Leh – Landlocked, Peerless, Peculiar

We used the kitchen next morning to prepare our breakfast as the party was over last night. The caretaker apologized for the inconvenience and we nodded for ‘not required’. Soon, we were on our way to the capital city of Ladakh, Leh! The Indus valley, particularly from Khaltse to Upshi (50 kms beyond Leh) is the historical and cultural heartland of Ladakh and has many interesting sites enroute. The first site that we checked out was the ruins of an ancient Palace/fort at Basgo. In spite of its crumbling state the remains of an erstwhile palace did not fail to entice us. Also, it was here that we saw one of the biggest chortens of the region.

Then we progressed towards ‘Nimmu’, a very small town, famous for the confluence of Zanskar and Indus. Beyond Nimmu, the road crawls along the Indus a little further, after which it veers off into a vast plateau. We took a brief halt to check out the famous Magnetic Hill. Bullet did not appear to move, of course, but after few customary photo-shots when I kickstarted it, compression seemed to be very less and bike roared in first gear for want of more power to lug us beyond. Situation eased off though after riding for about four kilometers. Tracing back the Indus, the road descended into a vast intensely cultivated valley but crop season was already over and the region seemed to be preparing for the harsh winters. Riding past the stacks of fodder lying along the road and deliberately overlooking the diversions for Phyang and subsequently the Spitok Gompa, we entered the Leh ‘city’. To search a place for stay was first on our agenda and therefore we zoomed into the ‘Changspa’ area after checking a couple of hotels which were already closed for the season due to scarcity of tourists. In our present abode for the next week, we got heavy off-season discount but the accommodation was fitting to its tariff for the facts that it was non-AC (non-heated) and had no geyser in the toilet. I would like to make a special mention here about the prevailing power supply situation in the Leh city. In our total stay, we enjoyed a lighted room for just over five hours. Moral is - It is much better to stay at an inexpensive place and ask to the host/caretaker for the hot water when required. Otherwise, lookout for the ones with a ‘working’ generator installed.

Piling the luggage in the room, we immediately rode back to DC office for obtaining permits. Then started the series of ‘Julley ji’. I can’t remember how many times I spoke it during the whole day. I love this word, meaning “Hello”. We applied for permits on a proforma and attached the photocopies of passport for identity purpose. But the officer was out in the field so the clerk asked us to stay and wait. We instead thought lunch would be a good idea. DC office overlooks the only stadium of Leh and its arena is used for all the festivals and sports activities.

From DC office gate, we had a nice front view of Leh Palace and Tsemo Castle, both now in ruins. Renovation work at Leh Palace has been started to reinstate its past glory. I hope it continues to Tsemo castle too. Intense Sun belied the onset of harsh winters of Ladakh. Every third countenance we encountered was tanned. Finally, the clerk, seeing bleak chances of the Officer turning up before the closure of the office, got the permits done by the deputy. Getting the permits at around 5:00 pm, we rushed to the Juma mechanic patronized by 60kph on ‘Fort Road’. He re-tuned the bike for high altitude conditions. Then we headed straight into the main market to call the 60kph group members and back home. After making the calls which is a task in itself we loitered around on the old streets of the town, enjoying our relaxing spell for we had ventured into a unique territory on exactly eighth day of our grueling ride.

One may get stranded in the mazy layout of the streets and some of them have dead ends too but Tsemo castle acts as a lighthouse and is visible from almost every corner of the township. Notably, even in ‘offseason’ we could spot more foreigners than the locals and, as a matter of fact, with every passing year the number of foreign tourists visiting Leh doubles up. Such is the attraction of this ‘Little Lhasa’. Leh is an ‘international destination’ being as high a priority as ‘Benares’ for an India-bound foreign traveler. It has a typical tourist appeal much of which comes through the difference in terrain and culture of inhabitants. Ladakh was closed to foreigners for many years, and despite its access to foreigners since 1974, it still remains landlocked for two-three months of the year due to snow.

Therefore, the influence of other cultures is understandably less, and the traditional ways of life, architecture and religious devotion remain largely similar to the old times. But, as they say, change is inevitable. This was obvious to us in more than one ways, at least in Leh, if not in other parts. Leh’s main bazaar caters mainly to foreigners who seem to be interested in the handicrafts shop. These shops are mainly owned by Kashmiri traders and the stuff on sale is also not ‘laddakhi’! We checked out the famous bakery shops on the main street. Apart from their occidental ambience they cater to different tastes and their repertoire of products is quite handsome. Overall, main bazaar street is a cool place to roam and we enjoyed the company of few other swashbucklers looking at their bikes and sharing the daring stories. Finally, we decided to unwind in a Tibetan restaurant. ‘Chowmin’ was a treat and so was ‘whatever’ Manish had. We reached back our room at around 10:00 pm and slept almost immediately as we were all set to leave for Pangong Tso Lake tomorrow early morning.

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