24-Dec-2003 -- Our Expedition to the Discovery of 18N 79E

Date: Wednesday, December 24, 2003 at 0745 hours
Visit by: Praveen Goggi and Chandra Dasaka
Place: Arjunpet Village, near Dudada town, Medak District Andhra Pradesh, India
Distance: 90 Kms NNE from Hyderabad.
Earlier Visits: 17°N 78°E, 17°N 79°E and 17°N 80°E
Expedition dedicated to: Guenter Walser, Austria

Our team had now an experience of 3 confluence point under our belt and we were completely planned and more excited when we decided to visit 2 confluence points in one day this Christmas. After having a quick look at map, it was 18°N 79°E and 18°N 78°E, which we took up.

Chandra and myself started on cold winter morning of 24th December 2003 and raced our way towards Dudada town (90 Kms on the state-highway to the North-North-East of Hyderabad). With a quick break for tea and newspaper, we were in Dudada town at 0730 hours.

GPS now pointed towards West of Dudada and showed about 6+ kms to go! We asked locals at Dudada about interior roads and where would they lead. Having collected enough information, me and Chandra drove my car (Fiat palio) on the dusty roads of village in the early morning hours!

Chandra was in charge of GPS and directed me accurately. I just followed his instructions, and kept on asking him how near we were to our destination. Chandra wanted to surprise me and just gave me directions, till the time GPS showed that we were about 30 meters from the destination… We were so close, it was a tiny village and we doubted if it was in one of the houses.

Hoping for the best, we walked 20+ meters towards West, into a courtyard of a farmer’s house. The courtyard is basically the house for goats to relax during nights and afternoons. With the farmer’s permission, we found our way amidst the goats (U must see first picture to believe this). We, indeed, found 18N 79E inside this courtyard. We took the required snaps and came out to see a group of villagers starring at us curiously.

Chandra explained our project to few school-going kids and they appreciated it, and others thought we were from the TV Company. With this, we had done one more confluence and set to do the next one in next couple of hours (18N 78E)

Contact Info:
Praveen Goggi, +91-98851-98951 or +91-20-295-3090
Chandra Dasaka, +91-40-3090-2105