Leh the former capital of Ladahk owes its history to being a central staging point on a former major trade route between Tibet and Kashmir.
Effectively sitting in a dry dust bowl surrounded by towering snow capped Mtns Leh is also a major motor cycle destination for enthusiasts tackling the famous Leh - Manali route the same one we did by bicycle.
Hired Royal Enfield's with their distinctive sound ply this 600 km stunning route although our experience in passing a no. broken down out in the middle of nowhere was that it might be a better idea to stick to a group tour !
The township of Leh is predictably dry hot and dusty with little rain at this time of the year. Cars and motorcycles ply the small streets using their horns incessantly to inform others of a) being on the wrong side of the road b) I'm not going to stop c) I'm turning left or right or sometimes both at once d) I don't care if you are a pedestrian and there is no footpath get out of my way !
The street shops all come with portable generators to deal with the towns regular load shedding (euphimism for regular daily power cuts!)! Hawkers try to sell the shirt off their own backs, gutters are open and often filled with rubbish, cows wander trying to any greenery in this greg coloured area and hundreds of unkept dogs scrounge a living as best as they can do !
So in short not too different to many an Asian town in poorer parts of the sub continent !
On a positive note the town though is overlooked by a beautifully situated palace and monastery and does have a number of good cafes, restaurants and so called German bakeries
For some of the group including self its just a matter of winding down after a tremendously strenuous trip.
Our previous evening saw the presentation of the groups cycling shirts depicting the route taken as a fitting momento.
Tonight sees a final celebration with the group parting ways most going back to Delhi for a day or Two before flying home.
All in all an amazing trip and many hours of video editing to be done !
Fantastic effort Mega , congrats to you all . The guy who broke his collarbone would still be peeved i'd imagine
ReplyDeleteSounded every bit as tough as Tibet , probably tougher because of the road conditions , looked as cold as Tibet as well .
Can see you camping in your backyard when you get home , with porridge and swill for brekky , yummmmy .
Good flight home , will chat when you recover
[ around Christmas time ]
Cheers H