The nerve centre of Buddhist culture in South India at one time, Amravati, near Guntur (26 km) on the bank of the river Krishna, is one of the most important sites for Buddhist art.

Hyderabad, the capital of Andhra Pradesh was founded in the late 6^th century by Qutub Shahi dynasty line of kings known for their beautiful monuments and mosques, Medieval Indian, Saracenic, Mughal and Colonial architecture which, created an architectural richness rarely found in other parts of the country. History speaks not only in Hyderabad's marvellous buildings but in its language, customs, food and etiquette.

Places of Interest

Birla Mandir, Charminar, Golkonda Fort, Falaknuma Places, Hussain Sagar Lake.

Nagarjuna Sagar - the tallest and biggest masonary dam in the world across the river Krishna, is about 150 km away from the metropolitan city of Hyderabad. It creates the third largest man-made lake in the world. Nearby Nagarjunakonda is known for its extensive ruins of Buddhist Stupas, Viharas and a University. Excavations have revealed Brahmanical temples, the relics of the ruins have been reconstructed and kept in an Island Museum, the largest of its kind in the world and are in an excellent state of preservation.

The Shiva Temple at Srisailam; also known Sriparvata is situated in the Rishabgiri Hills on the Southern banks of the rivers Krishna. Mention of Srisailam as Sriparvata has been made in the immortal epic of the Hindus - the "Mahabharata.

Tirupati is one of the important pilgrim centres in India. It is famous for the shirne of the seven hills, representing the seven heads of the serpent Adisesha, on which Lord Vishnu, rests. This temple is dedicated to Lord Venkateshwara, also known as Balaji, the temple of Tirumala. The Varahaswami Temple, situated near the Venkateshwara Temple on the banks of Swami Pushkarani tank, is said to be even more ancien.t This shrine is dedicated to lord Vishnu in the from of Varahaswami.

Named after the god of valor, Vishakha, whose image was once installed here by a Hindu king on his way to Varanasi, during the 11^th century A.D. Visakhapatnam is one of the finest beach resorts on the eastern seaboards of India. The British during their colonial tenure established a resort town here on a rise near the shore. Lapped the Bay of Bengal, on the eastern part of Andhra Pradesh lies the beach city.

Warangal was the ancient capital of the Kakatiya rulers. The fort constructed by King Ganapati in 1199 AD and later completed by Rudramadevi. The thousand pillard temple with its star shaped shrines dedicated to shiva, Vishnu and Surya, the famous Ramappa Temple and lake, the Pakhal lake are worth visiting.

Often considered the true gateway to the south; with a tradition for hospitality, Vijayawada's birth is traced back to over two thousand years in Hindu mythology. Places to visit are the cave temples that are reminders of the importance of Vijayawada over the ages. Two Jain temples that recall the thousand year old heritage of the faith and the Hazratbal Mosque houses a secred relic of the prophet. The city is also a base for visiting the Buddhist excavations at Amrawati. Altogether Vijayawada can be termed as a business cum pilgrim cum tourist center.