TRAVEL

This past weekend Kevin, Tor and I took the train to Hampi in the State on Karnatika. The two of them had never been on an Indian train and I was determined to show them a raw and wonderful way to learn about Indian culture, people and the human spirit. We departed on Thursday from Hyderadbad and after an 12 hour journey we arrived in Hospet at 5am the next morning. We then took a rickshaw 30 kilometers from Hospet to Hampi. Hampi is a small village positioned on a river that was once the second largest kingdom in India. It is a very spiritual place, sprinkled with temples, backpackers, huge boulders, monkeys, an elephant priest and ruins of the kingdom. We decided to rent mopads for two days to navigate this scenic area and enjoyed exploring via the bikes. After two days of sightseeing and relaxation we went to the train station to return to Hyderabad. We were on the waiting list for the train and were told by seasoned travelers of India that getting a seat would not be a problem and if all else fails ask for the "foreigners quota" which ALWAYS gets you a seat. Well, the train was fully booked and we were denied the foreigners quota. We boarded the train and every seat was taken, so we attempted to bribe the train employees with no luck...Frantic we continued to search for seats and stumbled upon three young indian fellas who allowed us to share their seats. Were it not for their kindness and willingness to sacrifice their comfort we would have been ousted from the train. 12 hours of sleep ridden travel later we arrived back in Hyderabad drained but thankful.