SEVEN DAYS IN HEAVEN
“Travel and tell no one, live a true love story and tell no one, live happily and tell no one; people ruin beautiful things” penned Khalil Gibran.
On the contrary, “The world is sustained by people who would share rather than hoard for themselves - even elixir that bestows immortality” proclaimed Tamil Saint Thiruvalluvar!
Invoking the blessings of Valluvar and with all due apologies to Gibran, here is our Ladakh travel diary…
THE PARADISE CALLED LADAKH:
Majestic mountains crowned by snow, beautiful lakes & streams that make you wonder “If the creation itself is so beautiful, how beautiful would the creator be!” and mesmerising Buddhist monasteries emanating a strong spiritual vibe - that’s Ladakh for you!
Ladakh is one of the 3 main regions of Jammu & Kashmir and is guarded zealously by the Indian army since it is neighboured both by Pakistan and China! Majority of the population are buddhists and the languages spoken are Ladakhi, Hindi and Tibetan.
Majority of the people you come across in Ladakh are people who come there for work during the season which spans from March to October. The lakes freeze and the temperature becomes unbearably severe during the remaining months and hence these people retreat to their natives - be it Srinagar or Delhi. But rain or shine, storm or snow - our army works 24*7 in guarding our country!
THE PILGRIMAGE:
DAY 1 - 13.09.17:
Our journey began on the wee hours of 13th morning when the sun was still hitting the snooze button!
With lots of excitement and childlike curiosity, we boarded our Jet airways flight to Delhi scheduled at 3:05 a.m.
We ran around the Delhi airport with our baggages thanks to the confusion about the terminal from which we had to board our 1.5 hour flight to Leh!
I learnt 2 lessons from the chaos:
1. With expansion/ growth comes complexity! (Coimbatore airport is uncomplicated you see!)
2. Even chaos becomes fun when you are surrounded by lovely people!
Leh is one of the districts in Ladakh and that's where Ladakh would welcome you if you are travelling by flight! Make sure to fasten your seatbelt and brace yourself when you hear the announcement for landing; else you'll be blown away by the beauty of Leh! Make sure you grab a window seat; the aerial view of Leh is something you would regret missing!
On reaching Leh we checked into our hotel "The Silk Route"; a nice and cozy place! The staff were friendly, the food was delicious and the owner who resides there went all out to make our holiday a comfortable one!
We were advised to rest and acclimatise ourselves to the altitude. Leh is 11480 feet above sea level and hence acclimatisation is vital! So our day 1 ended with a short visit to the local market - though small in size, bustling with life!
DAY 2 - 14.09.17:
6 people, 3 royal enfields; destination: Alchi monastery!
Royal Enfield is the most preferred mode of commuting in Leh if you want to venture out on your own; the rental would hover around 1600/- per day excluding fuel..
The 60 km drive to Alchi monastery on the Srinagar highway was an enchanting experience! Alchi Gompa (Gompa is the Tibetan word for monastery or a place of meditation) is the oldest monastery in Ladakh and is so full of spiritual magnetism!
Thanks to the roadwork in progress, 2 of us lost our way, ventured into the woods on foot, crossed thorny bushes and streams and finally made it to the monastery!
All our frustration vanished as we dug our spoons into the steaming bowl of Thukpa - a must taste delicacy in Ladakh!
Thukpa is a Tibetan noodle soup which is now an integral part of the Ladakhi cuisine.
The next destination was magnetic hill - a spot that is believed to defy gravity! More of a legend than a fact, though you sense an iota of magnetic pull there! Or maybe we didn't enjoy it much as we were busy mending our broken bike! (an adventure is always a package of both good and bad, ain't it?)
On our way back we visited "The hall of fame" - a museum constructed and maintained by the Indian army in memory of the soldiers who had lost their lives in the Indo-Pak war! It is one place every Indian must visit to be able to appreciate the valour and sacrifice of our armed forces! The museum houses the weapons confiscated from the Pakistan army at different battlefields with detailed descriptions! We had gone around 6:00 p.m and hence were fortunate enough to witness the ceremonial march to remove the Tricolour flag from the mast! The cherry on the cake was the 25 minute video capturing the feats of our army at Siachen, Kargil etc:
DAY 3 - 15.09.17:
After breakfast, we began our bike ride to Nubra valley at around 10:30 a.m. It seemed like the longest journey of my life! It took us more than 6 hours to cover the 170 kms stretch; thanks to bad roads, extreme climate and altitude sickness!
Any pain is worth bearing for the privilege of commuting on the highest motorable road in the world! Khardungla pass is the highest point measuring a mighty 18380 feet above sea level! Make sure you stop by and click a few pics but don't hang around too long; the low oxygen level will cause altitude sickness - a heavy head, nausea, dizziness and so on! The pic that you see was clicked on our way back, after acclimatisation and consumption of tablets for altitude sickness; so please don't be fooled by the smile ;-).
We stayed at the Sand dunes view resort in Hunder, Nubra valley. It was a nice place with spacious rooms and good food but no television or such amenities. But the warmth makes up for all the shortcomings!
The day ended with a Ladakhi tribal dance - a mediocre experience!
DAY 4 - 16.09.17:
The speciality of Ladakh is the diversity in its landscape; it has both snow clad mountains as well as sand dunes!
Our day began with a morning walk and a bath in a beautiful
stream flowing beside the resort. The water was cold beyond description, but when friends join together insanity kicks in and thats when adventures are born!
The 2nd adventure for the day was our ride on the double hump camel! These camels are very different from the ones we find in the deserts - two humps and pretty short in stark contrast to their Rajasthani counterparts!
On our way back to Leh, we visited the Diskit Monastery, a beautifully situated, well maintained and a spiritually powerful monastery! The return journey through the mighty Khardungla didn't seem so arduous today - the power of experience or mental preparedness, I know not!
DAY 5 - 17.09.17:
Three days of bike travel had taken a toll on us! We now booked a cab for the next three days (an eight seater Innova with an amazing driver). All the cabs carry a pre-determined tariff card obviating the pain of having to bargain!
We travelled for around 7 long hours to reach Pangong lake - a picturesque lake made famous by the Hindi blockbuster "3 idiots".
It was indeed an arduous journey, but worth undertaking! Rough roads do lead to beautiful destinations!!!
We stayed in a tent beside the lake and spent the evening walking by the lake, sitting on the rocks and frolicking... Mountains and waterbodies have a mystical impact on our minds and when both join hands, it is sheer magic!
DAY 6 - 18.09.17:
We embarked on our journey to Tsomoriri Lake, another beautiful lake but still not exposed to tourists! Very few people visit Tsomoriri, partly due to the fact that it is another tiring 8-9 hour journey! But many a times, the journey is more exciting than the destination!
Walking on a battlefield isn't a very happy experience but is a very holy one! It humbles us, makes us realise the value of love and compassion and above all teaches us about the ephemeral nature of life!
The lake was charming in its own way. Since the place isn't a happening tourist spot, the choices of accommodation are very few! We stayed at Nomadic life camp, a decent enough place for an underdeveloped village.
The power outage was a blessing in disguise! We lit candles and struck deep conversations! As the candle died down, the sun rose up and shined bright...
We travelled alongside the Indo-Tibetan border; visited Renzang La memorial where 114 Indian soldiers out of 123 were martyred in a battle against the Chinese forces after gunning down 1300 opponents! Our hearts swelled with pride and we awakened to the fact that our lives are built on the sacrifices of countless brave-hearts like the ones who were martyred here!
The lake was charming in its own way. Since the place isn't a happening tourist spot, the choices of accommodation are very few! We stayed at Nomadic life camp, a decent enough place for an underdeveloped village.
The power outage was a blessing in disguise! We lit candles and struck deep conversations! As the candle died down, the sun rose up and shined bright...
DAY 7 - 19.09.17:
Another long day; we returned to Leh - our boot camp! The journey was special for reasons more than one. We spotted the Himalayan Marmot (a large squirrel that lives in burrows), wild horses, mountain goats and black necked cranes (they're migratory birds).
We visited Hemis monastery - an architectural marvel and a serene place of worship! A place where I realised that silence isn't empty but so full of answers!We also visited the Druk Padma Karpo School - the institution that is run by the person portrayed by Amir Khan in "3 idiots"
We checked into an amazing hotel named Omasila; went shopping and returned dog-tired!
DAY 8 - 20.09.17:
We left for Coimbatore carrying the memories that would last a lifetime! A series of flight delays and cancellations awaited us, thanks to the heavy rains in Mumbai!! Again, when you are surrounded by loving people, you can dance through the storms!!!
Thank you Manish Kankaria, Mansi Kankaria, Kaarthick Balakrishnan, Pawan Pattery and APC Venkateswaran for the fairy tale!!!
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| We went as friends and returned as a family!!! |
