I went to the railway station today to get a copy of a book with the train timetables. Because of all the Internet problems, I’ve been unable to figure out the trains online, even though it is possible to buy tickets that way. One problem with the rail system in India is you almost always have to buy a few days ahead of time. So it means you have to make some more solid plans. So far I’ve been showing up at bus stations and just taking buses.
Today I took a bus to Badami, another ancient capital. This time the Chalukya Empire, about 1300 years ago. Not too many hotels here to choose from, but I got a room for $7.
I got some food at a restaurant. It was difficult to order because they had no menu and there weren’t any other customers around with much food to point to. But finally decided on something and then after, they asked if I could take some photos. Then they wanted a copy of the photos. I guess they don’t understand I can’t instantly print them a photo. After they realized I wouldn’t do that, they asked for a 20 rupee service charge. At that point, I just walked out.
I walked over to the main attraction, the Badami Caves. I noticed tons of people here today. I found out it is the Sankranti festival (start of harvest season) today in all of India, so no one is in school or work. All these Indians around got very annoying, very fast. They would make sounds like they are calling an animal or clapping. Every few seconds I would get asked where I’m from, get asked to take a picture of a person, or get asked to pose for a photo. It was hard to appreciate the ancient caves in front of me.
Later I visited a museum, walked up a hill to some forts overlooking the city, and to some other stone temples along side a lake. I found myself running away from kids a few times. They wanted to be my guides, but I didn’t ask for this. I guess this is just all apart of traveling through India.