Chronicle: Little Village

I feel the gentle touch of something in my shoulder. I look up to see what it is. Yellow petals float towards me thrown by the hands of a friendly waiter of the restaurant. I smile because I know what it means. He returns the smile and tells me "it is to give you good luck." I put together the hands in sign of gratitude.

I feel blessed, not only for this gesture, but for all that I've experienced. I am sure that Ganesha is looking out for me. As I am sure that I entered into that mystical India that charms us, not only by her beauty, but for all that moves us inside.

Hampi is a beautiful place to visit this India. Is not large enough to swallow you with their stimullus, but it's already full of “indian” details. It is located in the northern part of Karnakata and most of all is a village surrounded by temples and magnificent landscapes.

Hampi Bazaar

Color, color and more color. It's everywhere. On the bench for sale, on the walls of houses, on the clothes people wear. Even the smiles of children who approach you looking for your name, photo and a few rupees seem to have a special color. Spreads everywhere and infects you. Hampi is a small historic and tourist village. Historic in two ways. Center of centenarians temples and because it will disappear. The colorful tourist part of the village will be demolished (already started).

Its streets, paved or naked, have a special touch that melts everything. You feel that the old and new, the genuine and tourist, live hand in hand in a strange harmony. In the spotlight is Virupaksha Temple - one of the incarnations of Shiva. With its 50 meters tower, “indianly” decorated, it doesn't escape your attention. Here everything seems to revolve around it and is an ever-present element that watchs and protects you.

A few meters below runs the river Turgabahdra, landscape of daily life. The baths and laundry occupies its banks, while its staircase serves as a place for a contemplating one of the most beautiful landscapes. Something to savor at our own pace, which can be at the click of a photo or of a beautiful sunset.

Vittala Temple and Royal Complex

Sometimes the path is more important than the place of arrival. I don't say this to devalue the hihglight sites. Without doubt, the Vittala temple - with its stone chariot - will be a everlasting memory. Here everything is lacy, as we imagine “Hindustan” would be. And the Royal Complex will bring a peacefullness of green spaces. The Lotus Pavilion, although simple, is a hymn to harmony of undulating shapes. From any angle it is always of a magical symmetry. You just loose the sense of time while walking around. Almost it hypnotizes you.

However, all this is connected by paths that lead you to magnificent landscapes and leave you amazed even with the simplest things. The whole region is made up of small-large grains that constitute the mountains, margins and balance itself by the magic of this place.

The region is vast and can be made by bicycle or motorbike. Being a odd person, I did it on foot. And despite the fatigue, this rythum lets you see people moving around. You will be approached by many with genuine interest in finding out who is this stranger who passes there. You can also see functional temples and how the respect for the deities is felt. Or just admire rusty leftovers from a height of a more rural era.

Hanuman temple

And when we walk by places that we don't know, we will eventually get lost. But when travelling, very few times it has a negative charge. This was no exception. It was a chance to go down paths through the rocky hills of Hampi and the privilege of meeting Oscar, an English traveler - and share with him a great conversation. Another moment that my trip delivered me.

When I met him - in the middle of a group of people who were practicing climbing - I was completely lost. Looking for the Hanuman temple should be easy. It is on top of a mountain. Strangely I couldn't see it. So I didn't have any reference guide. Once I asked him for directions, he offered to show me the way. We ended up going through the middle of rice paddies. By now they almost all are dry, except that one that serves as a seed crop for the next harvest. This one is bright green like India. We crossed the river - which at first seemed an insurmountable obstacle - to reach a rural village. After a while we are at the bottom of 570 steps that lead us to the temple. By mid-rise we stopped in the shade of a tree and ended up surrounded by monkeys. It seems that we are on a balcony of the world such is the breadth of our vision.

With the ascent made, and conveniently bare feet, we arrived at the birthplace of a God, Hanuman. All around us the landscape induces us into a silent contemplation.

The descent is easy. The walk was excellent, accompanied by a conversation that brought us into this world and another. That led us to the past, present and future. When I left I had already realized of having lived one more magical moment of my trip. Oscar is the personification of world traveler, with a selfless generosity, an open mind of its surroundings, and a culture that nurtures a good conversation and keens you into other dimensions of this life we live.

I was not to be here. Hampi wasn't part of my plans. But the hint of an Iranian and Portuguese friends and the smile that the mention of Hampi would arouse in people, waken my curiosity. I needed to know what Hampi was all about. And now that I read what I wrote I know that I didn't gave it justice in my description. Hampi is not only temples or landscapes. Not only the diversity or the villager spirit. Hampi carries a spell that is hard to transform into words. If I had to describe in a nutshell I would say that Hampi is the place where you can enjoy India at your own pace. And that alone is something magical ...