Happy Hampi!!!

Hampi not known to many people is a true hidden gem.Lot of people asked us what is there in Hampi and where is it??To start off-It is a great place and a must visit.We had a wonderful time in both of our visits.You cannot help but fall in love with the place.The place leaves you speechless.The mamooth boulders precariously balanced, lie scattered all over Hampi.The green paddy fields with rustic backdrop is an alluring sight. There is adventure like spotting a bear while climbing the boulders,yes it happened,little did we know that Hampi has bears.Amazing food,we had some awesome falafels here.Backpacker's Mecca,place to have a relaxed time with friends,buzzing with energy...that's Hampi.

Introduction-  Hampi is a village in northern Karnataka state, India. It is located within the ruins of Vijayanagara, the former capital of the Vijayanagara Empire.  The ruins are a UNESCO World Heritage Site, listed as the Group of Monuments at Hampi.

Hampi is also referred as city of ruins. Primary connectivity to Hampi is by road. It is about 350km from Bangalore.Hospet, a small town located about 12 kilometers (8 miles) from Hampi is the nearest railway station. Hospet is well connected by rail and road to other important towns like Bangalore, Chennai,Goa,Hyderabad etc.

View from Virupapur gadde

Accommodation-Hampi has budget type accommodation,no fancy frills here.Houses have been converted to guest houses,simple and clean with basic amenities.The other side of the river has more foreigners and serves non veg and alcohol. Hampi side has no non veg and alcohol. 

 Virupapur Gadde across the river is the place for party and night scene.Here you can rent huts, mostly located close to the riverbank.

 Mowgli guesthouse has a great location across the river from the bazaar, the cottages are spacious with a swing outside.It has amazing views over the paddy fields. We loved the food and view from the restaurant.Wifi is free in almost all the guest houses in Hampi,so you stay connected.

Mowgli guest house-Our hut

Hampi side-We booked online Thilak home stay.Kish (owner)makes sure you have a wonderful time in Hampi.There is pick up and drop facility to Hospet.Sight seeing is also arranged by him.Breakfast is included.The guest house has a restaurant right opposite to it,so you don't have to wander much.

Things to do in Hampi-
Temples -there are a lot of temples on both sides of the river.You have to take a boat to cross the river,the last boat is at 5:30PM.So depending on your plans you decide which side of the river you want to stay.
We reached Hampi in the morning after a good breakfast we were all set to explore Hampi.We decided to explore the Virupapur first.You can hire bicycles,mopeds to explore the city.
Virupapur has a beautiful lake which has coracle boats.You can also swim in the lake.Cliff jumping,rock climbing are very common here.Coracle boat is a fun experience,A bit scary but fun,we paid around 150INR for a 15 min ride.
Hampi has a whole lot of temples- Vithala temple is not to be missed for sure.

Coracle ride

Vithala Temple

Sunset 

To view the sunrise from Matanga Hill,you need to get up real early.You need to be on top of the hill by 6AM.It takes around an hour to climb the Hill.It gets scary as there is no light and no proper way.But in the end the view makes up for it.

Matanga hill

Sunrise-Matanga hill

Queen's bath

Stepwell

Sister stones

Lotus palace

chill out cafe

Where to eat- The food is good,you get pretty much the same food in Hampi.All the restaurants have set breakfasts,Israeli food,cereals,pancakes etc.The one which stood were Mango tree and Chill out.Mango tree has amazing falafels and hummus.
Cafe Chill Out
Funky Monkey

Plan a trip to Ladakh in April

Selecting Pre-Season for your trip

We wanted to visit Ladakh since long but somehow it never got materialized. Ladakh as a tourist destination through out the year. What it offers in off-season, pre-season and peak-season is different and can cater to different themes of vacation. 

Our trip in April ( which is just a month before the start of the season) offered us breathtaking views of snow clad mountains and sub zero temperatures. Adequate clothing would get you through comfortably. Sub zero temperatures were a-first for many of us in the group and had the first-time-experience charm attached to it.

There are many advantages of travelling at this time of the year. The drive at Chang La and Khardung La is stuff from the fantasies.While the pictures in the blog would give you a hint, they do not capture the scale of the view that you would see when you are actually there!!!

Another advantage is the crowd is lesser than what you would see in the season and you would also be saving deep holes in your pockets.

In addition to the snow there are some other sight that are unique to this time of the year like the river confluence - Zanskar and Nubra. This confluence is much more apealing at this time of the year as the Zanskar is still in its pristine blue. ( It would be muddy as you get deeper into the summer)

Having said this, Ladakh deserves a visit in all the seasons. The summer would be a fantastic trip as well with its bright blue sky and lakes like Pangong in its full glory.In winters one can go for trek like chadar treks etc.

Reaching Leh

There are direct flights from Delhi to Leh everyday.If you planning a trip in June or July you might get expensive tickets but April is pre-season so we got reasonable tickets as well. All road routes may not be open at this time; especially the one from Manali to Leh are open only form May to August.
Air travel is also a good option if you have limited time in your hand. What more the view from the flight as you approach Leh is gorgeous.

View from the flight

Places to Visit

Our trip was aided by a  friend's suggestion of a good tour and travels. We did our booking a week in advance.We stayed for 6 nights.We visited the Nubra Valley (overnight stay in Hunder) , Pangong (overnight stay in Tangtse) and sights around Leh.

When you travel in Ladakh, every sight is going to demand a second look- it is that beautiful! So to say that i visited x, y z places in Ladakh is so inaccurate because you just see it all & remember it all. The journey itself so incredible that hours on the road would pass by without you noticing.

We travelled to all these places by making an overnight stays. This allowed us to travel at our own pace and enjoy the journey so much more. While we stayed in all army accommodations in Leh, Hunder and Tangste village.There are lot of hotels and home stay options available as well..

Suggestion: We suggest that you give minimum 6 nights to the look around Leh (maximum is uncapped :)). Try to not rush through a check list of places you have planned to visit. Journey on the road will take you along some breathtaking views of mountains, plains, rivers, gorges etc. Stop at these places and soak it all in. The views are unmatched in beauty. 

Preparing for the weather and altitude
The temperature in leh in April varies from -4 to 8 degrees Celsius.But the temperature drops even more if you to higher altitudes like Changla or Khardungla. 
We bought woolen inners,woolen socks,caps,jackets,gloves and sweaters.We all are wearing min 3 layers on top and 2 layers bottom clothing.Sometimes you might need more as well :P

Keep medicines like anti-emetics, cold medicines etc just in case you need them.

Word of Caution:Take it easy on the first day of your visit. Allow your body to acclimatize. The altitude and temperature have varied effect on people, you do not want to ruin your trip by not appreciating the need of your body to get used to this change. 

Our Experience
We ate most of our meals at the army mess and enjoyed them all.The food was homely and amazing.We also had a Ladakhi meal at our Guide's place.

There was so many unique experiences in our trip. The vast frozen lakes, snowfalls, scenery of overwhelming scale, sand dunes, river, snow drives the list goes on. 

If you get mesmerized by the Swiss mountains in Yash Raj movies take a trip to Ladakh at this time. If you like the scale of scenery when you see images of Grand Canyon, you should visit Ladakh. If you wish you were the only person on a edge of a mountain overlooking stunning scenery you should visit Ladakh. if you wanted to know how nature can spell-bind you with its beauty you should visit Ladakh.

This place leaves you speechless.