i 85 traffic nc Excess Club BAR (%23542422; Novotel, Madhavpur; h7pm-2am Tue-Sun) Set over a huge space, Excess was

AP State Museum MUSEUM (Map p898; Public Gardens Rd, Nampally; admission 10, camera/video i 85 traffic nc 100/500; h10.30am5pm Sat-Thu) The continually renovated State Museum hosts a rather dusty collection of important archaeological finds from the area, as well as a Buddhist i 85 traffic nc sculpture gallery, with some relics of the Buddha and an exhibit i 85 traffic nc on Andhra i 85 traffic nc s Buddhist i 85 traffic nc history. There are also Jain and bronze sculpture galleries, a decorative-arts gallery and a 4500-year-old Egyptian mummy. The museum, i 85 traffic nc like the gorgeous Legislative Assembly building (Map p 898 ) down the road (both commissioned by the seventh nizam), is floodlit i 85 traffic nc at night.

Excess Club BAR (%23542422; Novotel, Madhavpur; h7pm-2am Tue-Sun) Set over a huge space, Excess was the current most happening place; open the latest, i 85 traffic nc the best DJs, but the furthest away past Hitech City.

Kondapalli fort (admission 5, camera 100; h10.30am-5pm), strategically situated i 85 traffic nc on the old Machilipatnam Golconda trade route, was built in 1360 by the Reddy kings, and was held by the Gajapathis, the Qutb Shahis, the Mughals and the nizams before becoming a British military camp in 1767. Today it s a quiet, lovely ruin. On weekdays, you ll likely have the place to yourself and you can easily spend a few hours hiking around. Kondapalli village, 1km downhill, is famous for its wooden dolls. The fort is 21km from Vijayawada; an autorickshaw is 400 return.

C Courses Dhamma Vijaya MEDITATION (Vipassana Meditation Centre; %08812-225522; www.dhamma.org; Eluru-Chintalapudi Rd) Offers intensive 10-day vipassana meditation courses free of charge in lush palm- and cocoa-forested grounds. The centre is 15km from Eluru; call for details.