Hampi: Land of Hanuman

Hampi had always been high on my list of places to see. I had heard a lot about the magical setting of the place but what I encountered was beyond anything what words can signify. Many people do not know that ancient Hampi was the fabled land of Kishkinda; the land of Hanuman, Sugriva, Bali, Angad, Neela, Naala and other Vaanars who assisted Rama in capturing Lanka, in the great epic Ramayana. 

I left Bangalore around 10 in the morning hoping to get a bus from Majestic to Hospet and reach Hampi by nightfall. Hampi is a tiny village and has a bus connection only with Hospet which is around 13 kms away. I did not find any buses leaving for Hospet and I didnt want to waste time waiting indefinitely for one. 

One of the golden rules of travelling is always to have a Plan B. 

I left for Chitradurga which is halfway between Bangalore and Hospet and got a connecting bus from there. I reached Hampi at around 10pm in the last connecting bus from Hospet which leaves around 9:30. 

It was a blessing in disguise really because I didn't get to see the countryside and Hampi erupted in the early morning light next day in all its astonishing grandeur. 

The corresponding image is Archaeological Survey of India conducting maintenance at the Krishna Temple. More on it later. 

Genesis

"And God said, Let there be light: and there was light."

Everything starts at a point. 

The story of my wanderings across India starts today. The same story started in the real world in August last year when I left Ahmedabad for Hampi, after months of frustrating motionlessness existence. My photography had saturated the streets of Ahmedabad, and wanted to break out. I had been researching on new avenues for photography to expand in the future, and had zoned in on Panoramas as a great new opportunity waiting to be implemented on the wonder of India's geography, culture, monuments and people. 

Stretching across 15 states and over four months of actual wandering time, covering 5000 kms, across 50 sites including 16 World Heritage sites, I took the decisive step on a shoestring budget. Right now I am back at Ahmedabad, from where I shall document my days as a wandering mendicant. I wish I had written down my experiences along the way, but its still not late enough to do that. I will accompany my text with my images, which was the main purpose of my travels. 

However unlike my previous travels, this time around I avoided traveling like a tourist, but rather like an explorer. Concentrating more on the meaning than the content.