I took an 8-hour drive to Hampi (beautiful village and temple town), a UNESCO World Heritage site, one of a kind that I have visited so far in India.  Revanth (my elder one) and Sharan (my nephew) joined me with not so excitement. Hampi can be considered as a one of the largest open air museum in the world, said exuberant guide that I have hired.  Overall today’s experience reminded of my trip to Angkor Wat couple of years ago.  Thanks to UNESCO recognition, ruins are decently protected, amidst lush green surrounding with limited nuisance from commercial activities around.

Here is the video from the trip, as seen from the eyes of HERO 4 and 6D. Drive around the Hampi monuments was very beautiful, thanks to lush green surroundings, UNESCO protected commerce free environment

It is a must place visit from anyone around 3 neighbourhood states, as this place is so easily accessible from major cities around here.  There is lots of history associated with this place, unfortunately most of which is not covered in many of our school books

Some Trivia By Wiki:

Hampi is a village and temple town recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was one of the richest and largest cities in the world during its prime. It is located within the ruins of the city of Vijayanagara, the former capital of the Vijayanagara Empire. The empire boasted a massive army comprising close to two million men. In around 1500 AD Vijaynagar had about 500,000 inhabitants (supporting 0.1% of the global population during 1440-1540), making it the second largest city in the world after Beijing and almost thrice the size of Paris.

Hampi was one of the best areas of the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1343 to 1565. Hampi was chosen because of its strategic location, bounded by the torrential Tungabhadra river on one side and surrounded by defensible hills on the other three sides. The ruins of Hampi were discovered by Colonel Colin Mackenzie in 1800.

The site is significant historically and architecturally. The landscape abounds with large stones which have been used to make statues of Jaina deities. The Archaeological Survey of India continues to conduct excavations in the area to search for additional artifacts and temples. Hampi is situated on the banks of the Tungabhadra River. It is 353 km from Bangalore and 74 km away from Bellary. Hosapete.

The extant monuments of Vijayanagara or Hampi can be divided into Religious, Civil & Military buildings.  The places we visited today include: BadaviLinga , Hazara Rama Temple Complex, Krishna Temple, Vittala Temple , Virupaksha Templem, Lotus Mahal, Elephant stables

 

The coracle is a small, roundish shaped, lightweight boat of the sort traditionally used in Wales but also in parts of Western and South West England, Ireland. A coracle boat is a round, shell-shaped boat made up of interwoven bark (almost like a flattened basket) and is the preferred means of crossing the river for villagers in India, Vietnam, and few other south Asian countries.   I have taken a spin on Coracles, for the first time in my life in 1986, around backwaters of Nagarajun Sagar.  I got a chance to try again today, with my kids again at backwaters of Tunga river around Hampi.  Cost is about $4 per a trip of an hour.  Here is what we could record on Hero 4.