A journey to experience in year 2009 AD of what exists since 700 AD itself is one awesome feeling. It’s a paradise of sorts for photographers, travelers and people who love to dig into world food. Yeah you heard me right, I never imagined it to be as hip and hype like Goa! The nights are a full contrast to the history and the centuries old atmosphere in the mornings.
Day 0:
We a group of 5 hired a taxi for a 3 day trip to this heritage land. Started off in the evening for a overnight journey so that we could get 3 complete days of Hampi. 5 people in an 8-seater Qualis was more than comfortable journey we could ask for. But was proved wrong with a horrendous driver! He was 90% asleep and driving like mad in the night. Fortunately lightning of some brains struck him and he stopped in the middle of nowhere on a highway to catch up with sleep. His alarms would wake everybody in the car but him! After maybe 2 hours of that break, he started again. Driving with even more zap and enthu, just to scare of any sleep left in any of us :D
Day 1:
After a sleepless night we saw daylight in between a huge pile up (10+kms) of traffic! There was an accident near Hampi and the whole path into Hampi was blocked. Only time we felt good about the driver was this time around when he waded though the traffic jumping all rules to get us into Hampi somehow. Checked into a Guest House/Homestay kind of setting in the heart of Hampi village. Most of these hotels have a roof top restaurant. Believe me or not, nowhere in these places would you get anything INDIAN on the plate. The cooks are none other than Saree clad villagers but on the menu you will find just Italian, French, Japanese and dishes from other parts of the world. We never had anything Indian on the whole journey. The food tastes great, the pizzas better than any Pizza huts and the Salads better than many in Bangalore. The whole place is filled with foreigners and you bet if a haven for booze (its banned around for sure!) and music. It’s in the same century as what Goa is, but is built around a temple (Virupaksha temple) which has been functioning since its inception in 7th Century AD! Wow 7th century structures and 21st century food. This day was spent mostly around the heart of Hampi and around the small beautiful temples. After a Sunset shoot the night was at one of the numerous happening restaurants. Then we hit the bed early with plans to have a sunrise trek the next morning.
Day 2:
Alarms ringing to the first step out of the room was blazing quick. It was 4:30- 5 in the morning and we had to reach the Matunga hill which was about 1 hour or trek with a little bit of risk associated with it. But you tend to lose & forget all the pain as the first rays of sun seep though the rocky landscape of Hampi. After a great sighter we got back into the rooms for a small rest until the sun stayed hot. Evening again was around the temples in Hampi. The iconic structure at Hampi, Vittala temple which houses the Hampi Chariot was explored in the evening and enjoyed a great meal of pizzas and salads and drinks around at night.
Day 3:
Again out with cameras on the back, out for a long trek and climb to the Hunuman Temple and a view of Anegundi from the hill top. It’s a climb of 250+ steps after a boat ride and a trek of about 2-3kms over the rocks. Not to mention really tiring. Then a jeep ride back to the hotel room. This tired us a whole lot but there were a lot of historic places around Hampi to cover before we headed back to Bangalore. Elephant stable, Chandrashekhara temlpe, Stepped tank, etc were covered on this day and after a lot of history in the minds, we headed back to Bangalore. The driver was overly charged as he had nothing to do over the last 3 days but to sleep sleep and sleep! It was a lunar eclipse day and our return was paused for a long while in between for all the Pooja he did for his vehicle. Reached home at Bangalore late in the night with loads of memories and heap loads of photos which would take months to revisit and process.
Hampi photo Gallery
Depth of hole in each pocket: 3000 [All inclusive/person]
Including Taxi charges 7000 | Hotel Room 2500 | 5500 for Food and entrance fees.
Approximate around 1000+ photos and huge calories burnt.
Team: 4 lazy, but open for experiences IT professional males. 1 No hassle Lady.
Names: Arun | Archana | Chandan | Chethan | Srikeerthi
Very nice & crispy report. Nice pictures. One pics in here talks about the other 1000s you have captured. Great.
