“Stillness and tranquility set things in order in the universe.” – Lao Tzu
I thought I had tested my lungs enough and was ready for the journey forward. Oh! what a fool 🤦♀️, we were in for a roller coaster ride. Each step from here was amazing to the eyes, hypnotic to the mind and literally choking to the lungs.
When packing for a trip the crude and the temporary expedient in me comes to life. So I had this mini heater in my bag which really came in handy in a lot of occasions. This is how I made myself coffee when the kitchen wasn’t open so early in the morning and when there wasn’t a kettle in the room.
Seeking more adrenaline after that coffee, we started the journey towards Khardung La Pass which is at 18360ft and is known as the highest road in the world.
Khardung La Pass is just 40 kms from Leh. As we started the climb it starts to snow…
Slowly the greenery starts to fade away and rocks and ice set in, we roll up the windows and start wearing the gear. Temperatures drop, cold sets in and oxygen gets scarce.
Not just you, your car also needs to gear up so that it doesn’t skid on these slopes
With each turn of road, your mind surrenders to the stillness and tranquility around you. Thoughts dissipate and you are in a complete bliss.
One more turn and you have reached the highest motorable pass in the world where you see flocks of tourist clicking pictures, army people helping some with oxygen cylinders, a dog sleeping in snow oblivious to the chaos around it, the frozen washrooms, frozen atm and finally a cafe where you get hot chocolate, the only thing I need now!!! 🍵
On our rover, we have now landed on Mars. The first part of the expedition was all about learning to breath. As were we, our polluted lungs were also in awe of the fresh and low oxygen levels. Diamox tablets and Thupka, a Tibetian noodle soup came to our rescue providing us with with oxygen and warmth.
One last look back at the road we just traversed and survived… moving on!!!
A map and guide to tell the story of how we wandered in the wilderness with wonderment 🙂
The chinar trees and snow blocked roads finally gave way to cobalt blue skies, barren landscapes and glistening lakes. Monks everywhere, traders everywhere, smiling locals everywhere and passionate bikers everywhere – that is when you know you have reached Ladakh
The statue of Sengge Namgyal, a 17th-century Namgyal dynasty King of Ladakh, from 1616 to his death in 1642. A Buddhist, he was noted for his immense work in building monasteries, palaces and shrines in Ladakh and is known as the “Lion King”
You can’t miss the spirit of bikers while you are in Ladakh…
We luckily found this heaven of a place to stay in Leh, Mangyul House on Upper Tukcha Road. With so many options I was happy we choose this. The owner is a passionate biker and runs the establishment along with his wife. The happy couple and the staff are helpful with whatever question you have on mind. Their hospitality, warm food and the chats over bonfire left us with an out of this world experience. They also run a bike rental shop – we rented a bike and were on our way to explore Leh
We were told to take it easy on day 1 of our arrival in Leh, that is why we went only to Leh Palace, Tsemo Monastery, Shey Palace and Stakna Monastery 🙂 … I guess taking it easy is not in our dictionary.
View from Leh Palace, all I had to do was changes angles to capture the gorgeous panoramas 🙂
We have a bike at hand and a wandering mind, so we were off to carve out our own itinerary.
Tsemo Gompa or Tsemo Monastery, perched atop a mountain behind the Leh Palace was built in 15th century. The monastery offers unprecedented views of the surroundings country side, Indus river and Zanskar valley. We just sat atop trying to catch our breath – couldn’t decide – was it because of the view or the lack of oxygen!
View of the Shanti Stupa from Tsemo Gompa
You could stop just about anywhere and be treated to a special view in Ladakh.
You see the hamlet out there, I wonder how they get to their supplies, do they migrate to a warmer region during winters, what happens when snow melts down from the mountains around.
Talking to the cheerful natured locals over a tea and maggi I was so humbled. They took pride in telling stories of how they battle the cold winter and how they survive on little means as the major sources of their income is the short and warm summer tourist season.
Will I be able to live here…!!!
Living in shack with a view like that. I wonder – if I get a life like this, will I thank God for the peace around me or crib about the little means I have? Living in a place like this – will my perception of things change? Is life unnecessarily complicated with floor to clean, cars to insure, loans to pay and a stressful job to keep? Am I able to appreciate this only because I know I can go back to my pompous lifestyle? Will I ever have the courage to leave things behind and spend at least some months in a place like this or a shack like this? Pondering over such thoughts .. I moved on!!
Riding on we came across yet another wonder – Stakna Gompa which was off the road and looked so majestic. Exploring it was inevitable – for first I thought it was abandoned as there was not a person in sight. Actually there was no one but I dont think it was abandoned. Yet another breath taking climb and a gorgeous panorama with Indus river flowing calmly along.
The biking skills, I dont have but still showing off…..
The view from the top – I do want to be a Ladakhi in my next life just to embrace the calmness, the beauty and peace that comes with it. Even while living in such harsh conditions you will never find one frowning Ladakhi – they are always a cheerful and smiling lot 🙂
The Shey Palace below – yet again numerous steps- maybe some other time
Now its time to witness the valor of our Indian army who fought in such harsh climates. The Hall Of Fame – A museum built by the Indian Army in honor of the brave soldiers of India who sacrificed their lives defending their motherland in the Indo-Pak wars
Threatening with a sense of humor …they’ve got style 🙂
“Running to the boarding gate is my favorite workout.” – Unknown
A trip to Mars & Moon – that is what I am calling it because that is what it felt like.
After long we packed our bags and went on an impromptu trip to Leh, Ladakh. We decided to go via Kashmir, another beautiful place which also enjoys a very important geo-political situation. I went straight from scorching 40°C (104°F) to freezing 3°C (37°F) and lower subsequently, which felt like a relief in the beginning, however later on I realized how much I missed the 40°C.
Kashmir is our own Switzerland and Venice combined. Such a beautiful place, helpful and smiling locals, rich culture, houseboats and gondola ride and serene nature.
Even though all this has been affected by the on and off terrorism and political instability in the area, however owing to the recent G20 Summit which was conducted recently we landed in a neat and clean and freshly polished Srinagar.
On my way to the hotel from airport, my charming driver pointed out to all the historic and progressive places we were crossing.
I wasn’t fast enough 🙂
View from the bridge we were crossing
Sports stadium
Random hotel
It was raining and with mystic/misty mountains in the backdrop we spent some time sipping tea and capturing the rustic charm of the Zero bridge 🙂
Zero Bridge, Srinagar
Time for a Shikara ride…
Boat ride in Dal Lake
The Shikara(gondola) ride was a relaxing way to end the evening, there were shikara’s selling food and beverages and local handicraft items. Bhajans echoing in the valley from the Shankaracharya temple atop the hill added to the tranquility.
There were many houseboats which have now been converted to hotels and some which people still call their homes and some which are just abandoned.
Shankaracharya Temple at the hilltop
Houseboat
some more houseboats
Wouldn’t you love to call this your home
Abandoned houseboat
Next day we were all set to leave for Leh. We opted the road transport bus over the overpriced cabs. As the bus moved slower, we would get more time to enjoy the nature around us. Our ever smiling driver was a good company and the bus was almost empty with few adventure tourists like us and a few locals. The bus was allowed to ply today(it is decided on a day to day basis, based on the snow blocked road conditions and the quickly changing weather in the area).
Locals fishing or going to work!
We started our journey to Mars via Moon on a rainy day, on a rugged terrain and a not so comfy bus.
The first view of the snow peaked Himalayas from the banks of the Sind River
I was beyond amazed by the beauty only to get more exhausted eventually. One more thing – as these were high altitudes we were going to – we had to take tablets which would help us acclimatize. I am sure they did a good job – we just pushed harder and made these tablets feel worthless and us breathless 🧐
A break for tea…
View of the valley
Melting snow forming the rivers/tributaries ….
Its not mist…its the dirty window pane 🙂
A small village
Entering Sonamargh- “meadow of gold”. The views are nothing less than worth gold here.
The old bridge…
Meandering curves…
Development in the valley
A leisurely meander round the twisting river curves was a life time experience for me. This gives me hope that there will be enough water and resources till I die, I just need to be closer to mother nature.
Crossing the Zoji La mountain pass at 11,575 ft which is still the most dangerous pass, with sudden avalanches, landslides, and blizzards. However the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) work tirelessly to clear the snow and provide safe passage to tourists and locals alike.
Crossing the dreaded Zoji La safely we entered Dras which is the second coldest inhabited place and stopped here for a cup of whatever hot drink we could lay our hands on.
Next stop was Kargil where our Indian soldiers had fought hard in such harsh weather and rough terrain to keep the Pakistani infiltrators at bay. There was too much police activity so I refrained from taking pics.
Biker looking for directions…
Entering Kargil
Kargil War Memorial
With a tiny stop at Maitreya Buddha at Mulbekh we resumed our journey. Till now it felt like we were traversing through Moon and after a few meter as we entered Ladakh it felt like we are travelling on Mars.
Countries worldwide are launching rockets to reach these places and we just got here by bus 🤗
I made a friend on the bus who is a carpet seller by profession, who talked a lot and became my personal guide during the ride.
Maitreya Buddha at Mulbekh
three stupas
From here on we can see a set of three stupas everywhere, these represent the bodhisattvas of wisdom (Manjusri), compassion (Avalokitesvara) and fulfillment (Vajrapani).
Journey on Mars….
The journey here onwards felt like we were on a different planet itself with less vegetation, arid climate, clean atmosphere, mesmerizing views.
Some political drama… now a days there are a lot of cases of religious conversions here in the valley.
Another mountain pass – Namika La at 12,198ft was the easiest pass on this trip. You have to give it to the Border Roads Organization, popularly known as BROs in the area for their relentless efforts of maintaining the road conditions to give a safe passage to the all.
Lamayuru Monastery or the Moonland of Ladakh. It is said that if you watch this valley on a full moon, when moon light falls on the multi shaded mountains the land creates a mirror image of the craters we see on the moon. This quaint little village was bustling with monks, locals and a few tourists trying to capture the beauty of the place as much as they could.
Letters do bring joy – I wish we could go back to being less progressive in terms of technology.
Another beautiful view and monasteries. I slept my way through Magnetic Hill.
Entering Leh – its 7:30PM and still there is broad daylight in the Himalayas. My phone battery died and I was ready to crash too…
ART PEACE 