In the middle of Hyderabad sits a man-made lake called Hussain Sagar.  It was built in 1562 to meet the water irrigation needs of the city.   Necklace Road and Lower Tank Bund road encircle the lake, and entertainment options abound around the perimeter.

I visited the lake for the first time when I came here with Scott in January.  We went to a location known as “Eat Street”, a place with lots of food court style restaurants and a smallish “midway” with various kiddie rides and games, and we knew that it would be a good place to take the kids.

So, last Friday, when the kids were off of school and we had nothing to do, my friend, Trina and I, decided to take the gang over there and check it all out.

Ender was very excited to spend a day with his friend Lexy, so he waited anxiously on our front gate for their arrival.  He scares people when he does this, but they just don’t know Ender well…he’s a lot more likely to trip while walking down the sidewalk than to fall off of anything.

We began our visit to the lake with a place called Lumbini park.  A halfway decent play area greeted us, but that was about it.  There was a defunct car ride that had once circled the park, and some “singing fountains” that weren’t even trickling, let alone singing or even dancing.  Still, the kids had a great time at the park, and we partook of some of the food and drink offerings at the snack bar.

The lake, with its giant Buddha Statue looks inviting at first glance, but unfortunately, it is in some desperate need of cleanup.  Due in part to the annual immersion of the Ganesh statues and the very huge waste disposal issues here, it is very polluted and smelly.  I snapped picture of the trash piled up on the banks, but I decided to spare you….

Boat rides (pontoon or speed boat) out to the statue are offered, (we declined) as well as a light show after dark, but we were too early for that.  Not to mention that there is some history with that that makes us a bit leary to stick around into the evenings.

After exhausting our options at the park, we headed over to Eat Street for some dinner and rides.  The mechanical bull was a big hit, along with the bouncy slide for Ender.  Addie even chose to ride the bull a second time while Ender and Lexy tried their hand at Air Hockey.  The kids had a great time eating and playing, and of course, we had to drag them away at the end of the day.

We look forward to seeing what else is available around the lake…an Imax, for sure, along with gardens, a tomb and some other parks, are awaiting our discovery.  Though not all that thrilling, it was a nice way to spend a lazy vacation day.