens

Bamboo chicken at araku! Image is googled 

The below pic is taken at Chaparai water cascade-  which is 11 kms from Araku. It is a water slope where people enjoy sliding . It is harmless but it is better to be careful on the slippery rocks. In the below pic the heart you see on the rock shows Swapna and Sadhu's strong bond of love :P .Where ever we went this heart followed us. It was engraved with chalk or brick on trees and walls at every hair pin bend of the road. If you happen to visit Araku do check out for these names and let me know :)

Me at Chaparai

Chaparai slope

Sunset at araku valley

Some other snapshots of vizag which I googled as I don't have pics now.

Borra caves.They come on the way to Araku. Must visit. Image is googled

Sub marine museum on the beach road. Image is googled

This is view from Kailashagiri where you have the idols of Siva Parvathi. Image is googled

Kailashgiri view taken by me with mobile years back when I went
with friends

The rope car ride at Kailash giri

I am re-posting a poem "Life in Nature" which I posted a few months back when I was mesmerized by these magnificent beaches.

The deep blue sea is timeless, restless and endless any day.

Who doesn't want their good times to stay?

Funny to see the timeless sea surrounded by sand.

It slips away like time even if you hold tight in your hand!

Sky and sea are merged with an invisible border line between.

Our hearts are intertwined with strong strings unseen!

Sand, trees, rock, hill and sky surround the sea making it beautiful.

I need you and only you to be around me and make me feel beautiful! 

The waves roaring loud, rise high and fall down.

They look small in front of a swimming fish which won’t drown.

The waves are in a rage when they hit a stone.

We create havoc in hard times and we moan!

The sky is huge interspersed with sun moon and clouds here and there.

Our life is big interspersed with challenges and smiles here and there.

The effort is endless and for a life time we make a living.

The huge sky is tiny compared to a flying bird’s wing!

The clouds too turn grey once in a while and shed the rain.

The smiles may turn to tears once in a while to shed the pain.

The sun sets every day between the hills only to rise again.

We fall down and get up to fight even if we are in strain!

Many movies are shot in and around Vizag and sea follows you where you go. Now don't you think Vizag is the Goa of East coast ? There are many more gorgeous places and beaches which I haven't covered yet. My favorite holiday destination any time  is the "City of Destiny."