Back From Ladakh: Part III

The next day we decided to take it easy.  Around noon we took a walk down Changspa lane stopping at a few shops and Tibetan markets on the way to find lunch.  After eating we continued down Changspa lane which ended at the stairway to the Shanti Stupa.  Since the sky wasn't overly clear, which I felt would impede our view of the mountains, we decided to save climbing up to the stupa til the next day and opted for an unguided tour of mystery and wonder around Leh.  Equally exciting!  We began walking in the direction of the old town, walked through the fair grounds, and continued on to the bus station for some chai, thinking it would be cheaper than in the tourist area of the town (but then when the lady asked for 16 rupees, 8 each, I thought she said 60 rupees!!  For tea!?!? x_x;).
We continued further down the main road behind the bus stop and observed some local lifestyle.  Fruit and vegetable vendors lined the streets, chatting to each other with no pretense of a care for business; giant radishes, carrots, zucchini, apricots and apples spread in front of them.  Shoppers ducked in and out of food and clothing shops, and students were taking the road back from school, enjoying snacks with their friends.  Prayer wheels and other Buddhist structures stood hidden in unexpected places.  We stopped to buy something at one of the shops and the shopkeeper, from Kashmir, insisted on getting us chai (again!) and asking as many questions as possible before we decided to leave.
Where are you from?How do you like India?Have you been to Kashmir?How long are you in Ladakh?When did you come?etc.etc.etc.
When we got a chance, we thanked the shopkeepers for the chai and escaped!  We continued walking which eventually resulted in a big loop that took us back to the main tourist area.  On the way back we saw some guys sitting across from each other, playing a game infront of a souvenir shop.  The game was played on a square board with holes in each corner and small discs.  The men saw us looking quizzically at them playing and motioned for us to come over.  We did.  They insisted that I play against one of them. . . . .I did!  The game was played like pool/snooker but with your fingers as the cue instead of any instrument, one player had to get all of the black discs into the corner holes and the other player had to get all of the white discs into the holes.  The final disc was to be the orange one and you had to use a communal disc to hit the other discs..  I am possibly the WORST whatever-this-game-is-called player in the world.  I was beat  in about 2 minutes and one of the guys started helping me since I was utterly hopeless on my own.  It was a good laugh.
The next day we climbed up to the Shanti Stupa and got a great view of the mountains, but not before getting a little lost!!  Due to something we had to do in town, and wanting to take a more adventurous route than the one we knew, we ended up not taking the Changspa Rd route and got a little lost in the process.  I'm sure that initially we were on the right track but after about 15 minutes of walking we found ourselves at a very sketchy looking bridge, and then in the middle of wheat fields. . . Fortunately, a girl that was washing her clothes led us through the fields to the road for the Stupa!  It was so nice of her, she just left her washing in the middle of the road!

Climbing up to the stupa was no laughing matter (ok, maybe if I hadn't been off the bike for 3 months and at such a high altitude, it would have been easy. . .) but the view of the mountains and Leh were worth it! The stupa had 4 murals of different aspects of the Buddha's life carved/painted on it.

We (read: I) hadn't had enough mountain climbing so we also climbed up to the fort beside the old royal palace for more incredible mountain views.  After this we were pretty tired and headed back into town for dinner and bed.

The rest of the time we just enjoyed the friendliness of Ladakhi people, the beauty of the landscape, clear air, quietness of the town and the garden in front of our guesthouse.  We helped one day to shell beans that they were drying for winter and ate apricots and apples directly from the trees in the garden.
Finally, and reluctantly, the morning of our return flight came. . .
Taking off from the mountainous desert. . .in the clouds.  The great mountain giants rise to their full stature beside us and slowly, slowly begin to shrink. . .the deep valleys becoming more shallow and further away. . .leading to foothills,

                             rivers,
                                       subdivisions,
                                                          houses,
                                                                     cars,
                                                                            cows, crowds, flatness, heat, traffic, dust, smog, mosquitos.  Hello Delhi. . .can't say that I missed you, this time.

Back From Ladakh: Part I                                          Back From Ladakh Part II

Back From Ladakh: Part II Pangong

The alarm woke us up at 4:30am. . .but we didn't actually get up until closer to 5.  We quickly found that our hot water was NOT working 24h a day. . .but we didn't have time to make use of hot water anyways.  We quickly got dressed and packed a few extra warm clothes, water and biscuits for the road.
Outside of our guest house, the morning air was cool and fresh.  The sun had not yet risen over the mountains and although the day was starting off cloudy, it was still bright enough to see clearly.  Most of Ladakh was still, quiet and sleeping. . .but as we neared the parking lot across from our departure point we saw many taxis and drivers getting ready for the long day of mountain driving that was surely ahead.  We arrived only 5 minutes late but our driver wouldn't arrive for another 10 minutes.
When our driver arrived we piled into the 8 seat jeep and prepared ourselves for the 5 hour drive to Pangong Lake.  Our driver began chanting a mantra (I'm not certain why, but I would guess it had to do with protecting us from harm on our journey) that he continued until we arrived at our first rest-stop (at least 30min from Leh!).  We had some Aloo Parathas, some Chai and were ready to carry onwards and upwards.
We began to climb.  We drove from one mountain up and up until we could reach a common ridge to the next and climb that one as well.  We felt our ears pop a number of times and our heads were beginning to ache from the rough terrain and airlessness.  The valley was disappearing below us, becoming more and more art-like.  Is it possible that this is still real life?  We stopped for a picture before heading on to Chang La, the third highest motorable pass in the world.
The clouds had still not cleared and were in fact, getting thicker as we neared the highest point in our journey.  When we finally reached Chang La, 5360m above sea level (complete with warning signs informing that it was dangerous to stay longer than 20min at this altitude), it was cold and we were unable to see much of anything because of the clouds.  Fortunately, there was free tea supplied by the Indian army stationed at Chang La.  Unfortunately, I needed to use the bathroom.  Generally I tend to use the "hand/water" method in India as, it just makes more sense. . .but on this particular occasion, the water had a not-so-thin-layer of ice on it which made for a very cold hand and behind.

 

Back on the road! and we started going down.  The mountains were still snow-covered for a while but slowly the snow was fading away.  Not only that, but the clouds were beginning to recede in some places and bright blue sky started peeking in and out between mountain peaks.  We stopped to see yaks and marmots on the way, but the most memorable thing for the remainder of the trip, was the scenery.

Pangong before the sun came out

After another 3 hours on the road, we saw the first glimpse of the sapphire blue Pangong lake. When we arrived at the lake however, the clouds had taken over and the lake was a dull navy. We went into a tent set up beside the lake for tourists to get out of the cold and wind. There were beds for tired, acclimatizing tourists and also food. After about 15 min and another chai, we ventured outside again where the sky had cleared a little and the sun had come out, lighting up the mountains and lake creating a completely changed landscape of perfection.

The ride back from Pangong Lake was long and tiring because of the rough mountain road conditions. When we arrived back at Chang La we were all tired and ready to be back at home. Fortunately though, the sun had stayed out for the remainder of our trip and we got to see the glacier that was previously hidden behind the clouds.

It was a long and tiring trip, but the natural beauty that we saw on the way there and back was definitely worth the time and headaches.  After arriving back in Leh around 5pm we took an early dinner and headed to bed for the next day. . .stay tuned for Part III


Back from Ladakh Part III                                                                        Back from Ladakh Part I