From the City to beaches and temples

So I realise another blog entry is long overdue. I want to post before I move on to the next place, where ever that may be. I've completely fallen in love with Hampi. Set in a beautiful landscape of rust coloured boulders and startlingly green paddy fields and banana plantations, Hampi is an oasis within India. A group of us arrived here after 12 hours on a government bus, the sort of bus that doesn't look particularly road-worthy and is only meant to sit 20 people but 50 people somehow manage to squeeze on. After that very long and uncomfortable journey, Hampi had a lot to live up to. So many people have told me that it is their favourite place here in India, so I was really expecting something amazing. And it is! The tiny 'town' comprising of one main street and a maze of guesthouses and shops is surrounded by crumbling Hindu temples which take days to explore. We've clambered up hills to watch the sun rise and set, pottered about the town and temples on bicycles, discovered waterfalls, had morning yoga classes and hired scooters for the all essential booze cruise to the nearest big town.

Before Hampi, a group of us took the night train to Om Beach in Gokarna. It felt really good to be moving again. It was really hard saying goodbye to many of the friends I had made on Study India, especially as some of them I had travelled with since my arrival in India. The long train journey was a good time to reflect on the programme in Mumbai. The final week of the programme was a bit of an anti-climax, we had a couple of poor lectures and a few things were cancelled because of the monsoon. We did have a few amazing evenings though, one night we performed Puja for the Ganesh festival which involved a lot of incense, flowers and candles then hours of dancing. Similarly, our final night in Mumbai was Indian-themed, we all wore traditional Indian formal clothes, the whole event was so sparkly and brightly coloured!

The sleeper train to Gokarna was fun and full of activity. A constant steady stream of men selling delicious samosas, bhajis and cones of bombay mix; as well as food magazines, pillows and toys were also for sale. Not much sleeping took place, especially as we had a loud group of singing and clapping Hare Krishnas on our carriage. Om Beach itself was quiet and peaceful, and probably quite beautiful beneath the rain. We spent a couple of soggy days there, enjoying rainy swims in the sea and long nights in the beach bar.

Feeling a little apprehensive about the next few weeks, for a number of reasons. I don't really have a plan and it is hard saying goodbye to friends. Plus I've lost my camera charger so I haven't been able to take photos for about a week. And I still have so much to look forward to in India, 6 months is beginning to feel like a long time.

Sending you all lots of love, I'll post again soon. E-mail me with all your news from home, however mundane and apologies for not replying often.
xxx