Hampi - A must in the bucket list
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| 2011 |
In 2011, I got a chance to visit Hampi for the first time. I went there over a weekend along with some of the colleagues and two curious Japanese guys.
I fell in love with Hampi. The serene temples, unique boulders, quietly flowing Tungabhadra river and the silence in the atmosphere.. it captured my mind. I felt like I belonged.
7 years later, last week, I decided to go to Hampi again. My cousin Anupam is quite a history buff and I knew I would enjoy more with him. As it happened, Anupam asked his father - my uncle, if he wanted to join, and my uncle, in turn, asked his brother - my other uncle, and they actually agreed to come. My father decided not to join because of his prior plans. So, these two senior citizens and we two younger ones prepared ourselves to travel to Hampi on Thursday, 13th December 2018.
We left Pune around 5.30 in the morning in my Uncle's Toyota Innova. The Google map showed two distinct routes. We decided to go from Kolhapur-Belgaum instead of Solapur-Bijapur even the latter route is shorter by 50 kms or so. We did this because we were not sure how the road condition is after Solapur.
We passed Kolhapur around 9.30 AM and headed towards Belgaum. We had too many annoying toll plazas along the way. We took our lunch at Hubli. So far, the road was four lanes for almost 90% of the stretch from Pune. From Hubli onwards, it became a two-lane road with some patches of 4 lanes. This road is under construction for expansion to 4 lanes. This patch of around 150 Kms was not that bad. And I think it will become a 4 lane highway soon enough.
We reached Hospet before sunset and the peculiar boulder hills of Hampi started to show up. In the next hour, we were at our destination.
I chose to book camping like the accommodation as it was cheap and also, it was on the other side of Tungabhadra from where I had stayed in 2011. The accommodation was okayish and there were some foreigners in the shack. To my uncles, they looked like Hippies.
My bad... what was I thinking of booking this place for the elderly? However, after some time they became comfortable with the place. I had initially booked tents for all of us. But seeing the discomfort in my uncle's eyes, I upgraded them to a bamboo room. This proved to be a good decision for all of us as we had a comparatively secure place to keep our stuff.
The accommodation was at the foot of Anjanadri - A place that is believed to be the birthplace of Lord Hanuman. So there were some shops nearby which came in handy in the two nights that we stayed there.
Now, I am no novelist to describe Hampi in its full glory. You have to experience it yourself. But here are some tips.
The perimeter of Hampi is divided into two parts by the Tungabhadra river. The main part is where all the Virupaksha temple and the other important archaeological sites reside. This side we will refer to as Virupaksha's side. The other part is where we stayed. This has the place which is referred to as Hippie Island. As the name suggests, most of the foreign tourists prefer to stay here. There are accommodations available near the Virupaksha side as well.
As far as I know, big hotels are available, but they are a few kilometers away from Hampi.
If you are staying at the Hippie side of Tungabhadra, you will either have to cross Tungabhadra by a motorboat or a small saucer-like boat. It just takes a couple of minutes but will cost you Rs.50 to Rs.100 per head to cross the river.
Even though we had a car, for sightseeing purposes, we thought of hiring two bikes for four of us. This is because if we wanted to go to the Virupaksha side of Hampi, it takes around 20Kms. The nearest bridge is that far. So, we decided that we would park our car at Hippi Island. There are parking spaces available and it cost us Rs.100 for the entire day. We parked our car and crossed the Tungabhadra River in the saucer-like boat just for fun even if it was costlier. Anupam's bargaining skills were put to use when he reduced the price from Rs.100 to Rs.80 per head.
If you hire a bike on the Hippie Island, either you have to take the longer route to come to the Virupaksha side, or you can put the bike in a boat which might incur an additional cost.
So, prefer renting a bike on the Virupaksha side of the Hampi if you want it for just a day.
When we reached the side of the temple of Hampi after crossing Tungabhadra, we were surrounded by some Rikshawallas who offered a full-day service for Rs.1000. We discussed and decided to hire Rickshaw as he would be showing us around. If we had taken bikes, we might have missed some of the sites. There are bicycles available for rent which could be a good option if you are in good shape.
The Auto-Rikshawalla was nice and he took us around the defined route which he had shown us beforehand in his map. First, we went to see Ganesh temple, then the Krishna temple, the Narasimha statue, the Underground Shiva temple, the Royal Mint, Queen's bath, the Elephant stable, Queen's Lotus palace, and Queen's swimming place. Each of these places is built-in stones with awe-inspiring skills in stone carving. The artists did not have a scarcity of the stones at all and used their genius methods to break the stones into desired shapes.
They used the natural properties of wood and water to cut the giant stones in half. One can see these techniques everywhere in Hampi. After choosing a boulder to cut in half, they would carve a square-shaped hole about 3-4 inches deep along the line of the cut. They would fit a cog of wood into the holes and pour water on it. As the wood soaks water, it would expand and exert uniform pressure along the line of the holes. This would develop a crack that propagates through the depth of the stone cutting it in half. Ingenious indeed.
We had a traditional south Indian lunch in the afternoon. The Rickshaw driver took us to Hotel Varsha at Kamalapur. Even though the restaurant served north Indian and continental dishes, we chose to have south Indian food. With Rassam, Sambar, and Yogurt, rice tastes like the most delicious dish on earth.
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The accommodation was at the foot of Anjanadri - A place that is believed to be the birthplace of Lord Hanuman. So there were some shops nearby which came in handy in the two nights that we stayed there.
Now, I am no novelist to describe Hampi in its full glory. You have to experience it yourself. But here are some tips.
The perimeter of Hampi is divided into two parts by the Tungabhadra river. The main part is where all the Virupaksha temple and the other important archaeological sites reside. This side we will refer to as Virupaksha's side. The other part is where we stayed. This has the place which is referred to as Hippie Island. As the name suggests, most of the foreign tourists prefer to stay here. There are accommodations available near the Virupaksha side as well.
As far as I know, big hotels are available, but they are a few kilometers away from Hampi.
If you are staying at the Hippie side of Tungabhadra, you will either have to cross Tungabhadra by a motorboat or a small saucer-like boat. It just takes a couple of minutes but will cost you Rs.50 to Rs.100 per head to cross the river.
Even though we had a car, for sightseeing purposes, we thought of hiring two bikes for four of us. This is because if we wanted to go to the Virupaksha side of Hampi, it takes around 20Kms. The nearest bridge is that far. So, we decided that we would park our car at Hippi Island. There are parking spaces available and it cost us Rs.100 for the entire day. We parked our car and crossed the Tungabhadra River in the saucer-like boat just for fun even if it was costlier. Anupam's bargaining skills were put to use when he reduced the price from Rs.100 to Rs.80 per head.
If you hire a bike on the Hippie Island, either you have to take the longer route to come to the Virupaksha side, or you can put the bike in a boat which might incur an additional cost.
So, prefer renting a bike on the Virupaksha side of the Hampi if you want it for just a day.
 |
When we reached the side of the temple of Hampi after crossing Tungabhadra, we were surrounded by some Rikshawallas who offered a full-day service for Rs.1000. We discussed and decided to hire Rickshaw as he would be showing us around. If we had taken bikes, we might have missed some of the sites. There are bicycles available for rent which could be a good option if you are in good shape.
The Auto-Rikshawalla was nice and he took us around the defined route which he had shown us beforehand in his map. First, we went to see Ganesh temple, then the Krishna temple, the Narasimha statue, the Underground Shiva temple, the Royal Mint, Queen's bath, the Elephant stable, Queen's Lotus palace, and Queen's swimming place. Each of these places is built-in stones with awe-inspiring skills in stone carving. The artists did not have a scarcity of the stones at all and used their genius methods to break the stones into desired shapes.
 |
They used the natural properties of wood and water to cut the giant stones in half. One can see these techniques everywhere in Hampi. After choosing a boulder to cut in half, they would carve a square-shaped hole about 3-4 inches deep along the line of the cut. They would fit a cog of wood into the holes and pour water on it. As the wood soaks water, it would expand and exert uniform pressure along the line of the holes. This would develop a crack that propagates through the depth of the stone cutting it in half. Ingenious indeed.
 |
We had a traditional south Indian lunch in the afternoon. The Rickshaw driver took us to Hotel Varsha at Kamalapur. Even though the restaurant served north Indian and continental dishes, we chose to have south Indian food. With Rassam, Sambar, and Yogurt, rice tastes like the most delicious dish on earth.
After we recharged our batteries, we went to see the crown jewel of Hampi - The Vitthala Temple. This technological marvel is famous for not only its stone carvings and beauty but it is also known in the world for its musical pillars.
Some of the pillars in the Mandapa of this temple are carved such that they produced the sound of the musical instruments when hit on the right spot. They say that these pillars were used to create music in the festivities when the temple hosted dance and singing for the people and the royalties.
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Some of the pillars in the Mandapa of this temple are carved such that they produced the sound of the musical instruments when hit on the right spot. They say that these pillars were used to create music in the festivities when the temple hosted dance and singing for the people and the royalties.
Unfortunately, most pillars are in shambles. The ones which still stand are protected from further damage. If you are lucky you get to tap one of those pillars, but I would refrain to do so. Centuries of tapping have started to wear out the pillars and we need not exacerbate the process. I am sure there are videos available of the musical pillars of Hampi on youtube for your consolation.
The temples are so influential, that they continue to inspire the current generation of artists.
Lastly, we came back to where we had started in the morning. The Virupaksha temple. The only temple in this consortium which has a deity and is like the other temples in India with a regular flow of worshipers. Many temples in India have amazing stone carvings but they are so crowded all the time that one cannot appreciate the beauty of it fully.
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The temples are so influential, that they continue to inspire the current generation of artists.
 |
Lastly, we came back to where we had started in the morning. The Virupaksha temple. The only temple in this consortium which has a deity and is like the other temples in India with a regular flow of worshipers. Many temples in India have amazing stone carvings but they are so crowded all the time that one cannot appreciate the beauty of it fully.
Hampi, on the other hand, doesn't have that issue. The temples do not have idols inside. Thus, one can go right inside the sanctum, be in the moment, breathe there, and appreciate the beauty and the divinity.
After taking Darshana of Virupaksha and spending time around watching the monkeys, checking the souvenirs, and looking at the fish in the temple pond, we went to the ghats of Tungabhadra. We crossed the river to go to Hippie Island. We got our car and went to camp.
The next day, I and my brother went up the Anjanadri hill after having delicious Idly at the base of the hill. It took us half an hour to go to the top. We sought the blessings of the mighty lord Hanuman in the small temple atop the hill. The view from there was breathtaking. Tungabhadra shining in the morning sun in that landscape is a sight to live for.
We decided to end our trip there and started the return journey to Pune. If it was only me, I would have preferred to stay a few more days, but my uncles were restless.. urgh.
We took a different route this time. We went from the Bijapur-Solapur-Pune route. Hampi to Bijapur is a 95% 4 lane highway. It's a smooth ride. After Bijapur, it becomes a pain. Bijapur to Solapur, the stretch of 120Kms is a 2 lane highway with heavy traffic of trucks and buses. So you need to drive carefully. Once you reach Solapur, it again becomes a smooth drive till Pune.
We also made a stop in Bijapur, had our lunch there, and saw the giant Gol-Gumbaj which must be one of the largest domes in the world.
You can forget about testing it's famous acoustics though. It was too crowded and everyone was making noise which made it hard to even speak inside the Gol-Gumbaj. We also visited the museum inside the perimeter where my brother Anupam gave me some interesting lessons on the dynasties being the history nerd that he is.
We reached Pune in the evening. It takes around 11 hours for the journey, plus or minus 1 hour.
Hampi is a national treasure. It has a history of art, skills, determination, prosperity, affluence, invasions, destruction, and resurrection. It beholds the stories that make us what we are today. I still haven't got enough of it and will go there again whenever possible.
After taking Darshana of Virupaksha and spending time around watching the monkeys, checking the souvenirs, and looking at the fish in the temple pond, we went to the ghats of Tungabhadra. We crossed the river to go to Hippie Island. We got our car and went to camp.
The next day, I and my brother went up the Anjanadri hill after having delicious Idly at the base of the hill. It took us half an hour to go to the top. We sought the blessings of the mighty lord Hanuman in the small temple atop the hill. The view from there was breathtaking. Tungabhadra shining in the morning sun in that landscape is a sight to live for.
 |
We decided to end our trip there and started the return journey to Pune. If it was only me, I would have preferred to stay a few more days, but my uncles were restless.. urgh.
We took a different route this time. We went from the Bijapur-Solapur-Pune route. Hampi to Bijapur is a 95% 4 lane highway. It's a smooth ride. After Bijapur, it becomes a pain. Bijapur to Solapur, the stretch of 120Kms is a 2 lane highway with heavy traffic of trucks and buses. So you need to drive carefully. Once you reach Solapur, it again becomes a smooth drive till Pune.
We also made a stop in Bijapur, had our lunch there, and saw the giant Gol-Gumbaj which must be one of the largest domes in the world.
You can forget about testing it's famous acoustics though. It was too crowded and everyone was making noise which made it hard to even speak inside the Gol-Gumbaj. We also visited the museum inside the perimeter where my brother Anupam gave me some interesting lessons on the dynasties being the history nerd that he is.
 |
We reached Pune in the evening. It takes around 11 hours for the journey, plus or minus 1 hour.
Hampi is a national treasure. It has a history of art, skills, determination, prosperity, affluence, invasions, destruction, and resurrection. It beholds the stories that make us what we are today. I still haven't got enough of it and will go there again whenever possible.
_*_
19th December 2018
Great write-up Ash. You have covered everything: transport (how to get there), local logistics, the indigenous technique to cut Boulders, cost of getting around, food, etc..etc.. I also loved all the pics (tungabhadra riveR in morning, artist making a sketch).. brilliant writing!
उत्तर द्याहटवाVery informative and interesting blog. Thanks for sharing.
उत्तर द्याहटवा