Happy in Hampi

I can't remember the last time I took an overnight train anywhere. But that's what we did (very pleased to have our own little sleeping coupe) to get to Hampi a few weeks ago. 

Erik in our special train cabin

We disembarked the Hubli (not so) Express as Hospet and a 20 minute rickshaw drive later we arrived in Hampi, the birth place of the monkey god Hanuman.

Me and Hanuman

It is a stunning and truly mystical place so significantly important to Hindus that neither alcohol nor meat are sold there. The town itself is small. Stretching along the banks of the Yamunda River, you wouldn't think that it's more than a dirt track road of market stalls with a big temple in the middle, and a couple of blocks of back-packer enclave. 

But what attracts so many visitors to this little place is its setting and history. It is nestled in a back-drop of mountains of red boulders, that make you believe you are on Mars, making for amazing sunrise and sunsets.

... and what must be hundreds of temple ruins with the most intricate stone carvings. 

The town is a World Heritage Site. Imagine our surprise when we saw that the locals have built their homes into one particular stretch of ancient buildings by bricking up parts of the ruins. One place even had a cow living on top, heaven knows how it got up there. 

Apparently there is a plan to re-house some of the locals to better protect the buildings and we were relieved to also witness some very serious conservation work.

The ruins are amazing. You can dive into the queens baths... 

In the queen's baths

go down into secret vaults underneath temples if you dare...

visit the royal elephant stables...

imagine yourself in the coutyard of a once great temple and bazaar, or just rise above it all and enjoy the view from  the top of a nearby hill. 

We hired bikes for the princely sum of 80 cents/50 pence per day and did it all. By the 3rd day we were feeling adventurous enough to take the bikes on a boat to the other side of the river, and cycle peacefully alongside the lush green paddy fields. We climbed up the 500+ steps to the Hanuman Temple in the heat of the day, and were rewarded with stunning 360 degree views of the whole area. 

Really, really beautiful. So difficult to chose the pictures to share with you.

We left on the Hubli Express after eating the most delicious dosas in Hospet. It had been a stunning couple of days and we thank our yogi friends Alison and Richard for the tip to go there. 

By the way, there were monkeys everywhere. Erik even got into a tug-of-war with one cheeky chappie over his water bottle. Here are a couple of our favourite pic's. 

3 wise monkeys or what?