South India 2008

Photos by Adam Jones

These photos were taken during two-and-a-half months in South India
(states of Karnataka, Goa, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala) from June to August 2008.


Gallery 9: Hampi


Hampi is the main village in the ruined city of Vijayanagar, destroyed by Muslim
conquerors in 1565. Prior to that, it was the seat of an extensive empire, as its skeletal remains,
distributed over 26 square kilometres, attest. The combination of ghostly temples and royal palaces
with a surreal boulder-strewn landscape is irresistible. I based myself in a guesthouse in Hampi,
and explored widely from there.


I.

The Virupaksha Temple in Hampi, which still functions and draws Hindu believers
from across the South.

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II.

Life outside the temple gate.

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III.

View from the north side of temple.

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IV.

The Tungabhadra River lies just below Hampi village -- the first clean, genuinely
attractive river I'd seen in India.

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V.

Up the street from my guesthouse.

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VI.

Hampi serves as something of a beatnik hangout, especially over Christmas when
prices spike in Goa on the coast, and the hippie population migrates east to avoid the package tourists.
Many businesses have been set up to cater to the trade, including this restaurant, which seems to
have global cuisines pretty well covered.

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VII.

Johnny Depp has a fan in this Hampi riksha driver.

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VIII.

This photo and following: Hampi folk.

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IX.

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X.

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XI.

Many buildings in Hampi Bazaar (the official name for the village,
referring to the long street that was once the main market for Vijayanagar) are built in
or alongside the ruins of the imperial city.

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All photos copyright 2008 by Adam Jones, unless otherwise indicated. These images may be freely used for educational and other non-commercial purposes, if the author is credited and notified. For commercial use, please contact the author.

adamj_jones@hotmail.com