Far away from Mother Earth.

Hampi, 25-12-1994. Up the river from Hampi are some belgium, greek and italian people living in caves and in self made clearings. Wading through the river at times and jumping from boulder to boulder, following the river I went there today. I eventually found a belgium and german speaking italian who invited me to the usual chilam. They were quite chozy about the charas that had to go into the chilam mix. After checking out the tola of charas, even sniffing it, that I happily produced from out of my underwear - the only place were the indian police will, as a rule, not look!!! - they rejected it and made the mix with their own load. Completely stoned out my head I tried to find my way back to Hampi negotiating my way over and through an area with hit and tither "thrown" boulders of varying sizes and saw the ocassional local deeply immersed in his labour and probably totally unaware of the mental state I was in....In the coming twilight of the night I felt in a strange and mysterious world, on another world far away from Mother Earth!!!

Drinking beer again.

Hampi, 24-12-1994. Today was the first time I drank beer since my departure from Thirupathi, so I decided to drink 4 big beer as well as an unhealthy amount of pot either from the chilam or from spilfs. I did this all together with two blokes from England who are also staying in my hotel. Things being cozy and the pot relaxing we did all this unhealthy shit well into the darkness of the indian night.

Funny things in Hampi.

Hampi, 23-12-1994. With the festival definitely over, rest and tranquility have return to Hampi. No more local tourists who are desperate to get their picture taken with all these european alternatives so they can show these pics off to friends and neighbors back home in their native village or town. When I don`t go out of my hotel I play chess with french people, or I`ll be off to the chai shop and smoke chilam talking absolute bullshit. Funny things can happen in this primitive village like a cow walking into the garden of my hotel and a monkey with a bad limp repoeatedly trying to steal the sugar bowls on the tables of the chai shop. Running and jumping around with his prize in the tree tops and on the roofs, the stupid monkey spills it all and, in desperation, he throws the empty sugar bowl down on the chilam smokers drinking chai. An old local in lungi always around begging for free chilam and dancing like mad when he is stoned and drunk - which is freqeunt - refuses to pay for his chai, gets stripsearched by the owner for money and good humouredly thrown out.

European sadhus.

Hampi, 22-12-1994. I roll from one cilam party into the next and I`m slowly starting to understand I`m in the process of getting hooked to Lord Shiva`s chilam. Meanwhile I meet all sorts of people, and talk with european sadhus who`ve been in India much longer as I dare to imagine. They dress and look just like indian sadhus, they even smell like them, their white european skin has gone a leathery brown from years of exposure to the indian sun. Most of them seem to make the little money they need to survive here by selling tolas of charras to international backpack travellers like me. Most of their time is spent in the village chai shops where most of the backpackers hang out as well, making mix after mix for the next chilam.

Even more remote ruins and temples...

Hampi, 21-12-1994. Although I`m not always too sure about the situation I`m in or what is going on around me, I still enjoy myself going on long walks finding new ruins and temples. However remote these temples might be - I`ve started to wander further and further away from Hampi - I still find cool babas and Sadhus inside them inviting me for the inevitable chilam and often wander back to to Hampi with my feet not touching the ground stoned completely out of my head!!! Although I`m by now quite accepted by the semi-permanent western residents, I don`t really spend much time in their company but I do accept their chilams down in the chai shop where they seem to spend most of their time...

Thanks to Lord Shiva....

Hampi, 20-12-1994. Lately i`ve been hearing a lot of good stories about this beach place in Karnataka, down from Goa and near Jogg`s Falls. Sounds like a good stop before heading for Goa. The festival is practically over which means that the village should soon be quiet again, thanks to Lord Shiva for that.....

A small rocky island.

Hampi, 19-12-1994. The present festival in the village brings all sorts of gurus, sadhus and babas - maybe better put: "local freaks!" - to Hampi. Down the river from Vittala temple I found a small rocky island with a tiny one-room temple on top of it. I`ve to jump from boulder to boulder to reach it, but the place is worth the effort!!! Not a soul in sight apart from some local fishermen a respectable distance away. The island does seem to be the home to a small band of Langur monkeys but my presence does not worry them nor does thiers worry me.