TRAVELWEEK pt II: Hampi

Sorry for the delay, the last month and a half here are proving to be an academic marathon, complete with multiple research papers, projects etc. Furthermore, I'm in the process of solidifying my December travel plans and I could not be more excited.  So anyway, here goes the next leg of travel week:

       Leaving Bangalore, we took an overnight train to Hampi, an experience that proved somewhat less idyllic than I had pictured, but I managed to sleep most of the ride in my absurdly skinny top bunk. Arriving in Hampi, I got off the train feeling extraordinarily groggy and wanting nothing more than a nap and some coffee (in that order), which is exactly what we did upon arriving at our charming hotel (pictured below!)

 

     Eventually, in the company of an overzealous tour guide, we embarked on a marathon sightseeing tour of what has to have been literally every ruin in Hampi. Admittedly, I lost track of what saw after about the second temple and third or fourth old stone building, but overall I think Hampi was my favorite place we visited. The landscape was incredible and we had a good time climbing boulders to enjoy even better scenery. The day ended with a beautiful sunset over the site at our last stop and I was quickly less bitter about the exhausting day of being ushered around like an 8th grader in Washington DC. 

shiva temple

ganesh monolith

     History lesson: Hampi is home to a massive collection of ruins from the Vigaynagara empire, a major Hindu empire that ruled in South India from the mid 14th century until the mid 17th century when it fell to Muslim invaders.  Having been declared a world heritage sight in the 1980's, we learned that the entire area has changed quite a bit. In efforts to maintain some sort of authenticity in the ruin sites, the government has begun knocking down major parts of the town considered intrusive.  First and foremost, people who had been living in many of the structures and shopkeepers operating in close proximity to important sites were all forced out. Because many of the idols were destroyed in some fashion during the invasions, many of the temples are not functioning. A massive Shiva temple, visible from almost any spot in Hampi and central in all the postcards tourists are constantly harassed to purchase, is one that still operates. With the Dasara holiday approaching, religious tourism was also at a peak, so we got another chance to experience the practically-violent pushing and shoving that takes place in front of idols at many temples.

      The break from sightseeing to eat lunch was so relaxing, I considered surrendering. Continuing our path down the gringo trail (aka, places featured in the lonely planet), we ate at the mango tree, an outdoor restaurant on a river that is on a river that sometimes floods it, during monsoon season. When we were there it was fairly dry and the view was fantastic. I zoned out for a bit, watching a goatherd and  his goats strolling along the area where the river would be during monsoon; a lovely contrasts to the pasty limbs of all the inappropriately dressed backpackers.

view from lunch

finger chips

safe to say we did all these things

      After a great nights rest and a filling breakfast on the hotel veranda, we went back to the ruin sites, but this time on bicycles. We had a good old time getting lost, feeling the wind at our backs, soaking in the scenery and checking out a few sites from the day before, but this time with a little more freedom to run around and climb boulders like children. I even got a little sunburn! In October! It was quite idyllic, I must say, and provided more than one of those "wow, I'm in India and it's amazing" moments. Feeling a bit of separation anxiety already, we stopped at the mango tree yet again for snacks and drinks.

      Sadly, our brief excurision in Hampi came to an end and we hopped on an overnight train back to Bangalore where we met our trusty bus driver from Bangalore, Harish, yet again and headed to our next destination: Mysore for the the Dasara festivities!

Shamelessly and without regret, I kind of overdid it with the camera in Hampi, so I apologize to anybody with a slow internet connection trying to load this. Furthermore, I happen to be quite pleased with how a majority of my pictures came out, so feel free to visit my photobucket for a closer look :)
http://s1122.photobucket.com/albums/l530/juliaschultz/
     

photos from some sort of durga puja processional to the temple: