Still wondering!

Closing my eyes after a tiring day,
 Sleep is still far far away..
 But sleepless dreams haunt me still,
 An old memory of us up that hill,
 Where we used to run around,
 Holding hands and with books abound.
 No one there just us and them,
 Pretending common stones to be gems,
 And exchanging them in place of rings,
 Promising our love will never be just a fling.
 Oh! Such a happy place of the days past,
 To think of the meeting that was our last,
 Upon that same hill where we used to laugh,
 You left me crying with a heart broken in half.
 And today , I am again thinking of you,
 Still wondering if any of your words were even true.

Hampi: A Backpacker's Paradise

Situated on the banks of River Tungabhadra in Northern Karnataka, the group of monuments in Hampi is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. With historical & architectural significance, Hampi is known for its magnificent ruins and unearthly landscape. Exhibiting ruins of glorious Vijayanagara Empire, Hampi is charismatic even in its ruined state.

As the best time to visit this open museum is from October to March, I visited Hampi in second week of October. The nearest railway station to the place is Hospet, which is well connected by road to all towns of Karnataka. Though quite popular among foreign tourists, Hampi is still not that commercialized and the one can get decent lodging and food here at reasonable costs.  

Mine was a two day trip to Hampi & nearby areas, and I still wish that I would have got one more day to explore this magnificent part of history. Hampi is a small village spread over 26 square kilometres of boulder -strewn hills and planes, which make the backdrop of Hampi distinctive. Dotted around the hills & its valleys are over 500 monuments and other attractions, which can be visited in a day or two, but the finest experience can be found only in lingering over for a while.

First Day:

Though it is highly recommended to rent a bicycle or scooter, I chose to hire an auto rickshaw. My first day was planned to cover the entire village area, consisting ruins of various temples, religious buildings and royal palaces. One can witness pure Hindu architecture in the remains of temples like Vithala Temple, Hazara Rama Temple, underground Shiva Temple and Achyutaraya Temple. Virupaksha Temple is the only living temple with the status of deity still preserved, unlike other monuments. 

Temple premises

Entrance to underground Shiva Temple

Interior of underground Shiva Temple filled with water

Virupaksha Temple

The cravings and paintings on roofs and walls of these temples portray various stories of Ramayana & Mahabharata.

Story depiction on walls

Stepped Tank build near temple premises is another spectacle to see.

Monolithic statues of Narasimha-Lakshmi, Lord Ganesha & Shivalinga showcase the architectural brilliance of Vijayanagara Empire in medieval period as they were carved out of single rock.

Remains of palaces and royal enclosures like Lotus Mahal (in shape of Lotus) and Queens’ Bath display grandeur of ancient India.

Lotus Mahal

Lotus Mahal

Queens' Bath

Stone Chariot is the epitome of Hampi which is still standing as if built yesterday. 

Elephant Stable was used by Army to keep elephants and Hampi Bazaar which was a market place for common people presents itself in a very subtle way. 

Elephant stable

Hampi Bazaar

I could not visit many places due to time constraint but then at the end of the day, I was gratified enough to have a sound sleep, for being prepared for next day sightseeing.

Second Day:

Second Day was planned for outdoors of Hampi village, which started off with a visit to Kishkindha Kshetra, to a cave where it is believed that the battle between Sugriva & Bali took place and Lord Rama killed Bali. On the way which was around 40 kms, there was a giant bridge supposed to be 600 years old.

Then there was Anjani Parvat, the mention of which is in Ramayana as the birth place of Lord Hanuman. One has to climb around 400 stairs to reach at the top to visit Hanuman Temple. Amidst the green paddy field, the view from top seemed astounding.

Then I visited Pampa Sarovar, which has its mention in Hindu mythology.

Sanapur Lake Reservoir is another attraction nearby, where tourists can experience coral boating, which is yet another experience of its own kind- rotating speedily in a round basket-like boat in middle of the lake. This place is also known for partying by youngsters.
              

Last I visited was the dam built over Tungabhadra River, which looked spectacular from top of the hill that we climbed through a bus.

As my trip to this exquisite place came to end, sitting on the Bus Stand, I just wished to come back here again and re-live the ruins of ancient India that we had studied only in text books till now. Hampi, in truest sense, is a backpacker’s paradise.  

The Second Love...!

Having blocked you on Whatsapp & Facebook, still can't take you out from my thoughts.
As usual I didn't get any reply of whatever I had texted you yesterday. You didn't even call once to ask if I am doing fine. I have been crying since then.
You will never know how hard it was for me to decide this. You think I have gone out of control..but the thing is that I am in love with you..truly, madly, deeply.
You know its kind of easier to write this than talking to you; at least I won't expect a reply and won't be disappointed again and again.
I always wonder.. Do you even miss my presence in your life? Do I even mean something to you?
Why are you not in my destiny? Why don't I get the same feelings in return that I have for you? Why did you come this close to me when you never had any intention of taking it further?
Answers of these are neither with you nor with me.

It is just too hard for me to stop talking to you, but I can't do it anymore...for the sake of my sanity. I miss you terribly though.

I understand we have not known each other for a very long time; hardly 8-9 months. But falling in love with you was not accidental. It was a choice that I made... gradually.. after knowing you through each passing day.. after every conversation that we had.
First time I had fallen for someone was kind of Love at first sight. It was immature, impractical, crazy, and what not...but still it managed to break me enough, so much so that I never expected to love anyone else ever.
But then you happened to enter my life, and I had never expected that I'll fall for you without even meeting you once.

I know you have also gone through heartbreak, though you never talked about it much but I realized the intensity of your pain the first time you told me about her. So I always thought that since you are a few years older to me, you don't want to rush into things and want to give yourself sometime before thinking anything about future.
I thought may be I am acting immaturely; but I couldn't stand your indifference towards me. I had always been honest with you and so I confessed my feelings without waiting for you to take an initiative. Was that my fault?
That I took an initiative so that we could stay happily together...

But your ignorance has hurt me deeply. Why don't you understand anything? I am just a simple girl who wanted the same love in return that I had been showering upon you. And if you couldn't do that, you could have just told me to get lost. But you chose yet again to remain silent. That's the easiest thing to do for you. Isn't it?

Now I am finding faults in you, so that I could hate you a bit and stop thinking about you 24*7. I keep on trying to figure out reasons why this relationship that I always wanted would have never been successful. And that all this has happened for good.
But then I happen to think about your smile and all bad things that I have collected about you get vanished in a couple of seconds.

I want to talk to you so badly right now. I want to tease you, make fun of you and ask you stupid questions. Why don't I deserve your love?

People say that first Love is unforgettable and it makes one strong. Very correct.
But they never told that second love is so fatal and it makes one this weak & vulnerable.

The worst part is that I have no one to share this situation that I am going through. No one who is close to me has any idea about this turmoil going on in my life. I am completely alone and all I need is you.

I just hope that you might be missing me too...not necessarily in the same way as I do.. but in some way.. you might miss me some day too..