Day 11 - First day at Hampi

I got up at 6.00 am thinking that Hospet would come in at 7.00 am but I arrived at the exact time it had said previously on the website – 7.45 am. Fucking no pantry on this, subah ka kapi bhi naheen hua. Took a rick to Hampi and awaited RG’s company. This strange sight awaited me at the hotel.

Since I had nothing to do decided to take a walk around and grab some breakfast. Had the biggest poori bhaaji’s ever in a long time. Managed to demolish 2 and half ones out the three the man gave me.

Then went for a walk around Hampi Bazaar. Amazing place where the people are still using the old structures for their houses & commercial establishments. Hampi of the present co-exists with the Hampi of yore.Visited the Virupaksha Temple. Saw goddess Pampadevi in her full splendour all dressed up. Had to walk around around the temple grounds in hot blazing sun without f***ing shoes – that was crazy ass! Lovely temple complex and certainly could have been better preserved.

Came back to find RG waiting. He apparently sent me a message which actually got to me the next day. The message read, ‘Come back, come back’ which I thought then was very strange considering he was with me :D Cellphone network is terrible here.

We had lunch together at ‘The Mango Tree’ - this lovely restaurant near the river. Simple khana but lovely ambience. Spoiled (perhaps) by two American types loudly droning on about the environment to their Canadian counterparts.

Lunch finished, we decided to walk around the ruins of Hampi. Saw the Monolithic Bull then walked up the steps to the Anjaneya temple (lovely sculpture of Hanuman here)

We then wandered towards what we thought was the Vitthala temple complex but RG’s aha moment here declared quite clearly that it was the Achutaraya temple complex.

Walked down the Courtesan’s Lane and then went hunting for the Vitthala Temple Complex which we found after an hour. Again beautiful carvings and we discussed if it had been carved there or been brought to the place put together.

Finishing this, we walked back to catch a nice sunset. RG wandered off to imbibe the view and I sat alone and watched the desolate rocky landscape with the breeze for company.

We got a cup of chai and ‘murmure’ – ‘pori’ with some mixture in it. Did conversation with a Fine Arts flo in the shack there. He comes every year with his colleague to capture Hampi on paper and spends like a month here. I thought it was an amazing vocation…

Got back to our rooms to find that the clothes I had hung out for drying were lying about. The basthurd monkeys had got to them and my pretty red kurta had disappeared into the oblivion. Totally sucks!!

Grabbed a shower and then went for dinner to Mango Tree. Used a torch for the first time in my trip. Ate dinner by kerosene light with the insects for company. Walked back to our rooms. We used the ‘cooler’ in our room in the night. RG tells me this is everywhere in N.India. It’s a cheaper version of the AC and does the job anyways.

Another day in Hampi awaits…