Hampi, India February 5th

Days seem to in Hampi seem to drift together the way they should on extended trips like this. This will be a difficult place to leave when I escape the heat into the Himalayas at the end of February. 

   Such an oddly attractive place Hampi is. India in general for that matter. The water is bad, the sun is intense and dry, germs thrive in the generally accepted filth...yet the culture is so unique and exotic I find it undeniably irresistible. 

    The climbing community is slowly leaving southern India due to the departure of the most favorable weather. Just one week ago we had twenty or so people coming out bouldering  in the morning. Now we are down to about seven. However it's nice being part of a small consistent group of people for a while. When traveling you inevitably meet countless people and after a while grow tired of the same introductory questions. But here I can stop and get to know people. A welcomed change.

    My first introduction to the happy Hampi family is Sharmilla. The owner of the popular climber's guest house and restaraunt, The Goan Corner. Sharmilla is always laughing, and very sharp. No one ever seems to win in an argument against her, including her short pudgy husband.

    Next up Phil, my roommate, I met upon arrival to Hampi. Phil is an interesting character from England. Soft spoken, tall, thin, and thick bearded, Phil lives on the road. He moves where the climbing is or his work and training as a high altitude mountaineer may take him. Frostbite took one of his big toes, and he has told me quite a few interesting stories while we sway in our hammocks in the heat of the mid-day.

   Another character from the crew, Andy. A 48 year opinionated, self employed plumber from England, Andy out climbs people more than twenty years younger than him. Clever and experienced, he adds a much needed balance to the group. 

    A few days ago a 22 year old califinornian showed up that I knew from Chiang Mai, Thailand. The two of us are at the same climbing level, so with any hope we'll give each other some terrible ideas in the weeks to come.

    No roster of Hampi would be complete excluding the animals. The family that owns my guest house owns two dogs the size of Great Danes who entertain themselves by chasing monkeys jumping between rooftops. Short in the chase would be the new member of the family, a Labrador puppy named Ginger.

    That is to just name a few. The climbing community has been great in Hampi. For the time being they are the people who surround me. But the bitter sweet changes of the traveling lifestyle will sweep them away, to be replaced by a whole new set of oddballs and misfits.