Ladakh | Blue Lapis Road

DAY 7: LEH AIRPORT TO RED FORT, Delhi, India

After almost a week of Tibetan monasteries and arid Himalayan highlands, our brief Indian journey was almost coming to an end, and it was time to say goodbye to Lakadh. It was a fine morning. Tashi came to pick us up at around 6am. It was only a short ride from Ladakh Greens Hotel to Leh’s Kushok Bakula Rimpochee Airport. At about 3200m above sea level, the airport is India’s highest commercial airport. We waved goodbye to Tashi and entered the small highland airport. It was chaotic at the Leh Airport. The x-ray machine broke down for a bit and there were two long queues, one for men and the other women, at the security check. After a bit of the hassle, at last we were off in the Ladakhi sky. From above, Leh and its surrounding desert landscape looked spectacular. Our plane flew south, passed over the mountains south of Leh in Jammu and Kashmir and Northern Himachal Pradesh. After about 1.5 hour, we returned to Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport once more.

We stored our big backpacks at the airport, and took the airport express train out to the city. From the airport the train took about half an hour to reach New Delhi. At New Delhi, we switched to the metro and rode for two more stops until we reached the stop of Chandni Chowk. Famous for its centuries-old business as Old Delhi’s high street, Chandni Chowk is close to Red Fort, the former residence of the Mughal royalty from the 17th to 19th century. After exiting the metro station, we were immediately overwhelmed by the people, colours, odour and sounds of the street in Old Delhi. It was awfully hot at about 40 degrees, and extremely crowded. We followed a crowd of people exiting the station, tried to find our way to the Red Fort, but were soon followed by two bicycle ricksaw drivers. We asked the first driver going to the Red Fort. He tried to trick us by saying 10. We asked him once more before we got on whether he meant rupees or not. He then clarified it was 10 USD. We decided to ignore him and continued to find our way. The second driver, a young man in his early twenties, followed us and tried to convince us to get on his ricksaw by saying it was very dangerous in Old Delhi. We kept on walking aimlessly on the street thinking he would eventually give up, but he didn’t. On the hot and crowded street of Old Delhi, he followed us for over 20 minutes. At the end, we didn’t bother to find where we actually were, and jumped onto an empty tuk-tuk. The tuk-tuk driver was more than happy to take us to the Red Fort. After some sweat we finally reached the iconic Lahori Gate of the mighty Red Fort.

We had a morning flight back to Delhi. By the time we arrived at the airport, there was a long queue outside of the airport for security check.

At about 3200m above sea level, the airport is India’s highest commercial airport.

A Jet Airway plane landed on the runway. It reminds us of our landing one week ago.

View from the plane to down below.

Our plane flew south, passed over the mountains south of Leh in Jammu and Kashmir and Northern Himachal Pradesh.

From above, Leh and its surrounding desert landscape looked spectacular.

Spectacular view over the mountain view from the plane.

It was over 40 degree Celsius outside. We were overwhelmed by the heat and the crowd once we stepped out of the metro station of Chandni Chowk. Without a proper map, We found ourselves disorientated in this old city quarter. It was a great relief to have found a reliable tuk-tuk to take us to our first destination, the Red Fort. Below are some snapshots that we took along the way to the Red Fort.

After some sweat we finally reached the iconic Lahori Gate of the mighty Red Fort.

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Other posts on 2016 Ladkadh & Delhi:
Introduction – LADAKH – The Land of High Passes, India
Day 1.1 – ENROUTE TO LEH, Ladakh
Day 1.2 – WALK TO MAIN BAZAAR, Leh, Ladakh
Day 1.3 – LEH PALACE, Leh, Ladakh
Day 1.4 – HOTEL LADAKH GREENS, Leh, Ladakh
Day 2.1 – NAMGYAL TSEMO GOMPA, Leh, Ladakh
Day 2.2 – LALA’S CAFE AND TIBETAN CUISINE, Leh, Ladakh
Day 2.3 – SPITUK GOMPA, Leh, Ladakh
Day 3.1 – MONASTERIES OF THE INDUS VALLEY DAY ONE, Ladakh (with map)
Day 3.2 – THIKSEY GOMPA, Indus Valley, Ladakh
Day 3.3 – CHEMREY & TAKTHOK GOMPA, Indus Valley, Ladakh
Day 3.4 – HEMIS & STAKNA GOMPA, Indus Valley, Ladakh
Day 3.5 – MATHO GOMPA & SHEY PALACE, Indus Valley, Ladakh
Day 4.1 – ON THE ROAD WEST OF LEH, Indus Valley, Ladakh
Day 4.2 – LAMAYURU GOMPA, Indus Valley, Ladakh
Day 4.3 – ALCHI & LIKIR GOMPA, Indus Valley, Ladakh
Day 4.4 – FORT ROAD IN THE EVENING, Leh, Ladakh
Day 5.1 – SHORT HIKE NEAR PHYANG, Ladakh
Day 5.2 – PHYANG VILLAGE, Ladakh
Day 5.3 – NOMADIC WOOLLEN MILLS & BON APPETIT, Leh, Ladakh
Day 6.1 – ZINGCHEN GORGE, Ladakh
Day 6.2 – SHANTI STUPA, Leh, Ladakh
Day 7.1 – LEH AIRPORT TO RED FORT, Delhi
Day 7.2 – RED FORT, Delhi
Day 7.3 – JAMA MASJID, Delhi
Day 7.4 – FAREWELL OLD DELHI, Delhi
Day 7.5 – UNITED COFFEE HOUSE, New Delhi

October 21, 2016 | Categories: Delhi, India, India: Ladakh and Delhi 2016, Leh | Tags: airport, Delhi, flight, India, Ladakh, Leh | 2 Comments

DAY 6: SHANTI STUPA, Leh, Ladakh, India

We told Tashi to dropped us off at the town centre of Leh where we mailed out a pile of postcards to families and friends. Then we decided to spend the last bit of our last day in Ladakh at a high point. We took a taxi up to Shanti Stupa, one of the most popular lookout over Leh. Built by Japanese Buddhists as part of the Peace Pagoda Mission in 1991 and enshrined by the 14th Dalai Lama, Shanti Stupa remains an important monument to promote world peace. Atop a mountain over Leh, Shanti Stupa is also a great spot to enjoy the nearby scenery, and is particularly popular around the time of sunrise or sunset.

We looped around the monument once. Then we stopped by the railing, took out our tripod and did a time-lapse video of Leh under the changing afternoon light. The stupa was popular among local visitors, offering us plenty of people watching while we patiently waited for the camera for over an hour. Standing under the perfectly blue sky over Leh, we witnessed the shadow of the mountain slowly blanketed over the city, green poplar trees row by row disappeared in the darkness, and distant mountains turned from golden to earth brown and then to blueish grey. We silently say goodbye to the ancient town of Leh, to the mighty Stok Kangri Mountain at the horizon, to the monastic spirit of Ladakh, and to the boundless arid mountains of Northern India. An early morning flight the next day would take us back to the bustling Indian capital Delhi, where we would have another day of exploration before flying home.

The Shanti Stupa under the warm afternoon sun. Most visitors preferred to stay in the shade.

The Stok Mountain Range at a distance.

The view of Leh was dominated by the poplar trees.

The shadow of the mountain gradually expanded over the town.

The back of Leh Palace was fully swamped in the afternoon sun.

The arid landscape around Leh looked drier than ever under the afternoon sun.

The steps leading down from Shanti Stupa to Changspa Road into the town centre.

The sun almost disappeared behind the mountain and Shanti Stupa.

Visitors were still enjoying the late afternoon scenery of the Indus Valley and Stok Mountains despite evening was gradually creeping in.

Locals enjoying the view of Leh, with the white washed walls of Namgyal Tsemo Gompa stood out at the background.

Shanti Stupa was completely in shade by the time we were done with the time-lapse photography.

We circled the stupa for a second time before we left.

By the time we left, much of Leh was blanketed in mountain’s shadow.

We slowly walked down the steps to the town below.

At the end of the stepped path, Changspa Road would lead us back to the centre of Leh, where we would have our last meal of Tibetan cuisine for the trip.

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October 19, 2016 | Categories: India, India: Ladakh and Delhi 2016, Ladakh, Leh | Tags: Buddhism, Buddhist, India, Ladakh, Leh, lookout, monument, Shanti, stupa | Leave a comment

DAY 6: ZINGCHEN GORGE, Ladakh, India

Before the trip, we thought of doing the Markha Valley Trek, but then gave up the idea because of the lack of time. On our last day at Ladakh, the hotel manager suggested us to make a short hike to Zingchen Gorge, where many travelers started their Markha Valley Trek. Tashi again was our driver of the day. We left the hotel at around 7am. Our car headed south, passed the Spituk Gompa and continued our journey until Tashi pulled over on a country road where a lady sat below a tree. Tashi told us to get a ticket from the lady for the admission of Hemis National Park, where Zingchen Gorge was located. Soon our car drove into a desert valley of the gorge. Tashi dropped us off at the end of the road. We then crossed a bridge and entered a natural portal flanked by majestic stone cliffs to begin our half-day hike through the Zingchen Gorge.

We had no particular destination in mind, but aiming to walk as far as we could in a few hours of time. We walked leisurely on a stony road at the bottom of a rocky valley for about half an hour until reaching a local home where two donkeys were resting under a tree. From then on we walked for another hour or so on a mountain trail in the Zingchen Gorge towards the Village of Rumbak. During the hike, we crossed the river a few times via wooden bridges. After about two hours on the trail, we finally had a glimpse of the snow-capped mountains beyond the gorge. After we exited the gorge, we reached a small pile of stones and goat skulls that signified the gorge’s mouth. Further down the trail at an open area we sat by a large round pile of mani stones where we had our lunch break. After the break, we decided to head back into Zingchen Gorge to meet up with our driver Tashi. We took our time to hike back to the entrance of the gorge, and walked further down the main road until we saw Tashi and his car at Zingchen Village.

Despite short, at the last two days of our stay we had a good taste of hiking in the mountains near Leh. Hopefully in the future we would have an opportunity to do a multi-day trek in Ladakh to really experience the natural beauty of this region.

The natural rock portal formed a perfect entrance to the Zingchen Gorge.

For the first half hour we were walking on a valley road.

The arid landscape and the greenery down at the river valley.

The surrounding landscape was extremely dry.

We met two donkey at the end of the road.

The path get narrower beyond the end of road.

Just like the other days we experienced in Ladakh, the weather in the morning and early afternoon was always sunny.

White khatas, prayer flags and mani stones were common at rest stops.

After two hours of hike, we had our first glimpse of the snow-capped mountains beyond the gorge.

At the end of the gorge.

The pile of stones and goat skull.

The round pile of mani stones where we had our lunch break by the river.

Heading back into the gorge for our return journey.

Impressive rock formations and wild flowers.

Locals and their donkeys.

Wild flowers close to the gorge entrance.

We planned to stay for only half day in Hemis National Park. We walked as far as we could and then returned to the gorge entrance on the same route. Despite the same route, the views and experience were never the same at different times of the day. On our return, we were attracted by the rock patterns of a mountain near the gorge entrance, something that we didn’t take notice when we entered the gorge earlier in the morning.

We were attracted by interesting rock formations during the hike.

The landscape was always dry and rocky.

After 5 hours of hiking in Hemis National Park, we returned to the park entrance to meet up with our driver Tashi.

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October 18, 2016 | Categories: India, India: Ladakh and Delhi 2016, Ladakh | Tags: Gorge, hike, India, Ladakh, Markha, Rumbak, Trail, trek, valley, Zingchen | Leave a comment

DAY 5: NOMADIC WOOLLEN MILLS & BON APPETIT, Leh, Ladakh, India

In the main bazaar of Leh, there were many stores selling pashmina goods but we were told that most of them were imported from China. We wanted to find a store which sold genuine Ladakh pashmina so we went online to do some research until we found Nomadic Woollen Mills. Different than other textile and souvenir stores that we found in town, the interior decor of Nomadic Woollen Mills was minimal and contemporary. At the time of our visit, they were setting up a workshop right next to the retail store. We met Nawang, the founder of Nomadic Woollen Mills at the store. After some leisure chat with Nawang, we were glad to learn more about the story of the store and the making of the Ladakh pashmina. With a selection of hand woven and machine-made products from the region, Nomadic Woollen Mills may easily win the hearts of pashmina lovers who come to Ladakh to look for the traditional Kashmir woolen shawls.

Another great found of the day was Bon Appetit, a French restaurant and lounge recommended by our guidebooks. The restaurant was hidden away in a lane south of the busy main street of Changspa Road. We sat at a table in the patio under the setting sun. With a view to the surrounding mountains, the warm fire from the outdoor torches brought great ambience for the evening. The restaurant’s menu was simple but we appreciate their dedication to using local and fresh ingredients. We started with a bottle of local beer and Kashmir apple juice, then came the comforting savory herb chicken and chicken kabob.

Nomadic Woollen Mills was located on the first floor of a building with a window display facing the main bazaar.

The interior decor of Nomadic Woollen Mills was simple and modern.

The store has a selection of both hand-woven and machine-made products.

We were invited to visit the little workshop right next to the retail store.

The traditional weaving machine on display.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA The outdoor patio of Bon Appetit.

View from the patio of Bon Appetit.

We spent a great evening at the patio of Bon Appetit.

Indian beer Kingfisher and Kashmir apple juice.

Chicken with herbs.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA Chicken kabob.

As the night fell, the torches lit up the patio.

The clay oven for tandoori chicken at the open kitchen.

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October 16, 2016 | Categories: India, India: Ladakh and Delhi 2016, Ladakh, Leh | Tags: Bon Appetit, India, Kashmir, Ladakh, Nomadic Woolen Mills, pashmina, restaurant, sheep, tandoori, wool | Leave a comment

DAY 4: FORT ROAD IN THE EVENING, Leh, Ladakh, India

Fort Road and Changspa Road are the two main thoroughfares in Central Leh where travelers can easily find places of accommodations, restaurants and souvenir shops. For years, Changspa has long been the hub for backpackers, hippy visitors and motorcyclists. Fort Road, on the other hand, is a busy dusty road lined with newly built hotels, restaurants and souvenir shops. During our stay in Leh, Fort Road was the only access route to the city centre from our hotel. After a long day monastery visit, we would pick a restaurant at Fort Road to end the day. Tibetan Kitchen was the restaurant that we returned to after a pleasant lunch experience. At the restaurant, we had a chance to taste the complex local cuisine, which has diverse influences from Tibet, different regions of India, and even China. The best thing of all was to wash down the dishes with sips of refreshing apple juice produced from the orchards in Kashmir.

After two days of monastery hopping, we were supposed to go for a two-day trip to the Nubra Valley over the Khardung La Pass (5600m) at the other side from Leh. However, as we returned to Ladakh Greens Hotel after the long day of Lamayuru, Alchi and Likir then we realized that we had to change our travel plan at the last minute.

A meal of Tibetan dishes at Tibetan Kitchen.

A bottle of apple juice made with Kashmir apples.

The dusty Fort Road with Namgyal Tsemo Gompa on the hills at the background.

Souvenir shops along Fort Road.

Motorcycles and SUV were commonly seen on the dusty Fort Road.

Shops opened till late along Fort Road.

A few open spaces along Fort Road were used as market for Tibetan handicrafts.

Every night we stayed in Leh, we had to walk for 20 minutes on the bumpy Fort Road, including a section without any street lamps.

Beyond the last few souvenir shops, Fort Road would be in complete darkness unless a SUV or motorcycle drove by with their lights on.

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September 27, 2016 | Categories: India, India: Ladakh and Delhi 2016, Ladakh, Leh | Tags: Fort Road, India, Ladakh, Leh | Leave a comment

DAY 4: ALCHI & LIKIR GOMPA, Indus Valley, Ladakh, India

We had high expectations for Alchi Gompa, which has long been famous for its wall paintings dated back to the 12th century. It was already past noontime when we were done with Lamayuru. By the time we reached our next destination Alchi, we couldn’t wait to sit down at the outdoor restaurant of Zimskhang Holiday Home for a quick bite. Under the shades of trees and fabric canopies, Tachi and we had a relaxing lunch of local dishes. After the meal, we entered a winding passageway and through a lane full of souvenir stalls until reaching the monastery compound. A number of centuries-old stupas decorated with colourful prayer flags flanked the monastery forecourt. There were three ancient shrines that visitors could enter and admire the wall paintings, along with the huge statues of Buddha. It was not allowed to take photographs inside the shrines. We could only admire the richly decorated halls while we were there. The Buddhist statues and interior architectural details dated back to almost a thousand years were amazing. However, many of the wall paintings were either darken over the years or were partially ruined by brutal restorations painted over the originals. There wasn’t as much to see at Alchi as we imagined before our visit. After visits of the three halls among the crowds of local tourists we decided to move on to Likir Gompa.

Situated at an relatively isolated about 10km away from the Leh-Srinigar Highway, Likir Gompa is a beautiful Tibetan Buddhist monastery of the Gelug sect founded in the 11th century. As we approach the monastery, we could see the 23m golden statue of Maitreya Buddha (Buddha of Future) from a distance. Tashi didn’t join us for our tour of the monastery as he wanted to wash the car. On our own, we first walked to the platform where the 23m Maitreya Buddha sat. Opposite from the golden plated statue stood a lama school complex. Several young lamas were playing and chasing each other at the school courtyard. Their laughter certainly lifted our spirit a little in the grey and cool afternoon. Inside Likir Gompa, we visited two assembly halls: an older hall with rolls of seating flanked by wall shelving full of ancient texts and a newer hall decorated with glossy wall thangka depicting Mahakala (a fierce looking protector deity) in various gestures. We took our time to admire the wall paintings and walk around the monastery from its rooftop to exterior platforms. By the time we returned to the entrance plaza, Tachi was done cleaning the car and ready for our return journey to Leh.

The winding passage that led into Alchi Monastery.

The twin trees marked the location of the original spot where Lama Rinchen Zangpo put his walking stick down and founded the monastery in the 10th century, so as the legend said.

Old timber entrance structure of Alchi’s Sumtseg (three storey building) survived to the present day.

The ornate woodwork of the columns and the interior decorations at Alchi were created by Kashmir artists.

Details of the entrance woodwork.

Entrance into one of the two shrines at a garden near the Dukhang of Alchi.

The oldest stupas (chorten) at Alchi dated back as far as the 13th century.

A mother and daughter at a prayer wheel at the entrance of Alchi.

We arrived at Likir in late afternoon.

The Buddhist school complex across from the statue of Maitreya Buddha.

The 23m Maitreya Buddha could be seen from far away.

Entrance to one of the two main assembly hall at Likir.

Inside the assembly hall, yellow ropes of each lama were folded neatly on the rows of seating.

Hundreds of ancient Buddhist texts were stored in glass cabinets against the wall of the assembly hall.

Detail of an old wall painting.

Detail of a new and glossy Mahakala wall painting at the other assembly hall.

Photo of Likir Gompa from distance.

The lush green Indus River Valley below Likir.

The main courtyard of Likir as seen from rooftop.

Likir wasn’t a popular destination comparing to Alchi or Lamayuru. We could hardly see any visitors in the monastery and the entrance plaza was also empty.

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September 26, 2016 | Categories: India, India: Ladakh and Delhi 2016, Ladakh | Tags: Alchi, Buddha, Buddhism, Buddhist, fresco, gompa, India, Indus, Ladakh, lama, lamasery, Leh, Likir, monastery | Leave a comment

DAY 4: LAMAYURU GOMPA, Indus Valley, Ladakh, India

Our first monastery of the day along the Srinagar-Leh highway was Lamayuru Gompa. Lamayuru is one of the largest monasteries in Ladakh. Apart from Thiksey Gompa, Lamayuru was the monastery in Ladakh that we enjoyed visiting the most. Affiliated with Drikung Kagyu, Lamayuru Gompa is founded in the 11th century. We spent half of our time indoor checking out various prayer and assembly halls, and the other half walking around the exterior of the compound along a prayer route lined with prayer wheels and stupas.

Our driver Tachi was kind enough to accompany us at Lamayuru. In simple English, Tachi told us stories about the monastery and the statues in the prayer halls, and taught us about the six Tibetan Buddhist syllable mantra “om mani padme hum” (ཨོཾ་མ་ཎི་པདྨེ་ཧཱུྃ) while we examined the inscriptions on the prayer wheels. Each time we turned a prayer wheel one cycle we were actually reading the six syllable mantra once. The six syllable mantra is often associated with Avalokiteśvara, the Bodhisattva of Compassion. Under the crisp air of Ladakh highland and the shadows of ancient stupas, Tachi gave us a brief lesson of scattered information on Tibetan Buddhism. As we chatted and laughed, a few elderly pilgrims passed by, nodded and smiled to us.

Lamayuru Gompa from a distance.