Having had serched for the nearest railway station Udpi ,me and a couple of buddies found out that travelling by bus was the best! From Mumbai we boarded a sleeper "NONAC" bus even after paying for the AC one! (THANKYOU REDBUS). Crossing borders across Maharashtra and Goa we finally entered Karnataka and were quite amused to see the diverse change in the culture here! The locals here rise up early even before the sun rises and just walk down to the nearby temple to pray to their diety! Men,Women and Children having applied "BHASMA" on their forehead and wearing lungis and traditional sarees is quite a picturesque sight with the open green fields and bolderous mountains in the background.
After a long 12 hours trip within itself we finally managed to reach the town of HOSPET! Had the traditional chutney-dosa at a nearby restaurant and started out onward journey towards HAMPI -half an hour drive from Hospet. Managed to reach Hampi "on time" we hopped ourselfs onto a motorboat and crossed the fast currents of R.Tungabhadra flowing below dividing the town into two! On the oppisite side is the infamous Hippi Islands quite popular amongst a lot of torusists travelling to Hampi! The stay options available here in the form of homestays , the stay at hippie islands for us was quite comfy and cozy the restaurant here displayed a variety of world class cusines the evenings here at this place was a party within. With mellow music and songs around a warm bornfire.
Following the customs of Karnataka we got up even before the sun did today! And went on to explore the island on our rented two wheels! The best way to move around in the town! Early in the morning we went on to explore the Sanapur Lake surrounded by huge boulder hills making cliff jumping very popular here and also giving you the perfect background picture photo. Chilling with a beer along side the lake resting on a boulder made a chill start to our day! As the sun went up high we headed back to the main city centre! Entered a local cafe where we enjoyed live jamming sessions ,and post lunch on our moped we headed towards Anjaney Parvat (birth place of The Moneky Lord- Lord Hanumana) the 600 step climb is a little steap but the view from here just gets u rid of all the tiredness! On reaching the top there is a temple dedicated to Lord Hanumana and the sunset is just quite picturesque from here relax yourself on one of the boulder and set your camera on a tripod and just enjoy the moment! Having called a day we got back to our huts!
Morning post breakfast we checked out and went on to the mainland! Which was quite a divine place! Being a pilgrim place! The town was totally veg but displayed a variety of cusines too! Here also the possible staying options was in the form of homestays! We checkedin into one! Hired a local auto rickshaw for the sightseeing here as the availability of moped was quite limited! And the places were quite at a distance! A walk around Hampi’s main town will leave you awestruck. Every turn has a monument and every single one of them has a story to tell. Heard of the Hindu epic Ramayana? Well, Hampi is believed to be the setting for various parts of it. The ruins are a UNESCO world heritage site. Hampi was the ancient capital of Vijayanagara, also known as “A Forgotten Empire”. It was one of the richest and largest cities in the world during its prime. What’s more, the first historical settlement in Hampi dates back to 1 CE!You’ll see the Queen’s baths, Narasimha statue which is my favorite all carved from one stone, the chariot of the Vijaya Vittala temple, and, just a short walk up, the giant Hanuman statue.
In the center of town is the impressive 49-meter tall Virupaksha temple, the only temple to have its own elephant! You’re never done on the Hampi Bazaar and Kamalapuram (two entry points) side of the river, where all the boulders, temples, markets, and other city life exsist!
Enjoy views from the top of the Mantanga Hills after all the temple sightseeing it will definately take you back on the sets of flinstones giving you the perfect view of the mainland and the island! It also has a Devi temple on the top ,the way up to the top is quite a trail dont forget to wear comfortable shoes! On your way back use the other way as the ancient stairs will hallucinate all the way down! Having had walked down the hill and through the bazars we reached the bus stop and boarded the local bus to get back to Hospet where our AC sleeper was waiting for us to take us back to the hustle bustle of Mumbai!
Hampi is quite a pocket friendly backpackers destination definately would want to visit the place again! As it is a own different world with rich traditions, tasty cusine, vibrant culture and taboos, the energy and warmth here always welcomes you into HAMPI...
