Its the 2nd day of our Hampi exploration. Underestimating what Hampi has to offer us a bit, we realized our mistake, that you need at-least 3 days if you are to complete almost whole of Hampi. But too late for plan changes now. So proceeding with the plan, to trek to the Matanga Hills and to explore the other side of the Thungabhadra river.
When you are in Hampi, Sun rise from the Matanga hills is something that should not be missed. I'm the one who usually give sun enough time to settle down for the day, before I wake up. But when a situation demands, I can be up early and wait for the sun to come up. Checking the sunrise time to be close to 6.30, we started from our rooms at around 5.30, giving our body enough time to relax and climb and still on time for the natures light show.
Climbing Matanga can be a bit tiring, and its really important that you watch your step as the steps vanish into the rocks at places and all you have to place you leg will be slanting rocks. If you are someone having fear of heights, you better be looking up your path. All these said, this hill not very dangerous one. But the effort you put will be rewarded once you are atop the hill. Well, not so surprisingly, we were not the first ones up the hill. Around 30 people were waiting for the sun to start its rounds. Some doing yoga, some talking to their guide, some just getting themselves into the views around.
The view from the top is simply amazing with the boulders scattered throughout the plains and hills, sun rising in between the clouds and the Thungabhadra flowing calmly on one side. Right down the hill, you get a full aerial view of the Achyutharaya temple complex. After spending some time after the sunrise, we started our climb down and made our way to the room after clicking a few pics near the big monolithic bull.
In every walk with nature, one receives far more than he seeks - John Muir
After fresh, we started off to explore the other side of river Thungabhadra - Virupapurgaddi. It is everything that Hampi is not. If Hampi is filled with ruins, temples and spiritualism, Virupapurgaddi is all about shacks, food and party. Its a mini Goa and just on crossing a river, your surroundings would have turned its faces. Hiring two scooters again, we started off to Anjanadri Hill, where lord Hanuman is believed to be born. Riding in between agricultural lands, and a few more boulder spewn surfaces, we reached the foothill of the Anjanadri hill. What was waiting for us was 700+ steps to reach the top. Climbing all the way up taking some good amount of time, we reached on the top, where a small temple houses Lord Hanuman as the deity with a sample of the water from Rameswaram, which is believed to have the power to hold any stone of any weight when Lord Sriram's name is written on it. Once you start walking around the hill top, you can see large agri-lands all around you and the message, "Worlds best sunset spot" written over the rocks.
Having finished the roaming and some much needed rest after the bit heavy climb (at-least for us where tasks like these are thrown at our body only at times), we looked for other possible places. Sanapur lake came up in the list. I'd say there is nothing much to do there, but one would enjoy the ride to the place and people can hangout in those areas, as it is very deserted. You could see warning signs at frequent intervals urging the visitors not to get into the water for there are crocodiles in it.
Spending more than a half day there, we started back to Hampi, and this time, food from the Virupapurgaddi was tried for lunch. You will get okayish non veg meals here. Taking a coracle back to hampi, we decided on covering the royal enclosure which we missed on the last day by a few minutes. Royal enclosure holds the entire royal township inside the walls and gives you a glimpse into the lives of the then Vijayanagara King and his queens, arcitecure and the amount of destruction the city has undergone upon the fall of the empire. The first thing that catches your eyes is the Mahanavami dibba, a 8 meter high platform with a flight of stairs taking you all the way up on all four sides. This one was used during the Navaratri Celebrations. Also another notable structure inside is the vast netwok of the aquaducts, stone pipes that connect and carry water from the mighty thungabhadra to several ponds inside the enclosure. Also contained inside the enclosure is stepped well, an underground room, which is believed to be used for transfiguring secrets without knowing the person on the other side. Sunset from the Mahanavami Dibba is a must watch.
It was already dark by the time we came out. Despite being a UNESCO heritage site and such a huge tourist spot, Hampi goes dark after sunset. So its wise to stop your roaming by sunset and be back in the town by night. Trees and monuments gave a ghostly appearance in the dimlit roads.
Thus 2 days of heritage and ancient architecture exploration ended with a lot of memories and experience.
Opmerkingen