direct ferries Vijayawada is on the main Chenna Kolkata and Chennai Delhi railway lines. The daily Coromandel Expre

Liquids Et cera BAR (Map p902; %66259907; Bhaskar Plaza, Rd No 1, Banjara direct ferries Hills) Regularly featured in the papers Society pages, Liquids is the reigning queen of Hyderabad nightlife. There s no sign, and its name changes slightly each year.

TAXI For prepaid taxis, pay at the counter inside direct ferries the terminal, then get your cab at the PTC. Meru (%44224422) and Easy (%43434343) radio taxis queue up outside arrivals and charge 15 per kilometre, 18.75 at night. The trip to Abids or Banjara Hills shouldn t exceed 450. Going to the airport, try Yellow Taxi (%44004400).

Vijayawada is on the main Chenna Kolkata and Chennai Delhi railway lines. The daily Coromandel Express (2841) runs to Chennai (sleeper/3AC/2AC direct ferries 214/544/732, seven hours) and, the other way, to Kolkata (2842; sleeper/3AC/2AC 395/1054/1440, 20 hours). Speedy Rajdhani (Thursday and Saturday) and Jan Shatabdi (daily except Tuesday) trains also ply the Vijayawada direct ferries Chennai route. Trains galore run to Hyderabad (sleeper/3AC/2AC 190/478/639, 6 hours) and Tirupathi (sleeper/3AC/2AC 198/502/674, seven hours). The computerised advance-booking offi ce (%enquiry 2577775, direct ferries reservations 2578955; h8am-8pm Mon-Sat, till 2pm Sun) is in the basement. direct ferries

kateshwara here, at his home. It s one of India s most visited pilgrimage centres: on average, 40,000 pilgrims come each day (the total often exceeds direct ferries 100,000), and darshan (deity-viewing) runs 24/7. Temple staff alone number 12,000, and the efficient Tirumala Tirupathi Devasthanams (TTD; %2277777; www.tirumala.org) brilliantly administers the crowds. As a result, although the throngs can be overwhelming, a sense of order, serenity and ease mostly prevails, and a trip to the Holy Hill can be fulfi lling, even if you re not a pilgrim.