Unfolding Ladakh : A Colorful Mess

I reached Leh, and was delighted to see my beautiful homestay, trees in backyard loaded with Apricots and the beautiful dog who made my day 🤗. A very very important thing to note, Leh is highest airport in India the moment you land you are at 11500 ft. Be it any season proper acclimatization is must, which means you need to take complete rest for 24 hrs as your body needs time to cope up with the changed terrain and weather. You may experience symptoms of mountain sickness but it gets better with proper care (if not immediately seek medical help) and make sure you are well acclimatized before you start your trip. I myself stayed in Leh for 2 days and acclimatized.

FYI: As per covid travel guideline, RT PCR is compulsory in Leh.

First road trip we did was Turtuk-Pengong. Started on 15th Aug early morning. I really wanted to attend Flag Hosting somewhere in Leh, being Army base I was thinking of a place where I could celebrate it with the Indian Army. And I was so blessed, happy and overwhelmed to celebrate Independence Day with Indian Army at Khardung La Pass. We attended flag hoisting ceremony, sang Rashtrageet and that was the best start of the trip I could ask for.

The Khardung La pass on the Ladakh Range is north of Leh and is the gateway to the Shyok and Nubra valleys. At elevation 17582 ft, Khardung la pass used to be the highest motorable road in the world before few years. In 2017, BRO build and opened world's highest road over Umlingla Pass which is 19300ft.

Ladakh is the land of prayers, peace, belief and spirituality. The moment you are in, colorful prayer flags, prayer wheels, monasteries will already give you peaceful and serene vibe. If you visit places like Diskit, you can't remain untouched with the spiritual energy.

Om Mani Padme Hum ✨🌸

Right after Khardungala, at the start of Nubra valley, mountains starts changing colors. It's unbelievable but the color of mountains were purple, red, greenish, pink. Every sight was just so scenic, there was so much on my plate, things were getting difficult to digest for my travel hungry soul. I was getting more and more excited, as it just the first day of trip and start was great. Beauty of Hundar blown me away. The 1-2 hours I spent at Hundar, were so amazing, that the writer, poet and singer all the personalities and I have and don't have in me were all trying to come out. 🤪

Ladakh is known as one of the highest coldest desert but Turtuk is completely opposite of that image. After traveling 200+ kms from Leh we reached this lush green villege, situated at beautiful location, Shyok river on one side, huge waterfall right in the middle of the villege.

Turtuk was under Pakistani control until the war of 1971, when the Indian Army captured the village. It is just 2.5 km away from the Line of Control between India and Pakistan.

The village is beyond beautiful, so are the people. People, even kids were greeting us, asking about us. They were so kind to offer us apples Apricots for free. A kid showed us around. We visited heritage house which was 300 years old and almost spent the evening listening stories of Turtuk, the war, the culture, it's people. I was amazed by simplicity yet richness of thoughts in people of Turtuk.

I was extremely sad leaving from this place, an evening was just not enough for place this beautiful. Turtuk word comes from balti language which means "the feeling of wanting to stay" and that's exactly what I was feeling. 🥺

The charm of Pangong Tso (Tso means lake) is its ability to change color. The shades range from light green to crystal blue and sometimes even golden, red, and pink. Experts believe that change in sky color and refraction at high altitudes causes this phenomenon.

Another intriguing quality of the lake is that it completely freezes during the winter months (November-March) despite having a brackish character. The rocks situated in the bed of the lake discharge high amounts of salt which is not drained into any sea or ocean and so it remains enclosed within the water body, causing the water to be saline.

The snow-capped Himalayas, crystal clear water, and serene environment will make you fall in love with the Pangong lake. Camping by the clear waters and enjoying the breathtaking view will complete your experience.

The Zanskar river rafting is considered the World's Highest River Rafting point. At over 12000 feet altitude, river rafting enthusiasts get the challenge of water turbulent flow and challenging rapids which can literally flip the boat. Zanskar river rafting is one of the attractions of the Leh region. Jumping in the river was super fun.

I am not a foodie person who will go 20-30 km just for food but I heard so much about "Alchi Kitchen" restaurant and about its local cuisine and thought of visiting it. I almost dragged my friend with me who was not willing to go so far. I loved the place and food, more importantly, the restaurant owner is felicitated and awarded by the President of India for "women and child development". In fact, there are many reasons you can visit Alchi, road we drove was so scenic, Alchi has one of the oldest monasteries from 11th century which is beautiful, it has really nicest handicrafts shops, also there is a huge dam for power plant, I would definitely recommend visiting Alchi.