Over the past decade, have been to a lot of places in India and abroad, worked there, stayed there, visited them. And then there is my own hometown, Vishakapatnam or it's more popular nameVizag. It's a city in which I spent a good 30 years of my life, to which I still keep going, whenever I have a break. Its the city, where I grew up, studied, got married, and where my kids were born too.
For me Vizag is not just a city, its a part of my life, a city where I have memories of my childhood, my college going days, my younger days. It was the city where I made a transition from a kid to a teen to an adult. Every time I visit Vizag, its like stepping into a time machine, every place having some memories. Some of the memories are of course being erased in the name of "Development", but that is another story for now.
As a city, Vizag certainly does not have much history to speak of. In ancient times it was believed to have been called Kulotthunga Chola Patnam, and then there is the famous temple of Simhachalam, built by the Ganga kings of Kalinga and later it had grants from the emperor Sri Krishna Deva Raya. But for most part, Vizag was a sleepy fishing hamlet, the neighboring kingdoms of Vijayanagaram and Bobilli, were the thriving centers around that period. During the colonial rule, it was initially under the French control, and then later passed into British hands after the Battle of Vizagapatam in 1804. The city thrived under the British rule, due to it's location on the sea coast. It had hills on one side, the sea on another side, making it a natural harbor.
The city's location sandwiched between the hills on one side, and the Bay of Bengal on another side, makes it one of the most beautiful cities. Also the Ramakrishna Beach, is quite long, and the city's main hang out point. Weekends sees the beach crowded with people, just hanging around, and it can be hard to find a space to park your vehicle. The Beach gives me some of my best memories of Vizag, hanging around with friends there, partaking the delicious chat, or chilling out with fruit juices at the numerous stalls. Most of the times, would just pass the time, chatting with friends late into the night. The beach has been developed to make it more tourist friendly, with statues of famous personalities, parks, restaurants, outdoor cafes, food stalls. Inspite of the crowds, and the stalls, thankfully the beach has not become as dirty and overcrowded like Chowpatty, the waters are good enough to go for a swim. Actually the beach is the best thing in Vizag, you don't really have to plan, or look at the newspaper to decide what to do for the weekend, just drive down, hang out for some time.
Apart from just hanging out, the Beach has a plethora of other attractions too, the Submarine Museum, with it's life like models inside it. An Aquarium which does have a good collection of marine life, and theRamakrishna Mission Ashram, with its beautiful building, and serene atmosphere inside. There is also aKali Temple, modelled on the lines of the famous temple in Dakshineshwar. Vizag also has some beautiful parks where you can go and relax, the VUDA Park, famous for it's boating and skating rink, the Tenneti Park, located on a cliff side, overlooking the Bay of Bengal, and also it's giant TV screen. One of the must see places in Vizag is the Kailashgiri Hill, that divides the city into two halves. On top of the hill, is a lovely park developed by VUDA, the local city body, with huge statues of Shiva, Parvati, and the Tirumala Temple Logo, it also has a mini train, that takes people around the hill. You get a lovely view of Vizag from here, the city on one side, and another side, the green hills, and the Bay of the Bengal.
Vizag is also famous for the 3 Hillocks, near the Harbor, one containing a Sri Venkateshwara Temple, another having a St. Mary's Church, and another one containing a Mosque, in effect they speak about the communal harmony in the city. And it's not just symbolic, having grown up in Vizag, I can say for sure, that the city is tolerant, and you have Hindus, Muslims, Christians co existing peacefully, without the ugly conflicts that have plagued other cities. And being the site for many PSU's like Hindustan Zinc, BHPV, Vizag Steel Plant, as well as pvt sector giants like Coromandel Fertilizers, and MNC's like LG Polymers, Vizag has a cosmopolitan atmosphere. The Vizag Port Trust, as well as Eastern Naval Command having it's HQ here, have seen a large number of people from other states settle here. So apart from Telugus, the city has a large population of Marwaris, Punjabis, Gujjus, Tamilians, Mallus, Oriyas, Bongs all co exisiting. Durga Puja is celebrated with as much fervor as Ganesh Puja, Xmas and Id are celebrated with joy, making it a true melting pot. In a sense, Vizag is like a mini India, and thankfully there is no "anti outsider" sentiment here.
Vizag is also an educational center, with the Andhra University, being one of the oldest ones, in India, and also good colleges like GITAM( Engg), IIAM( Mgt), AMC( Medicine). The city is a foodie's delight, with restaurants offering all kind of cuisine from fast food to Traditional Southern to Punjabi to North Indian, you have all choices. And for entertainment, the city has around 20 odd theaters, most of them AC, comfortable, and where you don't need to shell out 500 bucks to watch a movie. The city also has a thriving theater scene, and auditoriums like Kala bharati stage the best of plays. And you have music concerts of all kinds taking place regularly in the city.
With it's relatively less hectic lifestyle, lower cost of living, peaceful atmosphere and cosmopolitanism, Vizag is indeed an excellent place to be in. In fact it combines the advantages of a city life while at the same time, ensuring a relatively laid back lifestyle, not too fast or hectic. However like any other city, Vizag itself is facing the issue of "development". Traffic jams are commonplace in the city, and like any other city, the builder's lobby is ensuring it's destruction. The green cover in the center of the city, and many trees have been cut down, with the result, that temperatures which rarely used to cross 35, now regularly touch the 40+ mark. The road to my college, used to be covered with lovely causarina forests, and all that has been chopped down. I just wish that unplanned development, does not ruin Vizag, the way it has numerous other cities in India.
