(Part 2 of 3): Our escapades in Leh, Khardung
La and Nubra Valley...
Waiting anxiously to be up in the
hills the next day, the gang had barely slept the previous night - bags, music,
camera, sunglasses…check...check…check! At the airport, our beaming faces
expressed our inner feeling of excitement and emancipation –‘I am on a flight
which will in minutes take me into a different world, far away from the hustle bustle
of work and city life..yay!’. Contrary to our plan to catch some sleep during the
flight, almost unexpectedly, glimpses of the exquisiteness of Ladakh started
emerging from the flight itself. Gradually colossal snow clad mountains arose
on either side and we were awestruck by the colorful terrain which appeared and
stretched for miles ahead of us. The pilot was maneuvering the flight swiftly between the massive mountain
ranges, often so close, we felt like our flying saucer was almost inches from
scraping the shades of grey around us.
Once we landed in style, all got into the rhythm –
shades pulled out, caps donned, jackets wrapped around and off course not to
forget, sunscreen. Eagerness to come out of the flight and catch the first glimpse
of Leh, was the craving within. Each one felt like “Maverick” (Of course from
Top Gun :))
as they stepped down - a boastful smile, confident steps, chin up, looking ahead
at the clear skies and barren landscape guarded by military forces. Within
minutes we could feel the strong rays of the sun against our skin, lips turning dry, a chill in
the air and cool winds gushing past our cheeks. We were thrilled to arrive and
waited anxiously for the adventure to begin.
The city of Leh welcomed us with open arms - Jullay! The first couple of days were spent exploring the city of Leh and acclimatizing, before expeditions to Khardung La, Nubra valley and Pangong Lake started. Initially there was some sort of discomfort (in the form of headaches, nausea and heavy breathing) which some of us underwent, nonetheless, we were all hopeful, longing to get past it and experience everything that comes our way. While these 2 days were relatively slow paced, it was so comforting being away from the crowded city life, buzzing doorbells and seemingly never ending to-do lists. The pleasure in doing simple things here such as waking up and sipping hot Ladakhi chai in a small garden in full bloom, under the clear blue sky, and the brightly shinning sun, was immense.
The monasteries, cafes and markets enabled us
experience 'Ladakhi' culture.
Visits to the much talked about Magnetic hill, the Sangam of the Indus and Zanskar
rivers and the famous Sanchi Stupa revealed a very distinct aspect of the
hills. Sanchi Stupa, with a huge Buddha statue, overlooked the entire land of
high passes.
After dining at a few places, ‘Gesmo’
was declared a must visit cafe, where everything on the menu from the
cappuccino and cinnamon rolls, to the burgers, parathas and the lemon
marble cake were all finger licking good. The ginger lemon tea served there was a boon
to many who faced a challenging time acclimatizing.
On Day 3, we
started our journey to Khardung La, the highest motorable pass in the
world (at approx.. 18,380 feet). Excited, anxious and eager to discover where
the road ahead would take us.
The raw natural beauty around,
kept changing in color, shape and form as we drove past them. It was like as if
we were in a dream…. immaculate white clouds hanging from the clear blue sky,
sporadically a stream of clear water flowing along patches of green on
either side and the mountains standing tall. As we drove past the colossal mountains, each
mountain seemed to stare back at us with a certain poise and grandeur as if
they seemed to have a mind of their own. As we drove ahead, little did we
realize, we were completely immersed in awe of admiration and our faces had a
calm soothing smile as the cool mountain breeze kept sliding through our cheeks.
The mountains seemed to welcome us with open arms and comfort us in every way.
There was nothing there yet everything to experience, which seemed to have no
end.
While initially the roads were
impressive, as we picked up height, there were stretches of almost no road,
just loose rock, gravel, sand and occasionally some snow melt. Our struggles (feeling
of breathlessness and motion sickness) seemed trivial when we saw some bikers
and even cyclists going up this tough excursion. It was like a mission to reach
Khardung-La and the meandering drive through all the bends and narrow lanes kept us anxiously looking forward. Watching the cyclists and bikers along the way inspired us to reach our
destination with no further complaints.
Whoa!! Finally we were at Khardung La… it
was freezing up cold and the speed of the strong cold winds at that height added to the
chill and excitement. The place was swarmed with people and each one had a sense of pride - that they were on the highest motorable road in the world!! Bunches of prayer flags sprung around the mountains, fluttered in the winds and added all the missing colours, enhancing the vibrancy of the destination. Thousands of small yellow, blue, red and green flags
filled the air with sacred messages. It is believed that these flags bring benefit to all as they spread goodwill and compassion all around. We spent a few minutes, clicked a few pics and then
commenced our drive down towards Nubra valley.
Along the way we stopped at the roadside
shacks for some hot chai, and what followed was several bowls full of steaming
maggi, omelets, butter toast and some more chai. Groups of bikers proudly sharing anecdotes of their journey so far, planning
ahead and hoping for good weather along the way.
As we started the drive down from Khardung La, and in no time the landscape completely changed. Unlike in the past few hours where we were midst various shades of brown, white and grey, we were now driving through lush green valleys flanked with bright colored mountains which looked exquisite. One could occasionally spot some horses and cattle grazing away, a meandering stream of water flowing calmly along, ignorant of the beauty all around it and rows of army tents and trucks. The drive throughout was so beautiful that wherever you looked, the view was breathtaking, simply out of the world. The overall feeling within was surreal and we could barely believe our eyes as we kept our gaze fixed outside. ‘Were we really driving across this land of raw natural beauty’, is it for real? Or are we in a dream? The answer was evident.
As we approached our destination,
the famous stretch where Farhan Akhtar had trained in Bhag Milkha Bhag appeared.
A narrow straight concrete road which stretched for miles across, white sand
sprinkled endlessly on either side, edged with massive grey and white peaks made
the frame look picture perfect. Standing there with happy smiles on our faces
and numerous thoughts darting through our mind, no one could believe their eyes.... it was truly inexplicable.
On arriving, we checked into our
tents and rested for a couple of hours before stepping out again. At Nubra Valley
we did the famous ride on the double humped camels in the sand dunes high up at a level of approx. 10,000 feet. A herd of camels sat together, chomping
on their cud awaiting their turn to take the next set of people around the
valley. A ride on the camels took us back in time and made one feel like kings
and queens on a journey across the desert. The inviting sand dunes were a first for many of us and we then spent a fun time running around in the sand.
Everyone was stunned looking at
the clouds sitting comfortably on the mountain peaks and sunshine penetrating
partially through the clouds making that one half of the mountain side look
golden, while the other half seemed unaltered in the shade, shades slowly changing from
light to dark as time passed.
Once the night dawned upon us, we
returned and gathered around the bon-fire which was lit in between the tents.
It was a fun relaxed evening gazing at the sky full of twinkling stars above us. We then called it a night.
These are just a few
reminiscences etched in our minds, we are sure you have your own favorite memoirs to share. What was your
favourite part ?
Coming Soon : (Part 3) - Pangong Lake
Coming Soon : (Part 3) - Pangong Lake
