My first birthday... in India

I (Andi) had a really lovely birthday this year, a surprise weekend planned by Gareth started early on the Saturday morning when we visited parts of the city we had not had a chance to get to yet. This included the Qutub Shahi Tombs, that are a stunning display of blended architecture including Persian, Hindu and Pathan, plus explains some of Hyderabad’s history. Amidst beautifully laid out gardens of Ibrahim Bagh there are seven tombs, erected in memory of the departed kings of Golconda. Kings and Queens have lain buried here for over 500 years, around the time the city was forged and you can see Golconda Fort (the old city) in the distance perched on the hill.


Gareth had planned a number of things, which incorporated all the places or activities he knew I had wanted to visit. One was having a massage, which was very relaxing after a long/busy week at work. Thankfully unlike Gareth’s comment from the masseur, I was not told I was too hairy! In fact it was the opposite, as many Indian women do not shave their legs but often their arms, which are more visible.. They are intrigued as to why Western women do and she enquired as to where my hair had gone?!

Later we had a lovely and romantic dinner at the beautiful Marriott Hotel in Hyderabad, where we also stayed for the night. It was such a treat and a few friends who work there had helped Gareth make it even more special. The picture below shows the view from our bedroom window.


Then Sunday my actual birthday, we were woken with an early morning phone call from Australia with my parents, sister, brother-in-law and nephews singing, ‘Happy Birthday’ in beautiful harmony and high volume! We had a quick swim in the pool, breakfast and then went round one of the famous museums in Hyderabad (Salar Jung), which again was a good way of understanding more of the history of Hyderabad, its heritage and rulers over the years.

After a relaxing lunch we popped over to share some birthday cake with Ben, Libby and Shane (3 days old at that point!) and then home to collapse and relax, including taking a few phone calls from family and good friends from the UK, was nice to hear their voices and hear their news.

The following evening we had arranged a dinner with some of our friends here after work. Though it was officially planned for my birthday, it was as much to catch up properly with people, eat great food and enjoy good conversation. There were around 16 of us, a mixture of Indians and expats, with a couple of friends including our neighbours Chitra and Rahul meeting others for the first time, meant it was fairly mixed group of people but we all had a lovely evening.


Overall I can safely say this was a truly special birthday in India and one I won’t forget!