Long and arduous journey through the Himalayas.
Trip Start
Dec 03, 2005
1
46
52
Trip End
Jun 20, 2006
Leh, Ladakh,
India
Thursday, May 25, 2006
Well the option for the flight was out; since I enquired when I landed in India, and it would cost 180 USD one way. Anything cheaper had to be booked at least 3 weeks prior.
There is a bus service when the road is good, but it wasn't due to start for a couple more weeks. It takes 2 days, and most of the jeeps do it in one day, a journey of 470 kilometres (but of course, I guess, only about 100 km as the crow flies)
One day I say for the jeep, but I met a couple who had taken 2 days by jeep
A market street
. They paid twice as much as I, but there maybe some sense in their choice. The one day trip meant sitting huddled up in a jeep in my case on the bench behind the driver, shared with 3 other people, who fortunately were quite slim. Oh did I mention, that was for eighteen hours, with one driver. Yes, the drivers make this journey routinely for 18 hours without sleep! I didn't spot any wrecked cars below us but to be honest was not looking out for them. One reason for that was the heights were making me giddy, and quite honestly I had a miserable journey. Altitude sickness is most likely to come on when you rise above 3000 metres quickly, so riding up in a jeep hardly qualifies for acclimatisation. Most people seem to be ok with it, but I felt a little unsure of what I had eaten the previous night, the after effects of which I think were exaggerated in the thin air conditions.Still,Leh is magnificent, though I have so far only had a short time to explore anything, having caught up on sleep until well into the morning. The weather is pretty warm too during the day, and sunglasses are a definite must as there is a lot of glare, possibly due to reflections from the snow-clad peaks that surround.
There is a large contingent of refugee Tibetans, and the style of Monastery architecture is distinctly Tibetan, giving the feeling that it is Tibet I am visiting rather than India
Anyone remember Morris Oxfords
.Also there is a strong military presence, as Ladakh region is in fact, part of Kashmir, though it is the buddhist sector, and has previously been proposed (but rejected by Delhi government) to separate from Kashmir if it were to be annexed, with Srinagar on the Pakistan side, already muslim, joining Pakistan, and Jammu , the Hindu region, likewise separating into its own state.
Changed guest house after 2nd night (slept in too late to do it after the night I arrived when I just wanted anywhere to lay my head), have a nicer room with tv and its one of the few places in the budget category that has hot water running in the pipes ie through a shower head, as against the convention in this town of being sent a bucket of hot water.
There is a good German bakery nearby for taking breakfast, 'though you do have to be up early to get the croissants before they sell out. Strange application of Indian thrift going on in this restaurant. Unlike everywhere I have visited in India, the minimum portion philosophy (=increased profit potential), mostly applied in cases of accompaniments like butter, jam, honey, where you usually get barely enough to cover 1/2 slice of bread, does not apply in this restaurant. Likewise the meusli portion could feed 4 people, way too much for any normal sized person
approaching the Stupa (I really cycled up here!)
. The funny thing is though, they cut all the paper napkins (which there is always a dispenser full of on each table anywhere in India) in half; cheap quality napkins too. They either have high wasteage or else I can't help feeling that the butter in its little container gets the top skimmed and the rest is re-served, maybe even the muesli! I had been enjoying their food until this little contradiction struck me, however I am comforted by the knowledge that seldom in India is anyone so organised to actually make that kind of effort.I'll give another example. Their popular beers are served from the bottle, so one gets a small glass and the bottle to top up from at the table. A repeat order (same again) invariably brings a beer with the same label, but instead of the coloured glass bottle, it may be clear glass, or glass of a different colour! Some travellers have had a notion along the lines, "the Kingfisher in clear bottles is stronger" and so forth. (All the strong beers in India do not give exact alcohol percentage, but state for example, "alcohol greater than 5.25% but not exceeding 8.25%" in the case of their stronger beers). Seasoned travellers of India whom I have met have all agreed that its impossible to imagine the Indians as being that organised in the way they recycle (and sort) the different bottles!
I will be looking into returning by plane, although its less convenient as I have still to meet up with the other friends, Chris, Sari and family, who will be arriving in the town I left today or tomorrow, and I am not yet sure where the nearest airport is.
Further to earlier remarks, it seems too difficult and expensive to fly back, if I am to meet up with Chris and family, as it involves going to Delhi, then flying north again to smaller airport, then bus. I am now feeling sufficiently acclimatised to go back by jeep, and aim to depart Ladakh, Kashmir and be back in Manali in the state of Himachal Pradesh on 29th.
