Wednesday February 1 - Hassan to Hospet

Typical South India Scene

Makeshift Public Transportation

Left the hotel at 8 for a full day of driving to reach Hospet, the overnight point for our sightseeing destination of Hampi. In the morning Lakuma told us a highly abridged version of the Mahabaratha, an 18 volume tale, about the rivalry between princely brothers who end up (after many side stories) facet-to-face on the battlefield. The hero, Ajuna, has Krishna on his side. Krishna tells Ajuna the morals of the Bagavagita as he urges him to fight the against evil pitted against him.

High Technology

Beautiful downtown Chitradurga (or is it Hospet? So hard to tell the difference)

At lunchtime in the small town of Chitradurga we were reunited with Cliff and Cathy who will continue with us for the remainder of our trip. They were delighted to see Lakuma again and we are all eager to hear about their adventures in northern India.

As we continued our drive in the afternoon we happened upon a village celebration that to us was rather exotic. We saw a goat being brought out for sacrifice and the men of the village dancing in the middle of the street (technically a "highway") with swords on the top of long sticks. Some men held axes. They danced in unison moving right then left and after awhile they jumped up and down in the air. Lakuma explained that once a year the village has a special ceremonial day rather like our Thanksgiving when they sacrifice a goat and chicken. There was such a throng of people in the middle of the road that it was impossible for us to continue driving so we just observed. I stayed in the van because I had a great view from slightly above the crowd. I videoed the men dancing and then the parade of people as they moved toward the temple. Women, who processed behind the men, carried saris, blankets and fruits as offerings to the gods. If I can figure out how to do so, I will post a clip.

Checked into our hotel at 6pm after what felt like a very long, VERY bumpy ride. Today's ride, perhaps because we were driving at a faster speed in a larger vehicle and on many roads under construction, felt the bumpiest of any of our rides. Went directly to the bar for our habitual vodka no ice and then to dinner. Had a chance to catch up with Cliff and Cathy and learn more about their Rajasthan experiences at the Jaipur Literary Festival.

Tourists much?