Hampi

             Here goes the train to Hampi, a place considered to be the “Rome” of India because of its historical ruins. Its about 8 hours due east of Panaji but the train disembarks at Hospet and then its a 20 minutes rickshaw ride north to Hampi. I made myself busy on the train by reading Newsweek, peering out the window, and listening to music. While I was alone, I noticed a young European couple sitting diagonal from me and had a feeling they too were going to Hampi. So right before we arrived, I asked them if they wanted to share a rickshaw into the city. They obliged and I was extremely happy that I found someone to share the travel cost with.

View from the train on the way to Hampi

The city of Hospet... typical India

            This Spanish duo turned out to be so much more than just a budget saver. We ended up spending almost the whole time together while I was in Hampi. I discovered they were from Barcelona. Iris was a Catalan native but Tzvika emigrated from Israel and was a chef at an elegant restaurant in the city. They were honestly the most adorable couple and were such a blast to hang out with. It was truly a blessing that I met them.

My favorite Spanish couple! Iris and Tzvika

            When we arrived in Hampi, we were taken to the Hampi Bazaar, which really wasn’t a bazaar anymore. Apparently the government bulldozed the main street though we never got a proper explanation to why. It was obviously that people’s homes and business were taken from them just a few days prior to our arrival.

Regardless, we made our way to the river crossing because all the guesthouses are on the other side of the river. There is no bridge and if you want to drive across it; you have to go 50km north to get to the other side. There was however a dinky boat that chauffeurs everyone to and from the other side. It costs 15 rupees but 20 with luggage… kind of a rip off if you ask me, but whatever. Taking the boat was a risk because it had been raining a lot for the region. As a result, the river level was too high and fast for the boats to go across. 2 days ago, the boats started running again after being closed for 5 straight days. I don’t even want to think about those who were stuck across the river…. We took our chances and putted across to the muddy waters of the other side. 

Iris waiting for the river boat to arrive

Looking for the right guesthouse/hostel is really a challenge, especially in India. None of these places are listed online so if you want to pick out a place in advanced, good luck, cause its impossible. There is a method to finding the right guesthouse and price for your needs. Across the river are about 15 different guesthouses with each one with probably about 3-10 rooms. You go to each guesthouse you think you could stay in, and check out their facilities and negotiate a price. There are certain things you should look for when checking out a guesthouse:

-       AC/Fan or neither

-       Mosquito net

-       Attached restaurant

-       A shower head or bucket shower

-       Western toilet or a squatting Indian toilet (huge deal breaker)

-       Hot water or no hot water

-       A sink or just a faucet for your feet that you must use

-       A place to set your things down so its not on the floor

-       Clean sheets cause they don’t always change them

The guesthouse restaurant. Had amazing food and a great place to meet other travelers

Then move onto the next option and do the same thing until you have come to a decision.  It’s quite exhausting when you’re lugging around a huge backpack and then some…. Which comes to my next complaint… I PACKED WAYYYYY TO MUCH STUFF! What was I thinking? Most traveler in India have 3-5 outfits… maybe. But I seem to have like 30, plus a computer. Luckily I always have clean clothes to use but they are not always appropriate. Some of the things I packed are for the beach of Thailand and Bali, which do not have the same dress code as the hill country of India.

As we were looking for a room, we ran into 2 guys (David and Chavi) who were also from Barcelona. While they stayed at a different guesthouse; Iris, Tzvika, and I found the right place and moved in our stuff. I bargained a room that would give me my own room for 3 nights for 450 rupees ($10). Not bad… but I later found out that my bed had bugs in it, the showerhead was a piece of shit, and it was pretty much an awful night of sleep. Luckily they moved me upstairs for the same price and it was a MUCH better room and bed situation so I was happy.

Chavi testing out the mopeds

After showering and getting settled, the Spanish coalition and I met at the restaurant where we had an amazing dinner. I had eggplant masala with chili naan. It was a killer meal. We sat and talked (I mostly listened because I don’t speak Catalan [which is very different then Spanish]) while we enjoyed the scenery of the river and ruins. 

            The following day we all decided to explore our side of the river together. We met at 10am for chai and breakfast. Afterwards, we haggled for some mopeds so we could see the lake and the Hanuman temple (aka monkey temple). Iris and Tzvika opted for the moped while I wanted to save money and also get some exercise so I rented a bike for 40 rupees along with Chavi and David. We rode our bike 7 km to the lake, which was absolutely beautiful! I panicked after going down the first hill cause my antique and squeaky bike chain came off. Luckily some locals were able to fix it and it didn’t happen again (which was a huge relief). You have to go through a couple villages (which no doubt don’t see many tourists) and through acres upon acres of rice paddies. With the sun in the sky, it was a perfect day for a bike ride and a dip in the lake. The water was cool but not too cool. We ended up lounging in the water for an hour because we were so exhausted from the bike ride. The weather was just splendid and we were the only ones for miles. We eventually rode a bit further but there wasn’t much more to see so we headed aback to one of the villages to get some grub. We ended up going to this hole in the wall restaurant that Tzvika picked out. (Clearly the only on in the village. All the locals’ eat/drink here as evidence by the 50 small liquor bottles in the trash can).

Refreshing dip in the lake was much needed!

Namaste

Fields of rice paddies

            We all ordered the vegetarian thali. Today’s special was cabbage and it probably was one of the best meals I've had since being here and it only costs 40 rupees (compared to the 140 rupees I spent in Delhi). We demolished our food and then set back out to go to the monkey temple. The road to the this temple was more or less flat as opposed to hilly on the way to the lake. Much easier and a relief because our quads were definitely burning by this point.

When we arrived at the temple, we parked our bikes and had to walk up the 800 steps to the top. We were followed by about 15 pre-adolescent boys badgering us with all sorts of inane questions all the way to the top. They were curious and harmless so we all marched up the hill together. Upon reaching the summit, the views were jaw dropping. There was a 360 degree panoramic view of the rice paddies, the winding river that feeds all the villages, and the Hampi archeological site. Absolutely spectacular. We all enjoyed our 30 minutes in paradise while all the kids were asking for our pictures and going on photo shoots with our cameras.  Not an uncommon occurrence in India.

The Monkey temple

We descended from the hilltop and rode back to our guesthouse. Our legs were involuntarily shaking cause of all the exercise. I have never wanted to take a shower so badly in my life. It was amazing. I relaxed inside for a bit while the mosquitoes roamed (I learned my lesson to be outside and exposed during 5-7pm). I was still severely suffering from the other night’s brutal mosquito battle.

Of course we all met up later for dinner. We went to a different restaurant this time where I ordered a dish that I didn’t know what to expect, and it was equally delicious as all the other Indian meals. 4 French ladies who were studying for a year in Bangalore but were on holiday for the weekend joined us. They were adorable and trilinguists of French, Spanish, and English so we were all able to be involved in the conversation. When it comes to times like these, it makes me so mad that America doesn’t require learning more than 1 language in primary school. Additionally, it makes me mad that I've lost the majority of my French skills.

While some sipped on Kingfisher, others order various lassis… a yogurt milkshake with fruit. Sounds gross but its so good! We later turn them into “special” lassi, which makes a hell of a difference.

The next morning was a bit lazy. Iris, Tzvika, and I said goodbye to Chavi and David after having breakfast. Then our threesome set off to the other side of the river to see the ruins. We go to the boat crossing and have mud up to our ankles while we wait for 30 minutes for the boat to arrive. Mind you, we can see the thing just sitting on the dock about 50 meters away. “Shanti shanti” which mean peace in Hindi. A common saying you must use when in many similar situations in India. Patience is beautiful…

The Hampi Bazaar is like many tourist areas. A lot of people pestering you to buy whatever they have: fruit for sale with flies all over them, quintessential shady street food, etc. Iris and I were going to do a jewelry making class but the guy was charging way too much to do it so we passed. Instead we hiked up to one place where there was a temple and some really cool ruins from about 600 years ago. It really did remind me a lot of the Roman forum.

Tzvika wandering about

We put Tzvika in charge of picking out a place for lunch since he did such a good job yesterday. He picked this street vendor that was selling thali for 30 rupees (about $.80). Tzvika got a “D” today because the food was pretty much awful, and cold. But I ate it anyways because I was starving. Without a doubt, I regret this decision… I also regret getting a grilled corn on the cob later because I was still hungry. It was equally as awful because it was clearly old and underdone. I ate half of it anyways. Why did I do this to myself?

Pretending to enjoy my lunch... Lol

Iris wanted to look at some more jewelry but I wanted to see more ruins since it was my last day there. I just wandered around on foot because there is 26km of ruins. They are everywhere and I was bound to run into a bunch of old temples. I went to sunset point, Ganesha’s temple and Krishna’s temple, among other places. One of the temples I went into smelled like it had been used as a restroom for the past couple centuries. I almost vomited.

Sightseeing is awesome but in India, it definitely gets you dirty and sweaty. So after my shower and chill session, I met back up with my fav Spanish couple for dinner at the guesthouse restaurant. We enjoyed our time with some other Israeli travelers until the power went out. This has happened before but this time it was out for the whole night. We tried to wait it out but the power never came back on. 11:30 rolled around and finally we were all like, “lets go to bed.” So we all used our candles and torches to get ourselves situated for bedtime. Another day in the life of a backpacker…

Woke up early to pack and center my “chi” before my 24-hour train excursion back to Mumbai… but the power was still out. Luckily the water was working. I went down to breakfast and said goodbye to Iris and Tzvika. We also exchange contact info and hopefully they will give me a call when they come to the US.

I crossed the river early because I didn’t want to be in the unfortunate situation of having to wait for the boat for 45 minutes in the mud again. I also wanted to get some traditional Indian henna on my hand. Plus I wanted to have plenty of time to eat lunch before my train. I found a rooftop restaurant on the other side of the river where I was able to enjoy my vegetarian noodles (my staple meal when I don’t want to order Indian). In the midst of my feast, my belly started to rumble. I immediately knew I was in trouble but it was too late. I had to run to the restroom for some relief. I knew it was the damn thali and corn from yesterday. CURSES! Of course I get sick right before my 24 hour train ride, right? Thankfully, I had pills to take for this specific situation, which did me wonders. While I didn’t feel 100%, or eat anything on the train, I managed without being completely miserable if I hadn’t taken any medication.

Henna! Should last about 2 weeks.

Back to Bombay I go for just 2 days until I head to the “Land of Smiles” aka THAILAND!