Hampi

Hampi

Hampi is an ancient village with unearthly landscape reminding us an old animation called “The Flintstones” situated in the south Indian state of Karnataka. Stacks of giant boulders scattered over kilometers of choppy terrain with their rusty shades complemented with green palm groves, paddy fields and banana plantations. The whole city is dotted with numerous magnificent temple ruins from the Vijayanangara Empire. Ancient structures here are detailed, some of them abandoned, yet astonishing! Hampi attracts many travelers who have been enjoying this place for centuries and we were not an exception!

People usually stays in the heart of Hampi – its Bazaar – a village stuffed with budget accommodation options, shops and restaurants. Nearby you will find 7th century Virupaksha Temple, which for most people is the main city’s attraction. A carved stone chariot stands in front of the huge Vittala Temple site. In addition to amazing palace ruins, we managed to see our first elephant stables ever! As well as many other great sights around the city, and everything within walking distance for some while for others easily accessible by local Tuk Tuk. However, while it is possible to see this World Heritage Site in a day or two, plan on exploring it for longer, feel the atmosphere communicating with locals – feel Hampi’s rhythm!


Helpful tips


Restaurants. After traveling through India, we gathered experience and tips from locals which we want to share with everyone who will be reading this. If you come to India for a short period of time it is good to know that here certain bacteria are in almost every food, water and even air which can put you to bed for couple days if you have too much of it. To adapt to it, your body needs time and small amounts of the bacteria.

First, it is better to avoid eating too much of street food as it contains quite a lot of bacteria even though it is so cheap. We do not say that you should not eat street food at all, just keep it small quantities at a time. If you cannot wait to try and eat all sorts of street food just try it little by little and not everything on one go.

Second, when choosing a place where to eat, pay attention to other travelers’ reviews of the place. It is very important how the people from abroad felt about the food rather than locals.

Third, if there are any doubts regarding the hygiene of the place, we encourage to eat vegetables and avoid meat dishes.

We are well aware that everyone is different, and you feel your body the best. So, do what you want to do and keep in mind that these recommendations worked for us, we did not get sick while in India even for a day.

Markets. Prices in grocery shops are the same as through whole India, prices are printed on the packages, thus, you never need to wonder whether someone is taking advantage of you.

We would advise against drinking tap water in whole India, especially if you come just for a short time (couple weeks) as your body needs time to adjust to certain bacteria which is everywhere and taking too much of it at the same time can put you bed for couple days. Even though in some sources you could find that water is safe to drink, or that filtered water is alright we suggest to double check with your host or locals before you do that. We did not risk it too much, especially in the beginning of the trip, however, we did drink quite a lot of filtered water which was kind of alright just had a bad taste in most places.

Transportation. To get to Hampi you can use plane, bus, train, bike or car. As it is a small village it does not have great accessibility directly neither with trains, nor planes. However, you can take a train to nearby town Hospete or a direct daily flight to Jindal Vijaynagar Airport, 35km south of the ruins, mean that Hampi has never been more accessible.

In the city it is common to use public transportation Tuk Tuk’s which are the fastest way to get around the city. Tuk Tuk’s are a quick and cheap option where you must bargain though. Most of the time we walked as it helped to get to know the city and see not only the touristic places and we recommend you do the same if you have a chance.

Best of luck planning your holidays in India!

Is there anything else you would like to visit while in India?

If you have anything in mind, please let us know and let’s discuss it.

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