Even though we poorly celebrated the American New Year and erroneously celebrated the Russian one (long story), I succesfully stumbled across the Hindi New Year. On my first morning in Hampi (India’s bed rock), I crossed the river from my guest house among hundreds of Indian families bathing in celebration. Brightly colored Saris lined the hillsides to dry; men splashed enthusiastically in their underwear.
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In the main temple of Hampi, huge crowds still remained from the all morning puja (prayer). We forcefully returned elbows in line until we arrived to the first attraction: a one foot tall Shiva deity brightly dressed in flourescent green and gold.
A glance was all we were allowed until security pushed the line through the rest of the temple. One by one, lines pushed through doorways to enter basement sanctuaries and cell-sized rooms decorated for their respective deities. Periodically, drums and bells would ring through the temple adding to the hustle and bustle.
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Escaping the lines, Lakshmi (the elephant reincarnate responsible for good fortune) was in full swing: an offering of money received a blessing pat on the head; all other offerings earned an elephant nod.
For days, I’ve been exploring the ruins of the previous capitol of the Vijayanagara Empire during the 12th – 14th centuries.
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| From Hampi |
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The landscape is very unique – rounded boulders among rice fields with sporadic temples decorating the hills and valleys.
Every day since I’ve been here, the fields have methodically turned from muddy pools to bright green rice crops (tradition following the Hindi New Year);
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been lost and found MANY times exploring dirt paths on motor scooters; been chased down by hundreds of children yelling: “Helloooo!” “What is your name?” “What is your country?”; relaxed by the town ‘reservior’ and ended the days with a hike up to one of the many hill top temples to watch the sunset and see the vastness of the Empire.
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