Describe a historical place that you visited recently in 100-150 words.
The Sanctuary of Ruins, Hampi
Hampi has always been on the top of my travel bucket list. As its rightly called, Hampi is a city of ruins but one needs to be among the ruins to realise that how much more beautiful and enchanting it is than well-maintained monuments. Places with ruined monuments that once stood mighty and glorious have a calming effect on me. This World Heritage Site in the Ballari district of Karnataka is well-known for its exquisitely-carved temple. The Virupasha temple, towering the effervescent Hampi Bazaar, is a Shiva temple. Carving out such mammoth finery from stone makes one marvel at the craftsmanship of the sculptor. Pillars, gateways, mandapams, courtyards, antechambers and shrines adorn this temple.
Demonstrating the Indo-Islamic architecture is the Queen’s bath in the Royal Centre. A panel of embellished balconies surround the bath. A moat surrounds the royal bath to prevent people from entering when the kings and queens took bath.
Sule Bazaar, the main centre of commerce of old Hampi, is another architectural splendour of this historical place. The colonnade of pillars which give a look of shops in a row is the speciality of the place. Vittala temple, Achyutaraya temple, Zenana enclosure and Lakshmi Narasimha temple are the other ruins that adorn Hampi. It is indeed intriguing to think that life had once flourished on this vast stretch of ruins unremittingly.