Andhra Pradesh - state in India
Andhra Pradesh (AP) is a state in Southern India, with Bay of Bengal on the east and shares boundaries with Telangana on the north, Chhattisgarh and Odisha on the north-east, Tamil Nadu on the south and Karnataka on the west. Amaravati is the admistrative capital of this state.
Regions
Northern Coast (comprises the districts of Visakhapatnam, Anakapalli, Vizianagaram, Alluri Seetha Rama Raju, Srikakulam and Parvatipuram)
Southern Coast (comprises the districts of East Godavari, West Godavari, Kakinada, Konaseema, NTR, Palnadu, Guntur, Bapatla, Krishna, Eluru, Prakasam, Nellore and Yanam)
Rayalaseema (comprises the districts of Chittoor, Tirupati, Annamayya, Sri Satya Sai, Anantapur, YSR, Nandyala and Kurnool)
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Cities
Here are some of the most notable cities.
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Guntur — the legislative capital of Andhra Pradesh which covers the areas that has Buddhist sites, the third largest city in Andhra Pradesh and home to many ancient and archaeological sites and temples.
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Kurnool — the judicial capital of Andhra Pradesh and the site of Konda Reddy Fort
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Visakhapatnam — the executive capital of Andhra Pradesh, most attractive city in Andhra Pradesh, with exotic resorts near beaches
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Anantapur — a city well connected by road and rail with city and nearby attractions
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Nellore — the region has a combination of religion, nature and history
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Rajahmundry — known as cultural capital of Andhra Pradesh, noted for its versatile Vedic culture and intellectualism
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Tirupati — known as spiritual capital of Andhra Pradesh; has a sacred temple on the Tirumala Hills
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Vijayawada — known as commercial capital of Andhra Pradesh; its second largest city
Other destinations
- Araku Valley — Araku valley offers scenic beauty of the hills and greenery, interspersed with streams and rivulets
- Belum Caves — a network of natural underground caves in shale/slate rock partly explored
- Horsley Hills — a hill station and summer residence of British governors
- Kalikiri — a scenic town with several temples and hills offering trekking opportunities
- Papikonda National Park (Kishkindha) — located in East Godavari and West Godavari includes such mammals as tigers, leopards, sambar and spotted deer, bison and others. Reachable by boat from Rajahmundry
- Puttaparthi — village and home of the guru Sathya Sai Baba
- Simhachalam — abode of Sri Lakshmi Narasimha swamy
- Sri Venkateswara National Park — a park and biosphere reserve noted for its many waterfalls
- Sriharikota — a barrier island which houses the Satish Dhawan Space Centre
- Srikalahasti — one of the ancient places of Hindu pilgrimage and the site of the ancient Lord Shiva temple
Understand
Andhra Pradesh has a rich cultural heritage and is known for its rich history, architecture and culture. Andhra Pradesh has a variety of tourist attractions including beaches, hills, wildlife, forests and temples. Like rest of the Southern India, the culture of Andhra Pradesh is essentially Dravidian, quite different from North India's Sanskrit Hindu culture.
Andhra Pradesh was part of the British Madras presidency and then independent India's Madras State until 1953, when Andhra State was formed, with the capital being Kurnool. In 1956, the Telugu-speaking districts of the erstwhile Hyderabad State were merged to Andhra State to form Andhra Pradesh, with the capital being Hyderabad. In 2014, those districts were separated from AP to form Telangana. Hyderabad remained the capital of both AP and Telangana till 2019, when Amaravati was established as the capital of AP. In 2020, a bill was passed to form three capital cities instead of one, namely Amaravati, Kurnool and Visakhapatnam.
Climate
Weather is hot for the most part of the year with high humidity along the coast and relatively dry in the interior areas. The monsoons in June and the return monsoons in October provide adequate rain fall for the rain dependent agriculture in the state. The best time to visit is November till February when it's relatively cooler. The hottest months are between April to June.
Talk
Telugu is the official language and is spoken by virtually all of the state's inhabitants. Urdu (the largest minority language), Hindi, and English are also spoken as well.
As in the rest of South India, Hindi is not widely spoken nor understood, save for a few urban areas. People will respond more readily to English than Hindi.
Knowledge of Telugu is very useful as many of the population speak it.
Get in
By plane
Visakhapatnam and Vijayawada have international airports with restricted access. Cuddapah (Kadapa), Kurnool, Rajahmundry and Tirupati also have moderately busy airports that handle domestic traffic.
For intercontinental connections, however, the biggest airports of neighboring states are the best bet.
By train
There are many incoming trains to areas in Andhra Pradesh from the rest of India.
By bus
Interstate buses by private operators and government Apsrtc, Msrtc, Tsrtc, and Ksrtc run from neighbor states to Andhra Pradesh.
Get around
Like rest of India, the two major forms of transportation within Andhra Pradesh are buses and railway systems. You can find information on long-distance government buses on Apsrtc, while some private travel agents are Redbus, Abhibus, and Makemytrip.
Learn
- Carnatic music - Carnatic music is born in the rich Telugu language
- Kuchipudi dance - one of the world famous classical dance forms of India.
See
- Horsley Hills (Yenugu Mallamma Konda) — Scenic beauty of hills and trees. Environmental park and the Horsley Hills Museum
- Kaalahasthi — a holy town with site of Srikalahasti Gopuram (Srikalahsti Temple)
- Kanipakam — Site of the great lord Ganapathy Temple
- Lepakshir — Historically and archaeologically significant with shrines and renowned for its repository of mural paintings
- Narayanmavanam — considered a holy city with many temples
- Penukonda — Summer capital of Vijayanagar empire - Forts and temples built by Sri Krishnadevaraya king.
- Pulicat Lake — second largest brackish water lake in India
- SriKrishna Devaraya University, Ananthapur — named after a patron of learning and the arts, Sri Krishnadevaraya
- Srisailam — played a dominant role in Indian religious, cultural and social history. Sri Bhramaramba Mallikarjuna Temple is located here
- Talakona — a beautiful 82-metre waterfall in Nerabailu Village, Chittoor District. Near the waterfall are dense forests and wide varieties of wildlife.
- Tirupathi — Most famous for its Sri Venkateswara Temple dedicated to Vishnu
- Vijayawada (aka Bezawada) — home of Kanakadurga Temple and Subramanya Swamy Temple and other important sites
- Visakhapatnam Port — one of the largest ports in India
Do
Eat
See also: South Asian cuisine
Like almost every other state in India, Andhra Pradesh has a rich variety of cuisines and change widely from region to region. Telugu cuisine, the cuisine of Andhra Pradesh, is based mostly on regional variation, its rich cultural heritage and the influence of the royal recipes from the Nawabs. The cuisine of Andhra Pradesh is mixed between Hindu and Muslim styles. The Guntur/Vijayawada region is known for extremely spicy dishes. Rice is the staple food and is eaten pretty much with every meal along with a variety of vegetable and meat curries.
Breakfast
- Idli is a steamed cake commonly eaten for breakfast with sambar or chutney. Chilli powder (kaarampodi) and peanut chutney are also common additions.
- Vada is a breakfast item similar to a deep-fried dumpling, often served with sambar or chutney.
- Dosa (minapattu) is another popular snack. Andhra-style dosas are spicier and crispier than those found in other regions of South India.
- Pesarattu is a flatbread similar to a dosa, but thin and crispy. It is eaten with a ginger chutney. MLA Pesarattu is a popular variation of pesarattu filled with spices.
Meals
A typical meal in Telugu cuisine consists of a combination of cooked rice, pickles (pachadi), dal (pappu), curry, yogurt (perugu) or buttermilk (majjiga), and papadum (appadam). Chewing paan, a somewhat narcotic mixture of betel leaves and areca nut, is also a common practice after meals. Lunch and dinner are elaborate affairs in many households. In traditional households, the meal is served on arati aaku, a single plantain leaf, or vistari, a larger plate made of several leaves sewn together. More people are now using broad steel plates called kancham. However, arati aaku and vistari are still widely used for festivals and special events. Lunch and dinner items are served on a single plate in a specific arrangement. Pappu (dal) and curries are placed to the right of the diner, while pickles and podi are placed on the left. Special items such as pulihora (tamarind rice/lemon rice) and garelu (vada) are placed at the top right. A large scoop of rice is placed in the middle. Small amounts of pulusu, sambar, rasam, ghee and buttermilk are typically sprinkled onto the leaf. The ghee is mixed with every item except perugu (curd)/majjiga (buttermilk).
Curries
- Vepudu — crispy fried vegetables, typically including okra (bendakaya), ivy gourd (dondakaya), potato (bangaladumpa), and colocasia.
- Kaaram Petti Koora/Koora Podi Koora — sautéed vegetables cooked with curry powder or paste, served as a solid mass. The vegetables can be stuffed with curry powder or paste and are usually cooked whole.
- Pulusu Koora/Aava Petti Koora — boiled vegetables cooked in tamarind sauce and mustard paste.
- Pappu Koora — boiled vegetables stir-fried with a small amount of half-cooked lentils (dal). Other gravy based curries are chiefly made with vegetables cooked in tomato sauce and onion with coriander and cumin powder.
Daal
- Pappu - toor daal (kandi pappu) or moong daal (pesara pappu) cooked with a vegetable or green. No masala is added to the dal. Some regions include garlic and onion in the seasoning while some regions prefer asafetida (hing/Inguva). Some times the cooked version of the dal is replaced with a roast and ground version of the dal like Kandi pachadi (roasted toor daal ground with red chiles) and pesara pachadi (soaked moong daal ground with red chillies or green chillies).
Pickles
Pachadi/Ooragaya - There are two broad varieties: Pachadi (chutney) and Ooragaya. Pachadi is typically made of vegetables and roasted green/ red chillies. It is prepared fresh and is consumed within a day or two. Ooragaya is prepared in massive amounts seasonally and uses liberal amounts of chilli powder, methi (fenugreek) powder, mustard powder and oil. For a typical Andhrite, no meal is complete without this essential item. It is consumed on its own mixed with rice or as a side dish with pappu / koora.
Pulusu (sour)
is a curry-like stew that is typically sour and cooked with tamarind paste. Other common bases are tomatoes or mangoes. The mixture can be flavored with mustard, chilies, curry leaves, jaggery, onions, or fenugreek. Fish, chicken, and eggs are typical meat additions. Pachi Pulusu is an unheated version of pulusu typically made of mangoes or tamarind consumed during warm months.
Perugu — The last item of the meal. Perugu (curd) is normally consumed with an accompaniment like pachadi or ooragaya.
- Challa Pulusu/Majjiga pulusu — sour buttermilk boiled with channa dal and coconut paste
- Menthi Challa/Menthi Majjiga — sour buttermilk seasoned with ginger and green chili paste and menthi seeds fried in oil.
Drink
- lime juice with ginger
- lime juice with honey
- fresh fruit juices like sapota, orange (green they call mosambi in Hindi exclusively), grape, pineapple
- ready juice
Sleep
There is a variety of accommodation available. There are cheap hotels, known as lodges because hotels are generally understood to be eating places. There are private hotels as well as government-operated guest houses called Punnami Hotels.
Stay safe
In extreme summers avoid travelling in afternoons. Always carry a mobile phone and always keep emergency numbers like 100 for police, 101 for fire and ambulance and 104 for health emergency with you.