Bangalore

I'm in Bangalore and it's a bit of a boring place. It's big and I'm not fond of big places. There's lots to do in terms of shopping, but not much for sight seeing. It's been difficult to get a rickshaw without getting ripped off, but I found one guy who was willing to give me a good deal and he's been driving me around all day. I arranged that he pick me up tomorrow for the airport.

I started the day with the Lalbagh Botanical Gardens, which was perfect way to ease into a busy city. Then I went to the Bull and Krishna temple, followed by the Tipu Sultan's Palace. After that I went to do some shopping. I won't be doing much else before I fly to Delhi. Maybe check out the local bazaar, buy some presents and find a restaurant with some tourists who might be up for a game of chess.

On the streets of Bangalore:








Lalbagh Botanical Gardens:








Temple decorations and carvings:

Moving on, almost home

This is my last day in Hampi. I never imagined I would spend so much time in one place! It was a new experience for me; I generally get very impatient staying in one place for too long. It was good to learn how to relax on your vacation and for that Babette and Kim were good teachers.

Sitting on a giant rock next to the river while a friend played the guitar and the sun started to set, I said goodbye to the friends I traveled with for the last nine days. It was more difficult than I expected.

I spent most of my time here being pretty active, but yesterday I sprained my ankle. So today I took it easy. There’s not much more to say about Hampi that I haven’t said already, the last few days I will show in pictures. My next stop is Banglore, where I’ll have a day of exploring before I fly to Delhi and from there back home.

An elephant walks down to the river for a bath:








The best way to see the area around Hampi:








Farmers near the town:








On top of the monkey temple:








Ramon and the monkeys enjoying the view:








Being blessed by Lakshmi:

Shopping and the country side

Spent the whole morning talking to the locals and looking for things to buy. I've found many interesting people in Hampi. It seems that people from all over India come here. Different cities of India specialize in different things. You can usually tell where someone is from just by the crafts they're selling. I'm not sure that I'll be buying much here. The best crafts Hampi has to offer are made of stone and I don't really feel like carrying rocks around in my backpack. Does anyone really like stone carvings?

In the afternoon I rented a motorcycle and rode around the countryside on my own. It was a nice experience in that I was able to pull over everywhere, take photos, talk to people and see how they live. I also visited one of the nearby monuments known as the "monkey temple". It didn't have much to offer in terms of architecture, but it had a great view of the surrounding area and friendly monkeys.

I went back to the lake to see if I could get some good sunset photos. The photos didn't really do the place justice.

Sunrise in Hampi:








View from the monkey temple:








A woman watches over buffalo:








A boy from a nearby village:











Sunset over the lake:

At the lake near Hampi

We are now on the other side of the river that separates Hampi. The half that we left is where all the temples, tourists and amenities are. The side we're at now is only bungalows with hammocks, a couple of internet cafes and a whole lot of hippies. The boat to the main part of Hampi stops at 6:00 pm. so if anyone wants something from India, let me know now.

I spent the whole day relaxing by a nearby lake. It's about five kilometers so we rented motorcycles and rode there. Ramon and I shared the tiny motorcycle you see in the photo. I wish I had a photo of us trying to go up a hill. At the lake I climbed among the rocks and took in the sun while my friends swam and sun bathed. After the sun went down we went to the restaurant, had drinks and played cards.

Sunrise over Hampi bazaar:








Streets on the other side of the river:








The lake:








Last boat to cross the river:

Staying in Hampi

I’m tempted to stay here for the remainder of my journey. I feel so guilty saying that, but I’m really not sure that I’m interested in taking the trains and buses through the rest of south India. It’s so draining to lose a day just to traveling. It’s been really nice to have company and here there are many people to meet and talk to. Not only tourists, but the Indian people too.

While exploring the ruins of Hampi, I made friends with two Indian students, Chandru and Ashok. They passed by me on a small motorcycle and stopped to offer me a ride – at no charge. Three people on a tiny scooter, why not? Well it wasn’t the best idea. As we drove over some sand the motorcycle started to wobble and we lost control. My two new friends fell to the ground with the motorcycle on top of them. I hopped off as soon as I noticed it was going down. Chandru seemed to be slightly hurt and the motorcycle was a little damaged, but these guys took it in stride. They didn’t complain, they didn’t ask for help and they assured me that it wasn’t my fault. They then continued to show me other ruins, but this time we parked the motorcycle and walked around. When we went our separate ways we exchanged e-mail and I promised to send them some of the pictures I took.

On my way to other ruins I ran into Babette and Kim (they slept in), who were going by on a rickshaw. It’s pretty hot here and I was quite relieved to hop in and join them. Staying here for the rest of my trip will mean a lot of sun. I expect to come back with a good tan.

We’re planning to move to the other side of the river tomorrow. This means that Babette and Kim can stay in the hammocks near the river, while Ramon and I boulder or hike. They say they might join us, but I’m skeptical.

Streets of Hampi in the morning:








Ashok and Chandru








Ruins in the distance:








Chandru at the stone gate ruins:

Happy in Hampi

My friend Parry strongly recommended visiting Hampi and I'm really glad I took his advice. It's a really interesting place, many ruins, and it's a smaller town with a slower pace. It seems there are more tourists here than locals, though sadhus still wander the streets. It might be a good place to spend a few days.

Ramon has already been to Hampi, so today we had a guide for free. On his suggestion, we rented bicycles and rode from ruin to ruin. There's hardly any traffic here so we had no problems getting used to staying on the left side of the road. Even better was that most of the ruins (and there are many) don't require any entrance fees. We are planning to spend a few days here, so we didn't feel rushed to see everything.

After an easy morning of sight seeing, we went for lunch and drinks. Ramon took us to a nice little restaurant perched on the bank of a river. Aside from all the mosquitoes (they're so vicious here), it was quite enjoyable.

My first day in Hampi ended with a river float in a funny round boat with my traveling companions. On the nearby cliffs a Bollywood movie was being made and it created some amusement as we took in the sun. This pace is starting to feel more like a vacation.

P.S. Did I mention I hate mosquitoes?

A monkey runs across the path of some local students:








Kim and Babette at their favorite sight:








Some intricate carvings on a ruined temple:








Columns made of black stone:








The gang, relaxing by the river:








Floating on the river in a strange raft:

Hyderabad to Hampi

Day two in Hyderabad was easier than the first. While Ramon played on the internet, Babette, Kim and I went to see the Golkonda fort. This fort is on a hill top and it was a hot day, so we (and by we I mean Babette) took many rests on the way up.

The fort was not as good as the many others I've seen already. Much of it was gated off. However, it did provide a nice view of the city.

The rest of the day we spent at the train station. Traveling by train seems to cost a day of sight seeing. I'm really starting to miss travel by private taxi.

To friends of Kim and Babette who may have received this link by e-mail: They want me to say only good things. I guess I won't mention how grumpy they are in the morning! Both Kim and Babette are really wonderful (really they're not making me say that). They've made my trip much more enjoyable.

To friends of Ramon: He complains that I only take pictures of the girls. It's true -- they're cuter.

Babette and Kim make their way up to the fort:








A mosque at the top of the fort:








The view from the top:

Hyderabad with Babette, Kim and Ramon

Traveling with these three has been pretty easy! Ramon and Babette do all the work while Kim and I just sit back and enjoy the show. It's been a much more casual pace and while I'm not seeing as many sights, I'm experiencing more of the culture.

It's interesting how people (mostly men) react to Kim and Babette. At the train station at Aurangabad crowds of men started to form around us with every pair of eyes locked onto the two girls. Here women don't wear very revealing clothes and I think that explains the staring. Later some girls approached and asked Babette for her photo and (believe it or not) autographs. Because I was with her they wanted mine too. We even signed their soccer ball. Of course all this attention, if flattering at first, wore thin quickly. We soon found ourselves overwhelmed and started feeling claustrophobic. People here don't know the meaning of personal space and we were literally pushed up against each other as a huge circle formed around us. Luckily the train came and we were able to get away.

The train to Hyderabad was very long and it makes me glad I took a taxi through Rajasthan. It's really not the most efficient way to travel -- or the most comfortable. There are no announcements when the train stops so you always have to ask if this is the right stop. Sometimes the station is labeled and sometimes not. Sometimes it's labeled incorrectly. The train was an hour late departing and two hours late arriving. It took about twelve hours. It was a new experience for me and it was nice to have others to experience it with.

In Hyderabad we found a hotel quickly and set out to do some exploring. This city has a big Muslim population which means that the women are even more covered up. Most women here wear a burqa, and my two lady friends were getting even more attention. They were not feeling very comfortable walking the streets and a number of times said they were glad Ramon and I were with them.

After visiting the Charminar, we went to a nearby park where we felt there would be less people. There we took a ferry to see the world's biggest free standing Buddha statue in the middle of the Hussain Sagar. The rest of the day we spent at an expensive restaurant (for Indian standards) enjoying food, drinks and sharing stories.

Kim, Babette and Ramon figuring out where to go:








Charminar:









Buddha statue at Hussain Sagar: