Ladakh and Zanskar, return to heaven - Page 12

Yogesh Sarkar · 21-04-09, 01:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by deepaktomar

my god what a place this was simply superb. i like that snap so much in which u write Drang Drung Glacier with the road to Padum in the foreground this seems to me 4 lane highway going to straight into glacier.excellent photographs.

hehe, 8-16 lanes would be more like it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by shankarmayaa

@YS: How many days of pending logs are remaining??

)

6 days.

shankarmayaa · 21-04-09, 09:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yogesh Sarkar

6 days.

Oh god... So even if I assume that you would take two days to complete the entire back log, I am left with only two days to search for the word.

@Shankar: Search for proper words and post it once the entire log is completed.

YAJ · 21-04-09, 09:40 AM

Superb !!!

Your log will definitely increase traffic to Leh this year

nav75 · 21-04-09, 10:49 AM

@Yogesh: Man, these are really good pics. Thanks for that pic of Drang Drung glacier, when I was there, it was all cloudy and drizzling, wasn't able to get such a clear pic of the place.
Looks like I got to factor in few more days to revisit this place in my next visit to Ladakh.

Yogesh Sarkar · 21-04-09, 12:26 PM

@Shankar lol

Thanks Yaj

Nav you went to Zanskar?

d50alchemy · 21-04-09, 01:19 PM

Wow. Fantastic write up.
Superb pics!
What a lovely place.
Loved the moon shots at Pangong and every other pic too, rather.

Yogesh Sarkar · 21-04-09, 03:59 PM

Day 13 (16th September 2006): Padum (Zanskar Valley)

Since I was planning to spend this day in Padum, I first decided to go to the restaurant that I had my dinner at, have breakfast and then visit the monasteries nearby.

After having breakfast, I waited at the restaurant for the STD booth to open (they were doing last minute fiddling to get it to work), after half an hour I decided to check out the monasteries as the STD wasn’t yet operational and a large queue had already formed in front of it.

Went out of town and started looking for a way to this monastery I could see in the distance.

During the search I found a monastery which was built on ground level! Now that’s more like it, being the lazy person that I am, I decided to check it out first; after all it meant I wouldn’t have to climb any stairs!

Entrance to the monastery

Monastery on the outskirts of Padum

Came to know from a boy roaming around there, that the head lama had gone out and the keys of the monastery were with him. This meant while I could look from the outside, I couldn’t go inside! After spending a few minutes there, I decided to head to the monastery in the distance and after climbing the narrow steep trail (on my bike of course), I reached its building.

Main complex was closed for visitors and I had to satisfy myself by a view of Padum.

Disappointed, I came down and went back to the restaurant. Had tea and jalabi and chatted with the restaurant owner and the local cops and came to know that there was another monastery nearby. By now the hopes of STD working were high so I decided to wait for a while. Soon the STD was working and since many had already left, I was the 6 or 7 person in queue and the only tourist (rest were BRO labors and locals).

After about half an hour, it was my turn and I called home, my family wasn’t expecting my call for another couple of days, so it was a pleasant surprise for them. After chatting with them, I went to the third monastery.

At first glance, it too looked deserted! Well at least there were a few Mani stones lying nearby, so I decided to shoot their photograph.

Soon a young lama (11 years old) appeared out of nowhere and agreed to give me a guided tour of the monastery. We went inside the monastery and while the young lama explained various things to me, I went on a shooting frenzy.

Murals at the monastery in Padum

Statue of Buddha (around 25 feet tall)

Smaller statue of Buddha

Statues of local deities

After spending an hour at the monastery, I decided to head back to Padum and update my blog and BCMTouring. While getting out of the monastery, my helmet’s visor screw got knocked off and the visor got detached from one side. Due to this, I had to ride without helmet till the internet café.

After posting photographs and updating everyone about my status, I headed back to the guest house to fix my helmet. Since I didn’t have the clamps required to hold the helmet in place, a normal screw and use of electrician tape did the job of holding the visor in place for the rest of the tour.

Decided to take warm shower and rest for a while, in the evening I was back at the restaurant for dinner and chat with Aaga (आगा) sahib (I think this was the name of the restaurant owner).

He asked me about my plans for tomorrow and I told him that I was planning to ride till Rangdum and next day ride to Drass, as I was a vegetarian and Kargil is a hell for vegetarians.

He advised me to stay at the J&K tourism bungalow in Drass and if I had any difficulties, get in touch with his nephew, Nawab Ali, who runs a restaurant there. He also asked me tell his nephew the good news that they had finally found a hotel in Kargil and could start it early next year. I assured him that I'll pass on his message to his nephew.

After saying goodnight to him, I went back to the guest house. As I was reviewing photographs, someone knocked on my door! I wasn’t expecting someone to come knocking on my door at 9:30pm and when I answered the door, I saw a beautiful Russian girl standing at the front, our eyes locked and she said, “where is the reception?”, I pointed her towards it and while she went to it, followed by her boyfriend who was standing 8-10 feet behind her, I went back to reviewing the photographs

tsk1979 · 21-04-09, 04:06 PM

Wow, this gets more and more interesting!
Since Padum-Leh is around 500kms, what is the ideal midway point?
Panikhar is a little too close to Padum I think(177kms only).
Kargil is a little too near Leh.

And where do you book these JK tourism bunglows, I checked their website, and most links are broken.

Yogesh Sarkar · 21-04-09, 04:08 PM

That would be Sanko, around 270kms before Leh. For booking J&K Tourism Bungalows, I guess you will need to contact their marketing office in Delhi.

Here is a link for their contact details, Kashmir...Tourist Information

shankarmayaa · 21-04-09, 04:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yogesh Sarkar

Day 13 (16th September 2006): Padum (Zanskar Valley)

After saying goodnight to him, I went back to the guest house. As I was reviewing photographs, someone knocked on my door! I wasn’t expecting someone to come knocking on my door at 9:30pm and when I answered the door, I saw a beautiful Russian girl standing at the front, our eyes locked and she said, “where is the reception?”, I pointed her towards it and while she went to it, followed by her boyfriend who was standing 8-10 feet behind her, I went back to reviewing the photographs

.

Tomorrow I would bid farewell to Padum and Zanskar Valley.

1) How do you know that she is a russian girl?
can you make out russian girls by looking at them (of course face only)

2) Who unlocked your eyes? Her boy friend?

Explanation required please

)

21-04-09, 09:40 AM	#113
YAJ Limited Vision Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: NOIDA Posts: 411	Re: Ladakh and Zanskar, return to heaven Superb !!! Your log will definitely increase traffic to Leh this year __________________ Keep Riding, YAJ When going gets tough, tough gets going.

21-04-09, 10:49 AM	#114
nav75 Novice Tourer Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Pune, India Posts: 873	Re: Ladakh and Zanskar, return to heaven @Yogesh: Man, these are really good pics. Thanks for that pic of Drang Drung glacier, when I was there, it was all cloudy and drizzling, wasn't able to get such a clear pic of the place. Looks like I got to factor in few more days to revisit this place in my next visit to Ladakh. __________________ 2000 Suzuki Fiero \| 2004 Bullet Electra \| 2004 RX135 \| 2005 CBZ \| 2009 Karizma \| 2009 Punto 1.4 Ptrol I am Back!!!

21-04-09, 12:26 PM	#115
Yogesh Sarkar Administrator Join Date: May 2006 Location: New Delhi, India Posts: 23,499	Re: Ladakh and Zanskar, return to heaven @Shankar lol Thanks Yaj Nav you went to Zanskar? __________________ BCMTouring: FAQ \| T-Shirts

21-04-09, 01:19 PM	#116
d50alchemy Carpe Diem Join Date: Aug 2008 Posts: 109	Re: Ladakh and Zanskar, return to heaven Wow. Fantastic write up. Superb pics! What a lovely place. Loved the moon shots at Pangong and every other pic too, rather.

21-04-09, 03:59 PM	#117
Yogesh Sarkar Administrator Join Date: May 2006 Location: New Delhi, India Posts: 23,499	Re: Ladakh and Zanskar, return to heaven Day 13 (16th September 2006): Padum (Zanskar Valley) Since I was planning to spend this day in Padum, I first decided to go to the restaurant that I had my dinner at, have breakfast and then visit the monasteries nearby. After having breakfast, I waited at the restaurant for the STD booth to open (they were doing last minute fiddling to get it to work), after half an hour I decided to check out the monasteries as the STD wasn’t yet operational and a large queue had already formed in front of it. Went out of town and started looking for a way to this monastery I could see in the distance. During the search I found a monastery which was built on ground level! Now that’s more like it, being the lazy person that I am, I decided to check it out first; after all it meant I wouldn’t have to climb any stairs! Entrance to the monastery Monastery on the outskirts of Padum Came to know from a boy roaming around there, that the head lama had gone out and the keys of the monastery were with him. This meant while I could look from the outside, I couldn’t go inside! After spending a few minutes there, I decided to head to the monastery in the distance and after climbing the narrow steep trail (on my bike of course), I reached its building. Main complex was closed for visitors and I had to satisfy myself by a view of Padum. Disappointed, I came down and went back to the restaurant. Had tea and jalabi and chatted with the restaurant owner and the local cops and came to know that there was another monastery nearby. By now the hopes of STD working were high so I decided to wait for a while. Soon the STD was working and since many had already left, I was the 6 or 7 person in queue and the only tourist (rest were BRO labors and locals). After about half an hour, it was my turn and I called home, my family wasn’t expecting my call for another couple of days, so it was a pleasant surprise for them. After chatting with them, I went to the third monastery. At first glance, it too looked deserted! Well at least there were a few Mani stones lying nearby, so I decided to shoot their photograph. Soon a young lama (11 years old) appeared out of nowhere and agreed to give me a guided tour of the monastery. We went inside the monastery and while the young lama explained various things to me, I went on a shooting frenzy. Murals at the monastery in Padum Statue of Buddha (around 25 feet tall) Smaller statue of Buddha Statues of local deities After spending an hour at the monastery, I decided to head back to Padum and update my blog and BCMTouring. While getting out of the monastery, my helmet’s visor screw got knocked off and the visor got detached from one side. Due to this, I had to ride without helmet till the internet café. After posting photographs and updating everyone about my status, I headed back to the guest house to fix my helmet. Since I didn’t have the clamps required to hold the helmet in place, a normal screw and use of electrician tape did the job of holding the visor in place for the rest of the tour. Decided to take warm shower and rest for a while, in the evening I was back at the restaurant for dinner and chat with Aaga (आगा) sahib (I think this was the name of the restaurant owner). He asked me about my plans for tomorrow and I told him that I was planning to ride till Rangdum and next day ride to Drass, as I was a vegetarian and Kargil is a hell for vegetarians. He advised me to stay at the J&K tourism bungalow in Drass and if I had any difficulties, get in touch with his nephew, Nawab Ali, who runs a restaurant there. He also asked me tell his nephew the good news that they had finally found a hotel in Kargil and could start it early next year. I assured him that I'll pass on his message to his nephew. After saying goodnight to him, I went back to the guest house. As I was reviewing photographs, someone knocked on my door! I wasn’t expecting someone to come knocking on my door at 9:30pm and when I answered the door, I saw a beautiful Russian girl standing at the front, our eyes locked and she said, “where is the reception?”, I pointed her towards it and while she went to it, followed by her boyfriend who was standing 8-10 feet behind her, I went back to reviewing the photographs . Tomorrow I would bid farewell to Padum and Zanskar Valley. Click here to read part-1 Delhi - Manali - Sarchu Click here to read Part-2 Sarchu - Leh Click here to read part-3, Leh - Thiksey - Leh Click here to read part-4, Leh - Pangong Tso Click here to read part-5, Pangong Tso - Leh Click here to read part-6, Leh - Tso Moriri Click here to read part-7, Tso Moriri Click here to read part-8, Tso Moriri - Leh Click here to read part-9, Leh - Lamayuru - Kargil Click here to read part-10, Kargil - Sanko - Rangdum (Suru Valley) Click here to read part-11, Rangdum - Pensi La - Padum (Zanskar Valley) Click here to read part-13, Padum (Zanskar Valley) - Rangdum (Suru Valley) Click here to read part-14, Rangdum (Suru Valley) - Kargil - Drass Click here to read part-15, Drass - Zoji La - Srinagar Click here to read part-16, Srinagar - Patnitop - Pathankor Click here to read part-17, Pathankot - Hoshiarpur - Ambala - Delhi __________________ BCMTouring: FAQ \| T-Shirts

21-04-09, 04:06 PM	#118
tsk1979 Reclaimed and Recycled Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 3,001	Re: Ladakh and Zanskar, return to heaven Wow, this gets more and more interesting! Since Padum-Leh is around 500kms, what is the ideal midway point? Panikhar is a little too close to Padum I think(177kms only). Kargil is a little too near Leh. And where do you book these JK tourism bunglows, I checked their website, and most links are broken.

21-04-09, 04:08 PM	#119
Yogesh Sarkar Administrator Join Date: May 2006 Location: New Delhi, India Posts: 23,499	That would be Sanko, around 270kms before Leh. For booking J&K Tourism Bungalows, I guess you will need to contact their marketing office in Delhi. Here is a link for their contact details, Kashmir...Tourist Information __________________ BCMTouring: FAQ \| T-Shirts

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Return to the Himalayas, Sarahan	Yogesh Sarkar	Travelogues from North India	5	28-05-09 11:45 PM
Puncture repair shops in Ladakh and Zanskar	Yogesh Sarkar	Travel Guides	7	07-04-09 02:26 PM
Ladakh 2006: return to heaven (photos)	Yogesh Sarkar	Photography	10	15-12-07 12:25 PM
Ladakh, Heaven on Earth	Yogesh Sarkar	Travelogues from North India	8	17-07-07 06:56 AM
Fastest return from Leh?	nav75	General discussions	10	10-11-06 11:02 PM