We decided to take advantage of the long weekend. We planned a two-day trip to Aurangabad. Our itinerary included visiting the Ajanta and Ellora Caves. We started our journey from Hyderabad. Trains are easily available to Aurangabad from Hyderabad and there is also an airport at Aurangabad. We took a train from Kachiguda station to Aurangabad station. We reached Aurangabad at around 10 in the morning.

Day 1:

After reaching Aurangabad, we checked into the hotel, had our breakfast and quickly freshened up. We planned on visiting Ajanta caves on the first day. Ajanta caves are located at a distance of around 120 kms from Aurangabad. Buses are easily available from the bus stand. But we took a cab for convenience. It costed us 3600 rupees. It took us around 2:30 hrs to reach the Ajanta caves from Aurangabad in a cab.

Ajanta caves:

We reached the Ajanta caves at around 2 PM. Ajanta caves are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The caves are around 30 in number and are Buddhist caves. They depict the rich ancient Indian art by showcasing the paintings and rock cut sculptures. They constitute the chaityas and viharas which are worship halls and monasteries respectively, as per the Buddhist tradition. The mural paintings here depict the tales from Jatakas, which are related to the past births of Buddha. The caves are built in two phases: around second century BC and around 400 to 650 CE. Few caves have the stupas. The finesse with which the paintings and sculptures have been made would make anyone fall in love with the art. It takes around 3 hrs to visit all the caves. Guided tours are available if one is further interested in learning about the art in detail. Nevertheless, there are boards at the entrance of the caves, which give details about the interiors of the caves.

We covered the caves within 2:30 hrs. There are many shops on the way leading up to the Bus area. Buses for available for pick up and drop off at the entrance to the caves.

After covering the caves, we drove back to our hotel and rested for the night.

Day 2:

We started our day 2 early since we had a lot of places to cover. We first visited the Grishneshwar Jyotirlinga.

Grishneshwar Jyotirlinga:

It is one of the 12 Jyotirlinga temples in the country. The temple is located within a distance of 2 kms from Ellora caves. There is a provision of special darshan at the temple. Yet, based on the crowd, it gets canceled on few occasions. We visited the temple during the Savan. There was a lot of crowd, so there was only free darshan for all.

As per the tradition, to enter the sanctum sanctorum, men must go bare chested. We completed our darshan within an hour and proceeded to the Ellora caves.

Ellora caves:

These are located at a distance of around 30 kms from Aurangabad. Ellora caves are the UNESCO world Heritage site. It is one of the largest rock-cut cave complexes in the world. It has caves belonging to Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. Cave 16, featuring the Kailasa nath temple is the most famous cave in this complex. It is a architectural marvel and looks ethereal. The multi storied temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva. Rashtrakuta king, Krishna-1 is said to have built this temple. The Buddhist cave complex and the Jaina cave complex are located at a distance from each other. Battery vehicles are available to ferry tourists to these sites.

One of the recurring themes in the Hindu caves is the Ravan lifting the Kailasha parvatha. Most of the caves have large sized carved images of Hindu gods. The Buddhist caves have chaityas and viharas along with the carvings of Buddha and Bodhisattva.

The Jaina caves belong to the Digambara sect and are smaller in size, compared to the Hindu and Buddhist caves. These caves contain the carvings of Jinas, yakshas and yakshis.

On the whole, Ellora caves is one of the must visit places and is a treat to the art lovers.

After visiting the Ellora caves, we went to our next stop which was Bibi ka Maqbara.

Bibi ka Maqbara:

Bibi ka Maqbara translates into the tomb of the lady. It was commissioned by Aurangzeb’s son Azam shah in memory of his mother Dilras Banu Begum. The structure bears a striking resemblance to the Taj Mahal and hence, is also called as the Taj of Deccan. The mausoleum is built on a high-rise platform which can be accessed by steps from three sides. On the west side, a mosque was built, later on as an addition by the Nizam of Hyderabad. This resulted in the closure of the west entrance. The mortal remains of Dilras Banu Begum, also known as Rabia-ud-Durrani are placed below the ground level. The main structure is surrounded by gardens and the pathway leading to the structure has fountains.

In the evening, the structure is lit with lights and these lights make the structure all the more beautiful. The place has its own charm and beauty, adding it to the list of must visit places in Aurangabad.

After spending some time at Bibi ka Maqbara, we proceeded to our hotel. We had a train at night and so, we quickly freshened up and checked out from the hotel.

For dinner, we chose the famous Shahi Bhoj Thali restaurant and tasted their thali. The thali had a wide spread of items and all of them were delicious.

After having a hearty meal, we went to the station and boarded the train. Thus, ended our wonderful trip, which had a mix of art, architecture, devotion and food.

Other important places to visit:

• Aurangabad caves
• Daulatabad fort
• Shree Bhadra Maruti Mandir
• Tomb of Aurangazeb

Points to note:

• Place of stay: Hotel AGC
• Entry ticket to Ajanta: Rs 40 for Indians and Rs 600 for foreign tourists
• Entry ticket to Ellora: Rs 40 for Indians and Rs 600 for foreign tourists
• Entry ticket to Bibi ka Maqbara: Rs 25 for Indians and Rs 300 for foreign tourists