I lost my heart to India aged 21 on the start of a year long trip around the world. 30 years on I have travelled through the vast and amazing country many times. But it wasn’t until recently that I finally got a chance to visit Hampi in the country’s deep south. Intrigued by the mystery of a land scattered with boulders and the ruins of temples and palaces from ancient times, it had been on my bucket list for a long time.
On the banks of the Tungabhadra River, Hampi was the first capital of the powerful and wealthy Vijayanagara Empire. Its bazaars were full of precious jewels, its kings lived in golden palaces, its lands stretched from the Bay of Bengal to the Arabian Sea. Until, that is, one afternoon in January 1565, when the Vijayanagar armies were toppled by Deccan sultans and almost overnight the great town was abandoned.
Presently, there are over 1,600 remaining ruins that include forts, temples, shrines, pillared halls, memorial buildings and water tanks. This is a place you really need to explore with a guide and I spent two full days with Sanjeev who brought to life the stories of the past.
On our first day we visited the Virupaksha Temple, which has been functioning uninterruptedly for centuries and towers over the area. Outside is Hampi Bazaar, the once-bustling old market, much as it would have been in ancient times when merchants traded rich and fragrant spices for a wealth of gold.
Then we walked through rocky ravines that were dotted with the remains of temples and pavilions each with a story to tell.
As we drove through the countryside, a landscape of paddy fields and ragged banana plantations gave way to enormous boulders - sculptural, curvaceous, most of them the size of houses. Studding the side of a hill, a cascade of boulders provided a natural walkway to a sunset viewpoint where we could look out over a landscape with an otherworldly feel.
On our second day, we started with a visit to Vittala Temple, a masterpiece of Vijayanagara architecture with its stone chariot.
Next, we headed to the zenana, the women’s quarters. Here I saw the beautiful Lotus Mahal, an ancient palace built in a distinctive lotus-like structure, and the grand, Indo-Islamic Elephant Stables - a magnificent row of 11 domed chambers that each housed an elephant, once used for ceremonies and parades. Not far away is the Queen’s Bath, where arcaded passageways beneath ornate vaults surround a large central pool.
We ended the day jumping into a wicker coracle and drifting down the Tungabhadra River watching fishermen laying their fishing nets amongst the rushes.
The UNESCO World Heritage site of Hampi is captivating and, if you like visiting historical places, you will definitely be in for a treat here. Do as I did and combine a trip to Hampi with the wonderful former French colony of Pondicherry, which is fondly referred to as Pondi, with its rainbow coloured buildings, tree-lined boulevards and boulangeries.
If you are interested in visiting Hampi or elsewhere in India, then please do get in touch and let me create your own Indian Odyssey.