Spirit of Ladakh

The Spirit of Ladakh

The moment has finally arrived...

We meet at 6:00 am in Borgo San Dalmazzo..we're a nice group of 5 friends: me, my brother Roberto, Simone my colleague and the two girls Alice and Debora..the backpacks are nice and full and ready..the adventure begins!

The Qtar flight is at 11:55 am from Milan Malpensa to Doha; once we arrive in Doha we change planes and at 3:00 am on May 29 we're in India! (compared to Italy there's 3h,30 more).

Having landed in India, the wait is for the luggage..it takes them a while to arrive, but luckily they all arrive!After a quick first currency exchange at the airport (with 1€ you get 56 Rupees) a Kingfischer bus takes us to the domestic flights airport; a rush to check-in to send the luggage and at 6:00 am the flight to Leh departs!

The Delhi-Leh route lasts about 1h,20 and the view of the high Himalayan mountains is nothing short of extraordinary!

At 7:20 am on May 29 we land at the highest airport in the world..Leh!

Leh is the capital of the district of Leh and of the Ladakh division, in the federal state of Jammu and Kashmir...Leh has 27000 inhabitants and is at an altitude of 3486mt!

After almost 24h of travel we're tired but happy to have arrived in Ladakh..the altitude makes itself felt a bit.

Having arrived at the airport and collected the luggage, a prepaid taxi (Rs 160) takes us to the GuestHouse recommended by the legendary Lonely Planet..Glacier View!

The guesthouse will prove to be an excellent choice..Rs400 per day for the double room, bathroom in the room and hot water, run by a nice and welcoming Tibetan family..I highly recommend it!

We spend the morning wandering around Leh a bit..the weather changes suddenly from snow to sun in the blink of an eye..incredible.

The unpleasant surprise is that in Ladakh cell phones don't work, but there are excellent internet points (on average 80Rs per hour).

After a good lunch on one of the many panoramic terraces of Leh, we treat ourselves to a well-deserved rest.

For dinner we choose the Summer Harvest which will prove to be one of the best restaurants in Leh and where the cost is truly low (on average 150Rs each).

At 22:45 we return to the Guesthouse..well-deserved rest.

Excellent breakfast in a café with cinnamon or chocolate cake (Rs35 for a huge slice of cake!).

Although the guides recommend 2 days of absolute rest before tackling tiring hikes, since we're all fine, we decide to go visit the Shanti Stupa..a nice demanding route that gives us, however, a stunning view over the valley.

In the afternoon another good walk to the Leh palace and the Namgyal Tsemo Gompa..beautiful view over Leh.

In the evening we go to eat at the Tibetan Restaurant (Rs800 for 5)..eaten well even though the place isn't great.

For today we decided to rent motorbikes!

We're taking 2 Vespas, 1 Honda 125 and a legendary Enfield..the cost for the whole day is really very low: the Vespas cost Rs400 per day, the Honda 125 Rs500 and the Enfield Rs600!

Ready to go..on the motorbikes we'll visit in order the Gompa of Shey, then Thiksey and finally Hemis. (I'll describe each individual Gompa in specific posts in the coming days)..

Dinner at Summer Harvest (Rs 650 for 5).

Given yesterday's excellent choice to go sightseeing by motorbike, today we're doing it again!

We visited the Gompa of Chemrey and the Takthok Gompa in Shakti...

On the way back a strong wind slowed us down a lot...

Renting motorbikes really is an excellent thing..you just have to bear in mind that they can also break down! Well..today it happened to us that at departure Debora's Honda 125 had a flat tyre..(luckily we were in Leh)..halfway, precisely at Karu, the accelerator on my Vespa broke..(called the guy in Leh who within 45min brought me another motorbike..a nice new Honda!)..but that's not all! When there were about 5Km left to Leh it was Simone's Enfield's turn..it stopped and there was no way to get it going again!! luckily we were almost in Leh! Today we weren't very lucky..but by now, having fully entered the Indian spirit, you have to take everything philosophically and above all with maybe and no problem!

Given today's somewhat uncertain weather we opted to take a car with a driver who for Rs1900 took us to visit the Gompa of Likir and that of Alchi..luckily though the weather then turned very nice again..and the visit to the two Gompas was very beautiful...

For lunch we ate near the Alchi gompa..a very nice little outdoor restaurant with excellent food!

On the way back we organised the next few days with a local agency..they're taking us to TsoMoriri Lake (2 days-1 night) and to Nubra Valley (3 days-2 nights)..the agreed price was Rs14000 (including the inner line – the obligatory permit).

Departure at 8 for Tso-Moriri Lake..it takes about 7 hours by car to reach it..but it's really worth it! (as for TsoMoriri too, I'll describe it later..).

Slept for Rs600 a night at the Lake View Guesthouse..spartan accommodation, but apart from the tented camps there's no other choice! on the other hand, the food at this guesthouse is very good!

Afternoon spent wandering around the lake..and visiting the beautiful Gompa.

At 8.00 we set off again! During the night the temperature dropped well below 0°..but with a couple of extra blankets we stayed warm; also given the “low season” period, we were the only visitors at the lake..a good thing, because in July-August this place gets stormed and you have to book well in advance..

On the way back we did the 2nd highest drivable pass in the world..the Taglung-La (5328m)..on the road connecting Manali-Leh (still closed due to snow).

Organised a nice day to visit by car+driver (rs1300) the following Gompas:

-Stakna,Matho,Stok,Spituk

Today we're off to Nubra Valley!! In the morning unfortunately Kardung-La was closed..set off again at 17..and in about 1h45 we reached the highest drivable pass in the world..the legendary Kardung-La pass 5600m! the weather was very nice and the view beautiful!

At around 22 we arrived in Diskit..slept at the guesthouse “Dune Sand” (Rs500 for a double).

After breakfast we set off for Hunder where the legendary Bactrian camels still are..in fact a branch of the legendary Silk Road passed through here..you can find the camels both in the wild and in captivity..

Back in Diskit to visit the Diskit Gompa and the imposing statue of Chamba (Maitreya).

Continued through Nubra Valley to Sumur (where we'll sleep tonight at the guesthouse “Namgail” Rs600 a night for a double) and visited the Samstemling Gompa, continued as far as Panamik where the thermal hot springs are. Between Panamik and Sumur, after a walk it's possible to reach a beautiful mountain lake.

After breakfast at the guesthouse we set off again for Leh..did Kardung-La again and got stuck for a couple of hours because it was snowing..luckily at 13.30 it was reopened and so at 15.30 we were in Leh.

For dinner we tried the Little Italy Restaurant..the food was decent but it was very dirty..not recommended.

Wake-up at 5..because at 5.30 a taxi is coming that will take us to watch the 6 o'clock puja at Tiksey Monastery..unmissable..very evocative.

In the afternoon we went to Lek to visit the Gompa of Sankar..but it doesn't open until 17..

Dinner at our favourite restaurant..the Summer Harvest.

Today is the departure day for Alice and Debora..great travel companions..

At 6, after seeing them to the airport, we went to Lamayuru where a two-day festival is being held..

From Leh to Lamayuru it takes about 3h by car..some points along the road are particularly evocative. In Lamayuru we stayed overnight and ate at the Dragon Guesthouse (Rs600 a night)..spartan rooms without a bathroom in the room..

Day in Lamayuru to see the beautiful festival

Left Lamayuru in the morning and along the road to Leh stopped to visit the Gompa of Chanraszing and that of Rizong.

Return to Leh in the afternoon

Today a day dedicated to visiting Leh... and to the first purchases...

7:00 a.m. Departure for Pangong Lake... unfortunately, 10 km from the summit of Chang-La (5298 m), a heavy snowfall prevented us from continuing... sadly we head back to Leh... sob..

After an excellent breakfast, Simone and I took a taxi and went to Basgo to visit the Chamba Gompa and the beautiful Sar-Zung Temple located inside the Gompa.

Afternoon in Leh..

In the evening, at midnight, Roby and I went to the Summer Harvest, which had stayed open especially for us, to watch Italy's first match at the South Africa World Cup..

A photography day for Leh and last souvenirs... tomorrow we set off again.

Our plan was to leave Ladakh by car and travel the Leh-Manali highway to then reach Delhi (4 days in total, all things considered).. unfortunately this year the high passes are still all closed due to the heavy snowfalls.. so it was mandatory to return to Delhi by air.

The Kingfisher flight to Delhi left right on time at 8.. by 9:30 we were already in sweltering Delhi (a 30-degree difference from Leh!!).

Afternoon wandering around Delhi.. we stayed overnight in Old Delhi in Main Bazar.. (Rs 300 for a double).

At 2:00 a.m. a taxi took us back to the airport.. a Qtar flight, with a stopover and change in Doha, will take us back to Italy.. at 13:30 we're in Milan..

A very beautiful trip where the splendid scenery of the high Himalayan peaks frames places we had always dreamed of.. for any information you can contact me at the email address: india(@)enricoguala.it

A big heartfelt thank you to all the participants of this "Spirit of Ladakh" trip..