Hampi

my last trip in india was to hampi and it was great. the town was the center of the vijayanagara empire 500 years ago until it was destroyed by muslim sultans. the city is kind of like the roman forum in that you can just walk around and visit the historic sites as they were back then. it's not like delhi or agra where you pay to go in each site, you just wonder around checking out the palaces, temples, courtyards, and elephant stables. there was one area that had an admission fee, but most of the sites were just wide open. the entire area is really big, like 2-3 miles. you can spend all day in just one area, or you can haul ass and try to see as much as possible. it's a really flexible place and it made for a wonderful time.

i'm making the whisper sign b/c there was
no one around and it was very quiet.

i rented a motorscooter one day and it was so much fun. at first i had the guy just give me a liter of gas, but after riding it for about 10 minutes i went back and told him to fill me up b/c i wanted to roll all over the place. the scooter actually made it kinda hard to sightsee b/c i didn't want to stop and get off to walk around, driving was too much fun.

i'm so bad ass

i stayed in a circular hut with a view of the rice fields and on the front porch was a hammock that was supremely comfortable. it was very chill. when it was time to shower i called room service and they brough over a bucket of warm water. i know it doesn't sound great, but b/c it was pretty hot and humid this type of shower was just fine. plus it was a good way to conserve water.

yes, it is as relaxing as it looks

i finally got to see a snake charmer. i was walking down the ghat to the ferry and saw a couple baskets that reminded me of what you see on tv, but there was no one around, so i continued on down where i was stopped by the "magic man" as he called himself. he tried doing the whole sales pitch, but i didn't need it as seeing a snake charmer was on my list of things to do while i was here. i didn't think i would get to see one b/c it's outlawed in india b/c they defang the snakes they use. it wasn't quite as mystical as i thought it would be, but it was still need to see a king cobra.

i kept my distance

the town is home to a lot of hippies who stay there for long periods. wondering around i had numerous locals ask me if i wanted to smoke. they have definitely adapted to the tourists who frequent the area. i heard bob marley playing in more than one restaurant. speaking of restaurants, every place had pretty much the exact same menu; indian, continental, israeli, and italian. the only exception was the mango tree restaurant which everyone told me to go to (including lonely planet) and they were right. it was refreshingly different and quite good.