LADAKH CALLING !

Exotic mountainscapes and a deep blue sky hold down a barren adobe landscape. 

Ladakh has been my most exotic destination in India so far. I thought travelling along the Tibet-Hindustan Highway was exotic, dangerous and surreal. Then a few years later I travelled to Ladakh via the impossibly treacherous Zoji La - 'La' in Tibetan stands for mountain pass. I've never remembered God so often on a single day! At a point in the journey, the Tavera's wheels were at the edge of the crumbling road, it had begun to rain and rocks and debris were beginning to slide down. There were army vehicles stoically behind and in front of us, the drivers grim-facedly determined to cross the pass despite the wheels sinking into mud. 

From such fear and danger when the Tavera finally and miraculously extricated itself from the endless traffic on the Srinagar-Leh Highway, which at the Zoji La is no more than a glorified mule track, Ladakh at first sight is a veritable Shangri-La.

The monastery at Thiksey

Stunningly beautiful Buddhist monasteries with centuries old frescoes, the iridescent and impossibly blue Pangong Lake, the high-altitude Nubra valley desert with its exotic hybrid breed of Indo-Bactrian camels, Ladakh lives up to its fame as an exotic tourist destination. 

There is a lot to do and see, but you might want to spend the first 24 hours acclimatising. Leh, the capital of Ladakh, which is the entry point for most visitors to the valley, is a high altitude city. Minus adequate acclimatisation, one can fall seriously sick. I needed 36 hours to recover, even though I'd made a gradual ascent from Srinagar (approx. 1585 m above sea level)

See my pictures on flickr