Into the quiet

Hyderabad is brooding.

I went up onto the roof of my flat last night at about 11PM and was shocked to see - nothing. Usually the streets near my home are buzzing in the evening with vehicles, people and often music from wedding celebrations; last night all that was gone. The only movement and sound I observed came from the many feral and household dogs that infest the area. It was creepy.

This morning there was traffic, but far less than usual. Some groups were calling for a bandh (general strike) as a protest to yesterday's bombing of Mecca Masjid and it seems to have been well heeded. Given the lack of vehicles, this seemed a perfect time to climb aboard my bike and explore.

This time I headed southwest, toward Golconda Fort and the Qutub Shahi tombs (which were unfortunately closed). I puttered around a while, when to Our Place for lunch, and then explored MLA Colony (where I've been before) looking for a back way shortcut for my next trip to Golconda.

You can see my route on Google Maps. There is also a photo album for the trip:

Into the Quiet

[cheesy Flash slide show deleted]