Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh, nestled within the hills in the Eastern Ghats is a well known pilgrimage centre in South India, for the beautiful temple of Lord Venkateshwara, standing majestically with its gracefully carved gold gopuram. Apart from the sacred visit to the temple, which is also a stunning success of Dravidian architecture, there are other shrines in Tirupati as well. And along with the religious reasons for visiting this place, which is considered the second religious institution after Vatican City, shopping in Tirupati is something that the pilgrims and the tourist never misses to indulge in once they are in Tirupati. Things to buy in Shopping in Tirupati Among the things to buy in Tirupati there are unique items of handicrafts such as the woodcarvings and kalamkari and the special and popular whitewood toys. The shopping outlets in Tirupati also sells the beautiful and traditional Tanjore style Gold Leaf paintings. These paintings are done at the Madanapalli town. These paintings found in Tirupati are famous for their mythological motifs and themes. The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam also publishes a number of books and periodicals based on the treatises of Hindu religion. There are special category books on Itihaas, Sthothrasn etc. They also publish cd’s and cassettes of the Vedas, Sanskritanas and Pravachanams. Like most of the religious towns, Tirupatia also is the place where you can shop for plenty of religious items such as photographs and idols of various Gods and Goddesses, brass lamps, rangoli stickers, vermillion in garish boxes etc. another interesting item found here are different kinds of interesting mud piggy banks. Places for shopping in Tirupati Some of the areas famous for shopping in Tirupati are the Bazaar Street in Chandragiri where there are shops like the Mohan General Stores, Shri Lakshmi general Stores and Omkar Stores. For beautiful handicraft materials, you can visit the Lepakshi Emporium which has an outlet located near the TTD Central reception Office.