After my horrible last night in Goa, i would have quite happily walked to my next destination if it meant escaping. But thankfully, I have a train booked to Hospet, the nearest railhead to Hampi, a little town slightly inland in Karnataka. Anyone that travels India will frequently hear about Hampi; how wonderful it is, what a happy and chilled-out place it is. The last time I was here, I skipped Hampi in favour of Gokarna, a sleepy beach town also in Karnataka. This time, after so many glowing recommendations, there is just no way i can't go.
I arrive to the station very early, and am still a little on edge so sit chain-smoking in drinking sugary chai. By bit of serendipity, while I am waiting for the train i meet Manon, a French girl also heading to Hampi, and who is also in the same carriage as me. We spend most of the 7 hour journey chatting, taking in the amazingly lush landscape and buying food from the vendors who pace up and own the train every 10 minutes, flogging their wares with shouts of "chai, chai, chai", "samosa, samosa, samosa..." And in no time at all, we arrive to Hospet and my previous nights worries have all but disappeared.
From Hospet, it's abut 30 minutes to Hampi, either by rickshaw or by local bus. Hospet itself is uninspiring, and I cant imagine why anyone would need to stay there for longer than necessary. On the train, we just so happen to meet a local rickshaw driver called Coffee Boy, who takes us in to Hampi, chatting in English, Hindi and French, recommending places to stay along the way.
Onthe drive from Hospet to Hampi, it becomes clear why everyone raves about this place. The landscape is simply incredible and totally unique - like nothing I've ever seen in India before, let alne anywhere else. For as far as the eye can see, there are colossal boulders peppering the ground, some as big as houses. Often they are clustered together, perched precariously on top of one another, creating natural viwpoints for people to climb. Mixed with the arrid dusty land is lush jungle and banana plantations, and best of all, the whole area is home to hundreds and hundreds of temples, over 500 years old. Dozens of monekys scramble up the boulders and temples, ocassionally snatching bits of food from tourists, or hanging out on rooftops, play fighting, This landcape is straight out of an Indiana Jones film.
Most of the temples were destroyed by a Muslim siege a few hundred years ago, and so are in a fairly dilapidated state - but this only adds to the magical charm of Hampi. Almost as soon as we arrive, I feel this warm wave of happiness; there is something so bewitching and speical abut Hampi that i think most visitiors would agree.
It's easy enough to find a guest house, and me and Manon end up staying at the same one, which is in a brilliant location in the centre of the little town, overlooking the main lingum style temple at the end of the bazaar. There are plenty of little cafes and restaurants to choose from, all clustered around one another an of a fairly similar standard and price - after a few days most visitors get to know them all pretty well. So after an incredible sunset from a little vista near our guest house, me and Manon head for dinner to Chill Out Bar, where we eat, chat, drink chai and smoke beedies for a few hours. (Chhill Out soon ecomes my favourite spot in Hampi; cushions on the floor, soft lighting, good music and nice staff, perfect!). Hampi, being a holy place, is dry, meaning there is NO BOOZE (obviously there is as much weed as you can smoke, though!), and as is common in the dry tows, eveyone heads to bed early. So come 10 pm, I am tucked up, ready for a day of exploration ahead.
The following day I waken naturally very early. After a morning jaunt for a belssing at the temple, me and Manon bup in to a group of Israelis who we met the previous night at Chill Out. They are heading in to the jungle, so with the promise of waterfalls and unspoiled scenery, we decide to join them. To cut a long story short, we end up hopelessly lost, ambling across the boulders, through banana plantations, through small rural villages and across rivers...but never quite managing to find the promised land of watefalls. Nonetheless, it's a total adventure, and for a few hours we are really out in ths sticks. By the time we get back to town, everyone is shattered...no more exploration until tomorrow! Luckily, Hampi has such a gentle and relaxed pace that you can be as busy or as peaceful as you want. So i spend the rest of the day wandering around the little market, drinking chai and sitting on the rooftop of the guesthouse reading.
If there is one "must-do" thing in Hampi, surely it must be the sunrise hike to the top of Matanga Hill, a 30 minute climb from the far end of the bazaar. Me and Manon leave at 5.45 am, making sure that we are in plenty of time, and although it's still dark out, the locals are up already...early nights = early mornings. Guided by a torch, ew scramble up th boulders to the top, where there is a small temple. The views are incredible, and only get better as the sun slowly rises; first bold streaks of pink and purple, then eventually a lazy orange ball, illuminating the surrounding landscape. Matanga Hill really shows the beauty of Hampi, and best of all, it's pretty quiet. All in all, thre are probably about 20 people there, a tiny amount compared to the hoardes who flock to Angkor Wat. This being India, the Russian contingent is here, but they only come to take one picture as the sun rises, then leave pretty sharpish. After an hour of basking in the silence and the morning sun, we come down the hill, and even meet a holy man who actually lives in a cave close to the top, with only a few blankets and some cutlery for comfort. Quite incredible.
Hampi also turns out to be the perfect place to continue and maintain my yoga practice. Individually, it is easy as the rooftops are generally flat, but on one of my morning market jaunts, I meet Yogananda, a local Ashtanga teacher. His calm nature instantly persuades me to join in his morning classes, and so for my final 2 days I do 2 hours of early morning gentle ashtanga asana practice, right outside a peaceful hidden temple near the centre of town. It's incredibly relaxing, and Yogananda really knows his stuff. His practice is definitely the best way to start a day in Hampi.
There are various ways to see all of the temples and boulder sites in Hampi, many of which are pretty spread out. The best way, by far, is to hire a bicycle, ususally in the form a gearless boneshaker, bright pink, complete with a little basket. The landscape isnt difficult to cycle or to navigate, and it makes for quite a liberating way to see the temples at your leisure. Most of the sites are free too, and generally pretty quiet. To wander around a deserted temple, in desert scrubland all alone is quite a thrill; i could be in any era, any time in history.
As I pedal around, past lazy cows hiding from the midday heat, and farmers working hard in the paddy fields, I feel so happy and so free and so loved up with everything. No bhang lassi or chillum required! It's the Hampi effect; narcotic, and similar to the highs that people experience in Puskar or Varanasi. There are some places that words barely do justice, and Hampi is one of those places.
As our my final day in Hampi approaches, i feel sad to be saying goodbye to Manon, to the village and the the locals. After 5 days, the locals know our names, greet us in the mornings and eager shopkepers invite us to drink chai with them most days. Everyone is smiling and everything is shanti shanti. My bus isnt until late night, so with a whole day to kill, i decide to crossthe river, to "The Other Side." (everyone calls it this because no-ne can prenounce the official name of the little village across the river). It 30 seconds by boat, or if you are feeling brave, you can hobble across the bouders, or even swim. But as with any Indian river/waterway/sea etc, this is where people come to bathe, wash their clothes and perform thier morning ablutions. Exercise caution if swimming....!
It's even more relaxed on "The Other Side", which basically consists of a string of guest houses and huts for rent, most of which seem to be excusively Israeli. Signs in Hebrew, lots of falafel and impossiby gorgeous people walking around.
Before we take a rickshaw to Hospet, me and Manon enjoy onelast gossip/chai/beedie session at Chill Out. She is heading to Mysore, and me to the Sivananda Ashram in Neyyar Dam, Kerala, where I will spend Christmas and New Year. It's an overnight bus to Mangalore, follewd by an overnight train to Trivandrum to get there though, so anticipating a restless couple of nights.
I willv miss this special little town, but am glad that I have taken the time to come here. It really is worth it. Don't worry, Be Hampi!
Where to Stay: I stayed at Shambu Guest House, right in the thick of the action. Clean, quiet, private bathroom and wi-fi fr Rs 500 per night. Probably wont find much cheaper in high season!
Eating: There are quite a few little places dotted around the town, all serving Indian as well as western foods. Best ambience in Chill Out. No alcohol served, but bhang lassis available at Ravi's Rose Rooftop. Standard curry prices from Rs80 upwards.
Transport: Getting from Hospet to Hampi is Rs10 on the local bus, or Rs 200 in a rickshaw. Bicycle hire is widely avaialble and is about Rs 50 per day. Scooters/motorbikes will set you back Rs300 + per day
Yoga: Yogananada has a class at 8am every day, meeting at his office next to the French bakery in town. Highly recommended, and only Rs250 per class. Amazing location and superb teaching style.
Other: Sunrise at Matanga Hill - wear trainers, take a torch and plenty of water! And possibly a scarf for the chilly early morning!
Temples: Explore, peacefully at your leisure! No need to spend a fortune on a ricksahw tour, though they will try and pressure you in to this!!
Shopping: Small market, selling jewellery and camel leather products mostly. Pretty reasonably priced, ad the sellers aren't too pushy :-)
I arrive to the station very early, and am still a little on edge so sit chain-smoking in drinking sugary chai. By bit of serendipity, while I am waiting for the train i meet Manon, a French girl also heading to Hampi, and who is also in the same carriage as me. We spend most of the 7 hour journey chatting, taking in the amazingly lush landscape and buying food from the vendors who pace up and own the train every 10 minutes, flogging their wares with shouts of "chai, chai, chai", "samosa, samosa, samosa..." And in no time at all, we arrive to Hospet and my previous nights worries have all but disappeared.
From Hospet, it's abut 30 minutes to Hampi, either by rickshaw or by local bus. Hospet itself is uninspiring, and I cant imagine why anyone would need to stay there for longer than necessary. On the train, we just so happen to meet a local rickshaw driver called Coffee Boy, who takes us in to Hampi, chatting in English, Hindi and French, recommending places to stay along the way.
Onthe drive from Hospet to Hampi, it becomes clear why everyone raves about this place. The landscape is simply incredible and totally unique - like nothing I've ever seen in India before, let alne anywhere else. For as far as the eye can see, there are colossal boulders peppering the ground, some as big as houses. Often they are clustered together, perched precariously on top of one another, creating natural viwpoints for people to climb. Mixed with the arrid dusty land is lush jungle and banana plantations, and best of all, the whole area is home to hundreds and hundreds of temples, over 500 years old. Dozens of monekys scramble up the boulders and temples, ocassionally snatching bits of food from tourists, or hanging out on rooftops, play fighting, This landcape is straight out of an Indiana Jones film.
Most of the temples were destroyed by a Muslim siege a few hundred years ago, and so are in a fairly dilapidated state - but this only adds to the magical charm of Hampi. Almost as soon as we arrive, I feel this warm wave of happiness; there is something so bewitching and speical abut Hampi that i think most visitiors would agree.
It's easy enough to find a guest house, and me and Manon end up staying at the same one, which is in a brilliant location in the centre of the little town, overlooking the main lingum style temple at the end of the bazaar. There are plenty of little cafes and restaurants to choose from, all clustered around one another an of a fairly similar standard and price - after a few days most visitors get to know them all pretty well. So after an incredible sunset from a little vista near our guest house, me and Manon head for dinner to Chill Out Bar, where we eat, chat, drink chai and smoke beedies for a few hours. (Chhill Out soon ecomes my favourite spot in Hampi; cushions on the floor, soft lighting, good music and nice staff, perfect!). Hampi, being a holy place, is dry, meaning there is NO BOOZE (obviously there is as much weed as you can smoke, though!), and as is common in the dry tows, eveyone heads to bed early. So come 10 pm, I am tucked up, ready for a day of exploration ahead.
The following day I waken naturally very early. After a morning jaunt for a belssing at the temple, me and Manon bup in to a group of Israelis who we met the previous night at Chill Out. They are heading in to the jungle, so with the promise of waterfalls and unspoiled scenery, we decide to join them. To cut a long story short, we end up hopelessly lost, ambling across the boulders, through banana plantations, through small rural villages and across rivers...but never quite managing to find the promised land of watefalls. Nonetheless, it's a total adventure, and for a few hours we are really out in ths sticks. By the time we get back to town, everyone is shattered...no more exploration until tomorrow! Luckily, Hampi has such a gentle and relaxed pace that you can be as busy or as peaceful as you want. So i spend the rest of the day wandering around the little market, drinking chai and sitting on the rooftop of the guesthouse reading.
If there is one "must-do" thing in Hampi, surely it must be the sunrise hike to the top of Matanga Hill, a 30 minute climb from the far end of the bazaar. Me and Manon leave at 5.45 am, making sure that we are in plenty of time, and although it's still dark out, the locals are up already...early nights = early mornings. Guided by a torch, ew scramble up th boulders to the top, where there is a small temple. The views are incredible, and only get better as the sun slowly rises; first bold streaks of pink and purple, then eventually a lazy orange ball, illuminating the surrounding landscape. Matanga Hill really shows the beauty of Hampi, and best of all, it's pretty quiet. All in all, thre are probably about 20 people there, a tiny amount compared to the hoardes who flock to Angkor Wat. This being India, the Russian contingent is here, but they only come to take one picture as the sun rises, then leave pretty sharpish. After an hour of basking in the silence and the morning sun, we come down the hill, and even meet a holy man who actually lives in a cave close to the top, with only a few blankets and some cutlery for comfort. Quite incredible.
Hampi also turns out to be the perfect place to continue and maintain my yoga practice. Individually, it is easy as the rooftops are generally flat, but on one of my morning market jaunts, I meet Yogananda, a local Ashtanga teacher. His calm nature instantly persuades me to join in his morning classes, and so for my final 2 days I do 2 hours of early morning gentle ashtanga asana practice, right outside a peaceful hidden temple near the centre of town. It's incredibly relaxing, and Yogananda really knows his stuff. His practice is definitely the best way to start a day in Hampi.
There are various ways to see all of the temples and boulder sites in Hampi, many of which are pretty spread out. The best way, by far, is to hire a bicycle, ususally in the form a gearless boneshaker, bright pink, complete with a little basket. The landscape isnt difficult to cycle or to navigate, and it makes for quite a liberating way to see the temples at your leisure. Most of the sites are free too, and generally pretty quiet. To wander around a deserted temple, in desert scrubland all alone is quite a thrill; i could be in any era, any time in history.
As I pedal around, past lazy cows hiding from the midday heat, and farmers working hard in the paddy fields, I feel so happy and so free and so loved up with everything. No bhang lassi or chillum required! It's the Hampi effect; narcotic, and similar to the highs that people experience in Puskar or Varanasi. There are some places that words barely do justice, and Hampi is one of those places.
As our my final day in Hampi approaches, i feel sad to be saying goodbye to Manon, to the village and the the locals. After 5 days, the locals know our names, greet us in the mornings and eager shopkepers invite us to drink chai with them most days. Everyone is smiling and everything is shanti shanti. My bus isnt until late night, so with a whole day to kill, i decide to crossthe river, to "The Other Side." (everyone calls it this because no-ne can prenounce the official name of the little village across the river). It 30 seconds by boat, or if you are feeling brave, you can hobble across the bouders, or even swim. But as with any Indian river/waterway/sea etc, this is where people come to bathe, wash their clothes and perform thier morning ablutions. Exercise caution if swimming....!
It's even more relaxed on "The Other Side", which basically consists of a string of guest houses and huts for rent, most of which seem to be excusively Israeli. Signs in Hebrew, lots of falafel and impossiby gorgeous people walking around.
Before we take a rickshaw to Hospet, me and Manon enjoy onelast gossip/chai/beedie session at Chill Out. She is heading to Mysore, and me to the Sivananda Ashram in Neyyar Dam, Kerala, where I will spend Christmas and New Year. It's an overnight bus to Mangalore, follewd by an overnight train to Trivandrum to get there though, so anticipating a restless couple of nights.
I willv miss this special little town, but am glad that I have taken the time to come here. It really is worth it. Don't worry, Be Hampi!
Where to Stay: I stayed at Shambu Guest House, right in the thick of the action. Clean, quiet, private bathroom and wi-fi fr Rs 500 per night. Probably wont find much cheaper in high season!
Eating: There are quite a few little places dotted around the town, all serving Indian as well as western foods. Best ambience in Chill Out. No alcohol served, but bhang lassis available at Ravi's Rose Rooftop. Standard curry prices from Rs80 upwards.
Transport: Getting from Hospet to Hampi is Rs10 on the local bus, or Rs 200 in a rickshaw. Bicycle hire is widely avaialble and is about Rs 50 per day. Scooters/motorbikes will set you back Rs300 + per day
Yoga: Yogananada has a class at 8am every day, meeting at his office next to the French bakery in town. Highly recommended, and only Rs250 per class. Amazing location and superb teaching style.
Other: Sunrise at Matanga Hill - wear trainers, take a torch and plenty of water! And possibly a scarf for the chilly early morning!
Temples: Explore, peacefully at your leisure! No need to spend a fortune on a ricksahw tour, though they will try and pressure you in to this!!
Shopping: Small market, selling jewellery and camel leather products mostly. Pretty reasonably priced, ad the sellers aren't too pushy :-)
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