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| Virupaksha Temple Complex |
Hampi has been in my ‘must visit places’ list
for some time now and with a long weekend, I could finally make it! A world
UNESCO site, Hampi (former capital of the Vijayanagar Empire) was one of the
richest cities in the world at its prime. It is an idyllic town, with the
skeletal remains of what once was a thriving city.
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| En route Gowri Resort |
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| Gowri Resort |
We (Bro, Gran'mum and I) took the Hampi Express from Bangalore for an overnight journey
to Munirabad (which was a bit close to the homestay we had booked). The train
barely stops for 5 minutes, so best not to have a lot of luggage. The other
alternative is to get down at Hospet but that’s around 19 kms away from the
main site. One has to take the ferry to cross the Tungabhdra river to get to
the main Hampi island. So, ideally it would have been nice to stay near the
boat point (there are many homestays nearby also, which we found out only after
reaching there!).
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| Them cows! |
We stayed at the Gowri resort (which had the highest Tripdvisor
ratings). It was alright I guess, IF you are okay sleeping with frogs and bugs
etc. I wish I had researched a bit more, now that I have been through it! The
homestay wasn’t that well connected to the main site and were completely
dependent on them for any sort of conveyance (which was obviously highly
priced). Anyway, it didn’t matter because we just had to spend one night. Plus
we made friends with the cutest cat ever! So that was cool!
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| Mr.Cat |
So after reaching the homestay at around 8.30am (took an hour or
so by bus to Sanapur, from Munirabad station), we headed out to see some of the
temples, famous for their connection with Ramayana. Like the Sabri Ashram,
where apparently, Sabri and Rama met. And the place where the epic fight of
Bali and Sugreeva took place. Apart from the temples (some still active and
some in ruins) the boulder strewn landscape with the mighty Tungabhara flowing
by was truly beautiful...
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| Shabri Ashram |
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| Me |
Most people hire a bike to go around this part of Hampi, as on the
main island, bikes aren’t allowed and one has to hire either auto rickshaws or
bicycles.
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Bits and pieces of desires-some full filled some not
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| En route to Bali and Sugreeva shrine |
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| Some more temples on the way- Bro for scale! |
On day two, we took the ferry (met the nice lambadi lady on the boat) to the main island and visited the
Virupaksha temple situated in the Hampi Bazaar. Expect to be hoarded by guides
and auto-walas the moment you get off the ferry- but well, it happens in any
tourist location, but it’s irritating none the less! Once we escaped the over
enthusiastic guides and such, we made our way towards the main temple passing
through the 49m tall gopuram. We took our time exploring the entire complex
which by itself was huge!
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| Lambadi Lady |
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| Virupaksha Gopuram |
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| Burning incense sticks |
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| Lakshmi the elephant |
For food the most recommended restaurant was The
Mango tree- which was quite good. Hot south Indian meal is always a good
choice! Post lunch we headed out, in an auto rickshaw (charged us Rs.400 for
half a day), to see the other important ruins, like, the Vittala temple, Lotus
Mahal, the Elephant stables, monolithic Ganesha and Nandi Bull, Narasimha statue etc., structures dating
back to 1500 AD.
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| Pilgrimage through the ruins |
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| The sleepy bull |
Train back to Bangalore was 3 hours late which was a dampener. But
well, wasn’t that bad! With Hampi covered, wondering which place should it be
next- Bylakuppe (Buddhist
monasteries) or Badami and Pattadikal. Hopefully I can plan something soon!
Hampi ten things-
1. Tungabhadra river
2. Boulder strewn landscape
3.Virupaksha temple and the ruins
4. Lots and lots of monkeys!
5. Lakshmi the Elephant
6. Sabri ashram
7. Ferry ride
8. Lambadi ladies
9. Paddy fields
10.White walls, red doors and blue sky
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