Experience the best of Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar, the capital of Odisha on India's east coast, has been a centre of worship for well over a thousand years, and dozens of temples survive in the old town. The Lingaraj Temple, with its tall curved spire, dates from the eleventh century. The Mukteshwar Temple, from the tenth, is a smaller shrine famed for its carved archway, and the Rajarani Temple stands in a garden.

The Udayagiri and Khandagiri caves, cut into two low hills, were carved as Jain monastic cells from the second century BC. At Dhauli, a hill south of the city, Ashoka's rock edicts and a white peace pagoda overlook the plain. Nandankanan Zoological Park is known for its white tigers. Puri, the Konark Sun Temple and the Chilika lagoon all lie to the south.

Dalma, lentils cooked with vegetables, is the everyday dish of Odisha, and chhena poda, a baked cheese dessert, and rasabali are the sweets people ask for. Pakhala, rice soaked in water, is eaten in hot weather. The winter months from October to March are dry and pleasant, and the monsoon brings heavy rain from June to September.