Today was a continuation of our exploration
of Leh and its surroundings. But the day started off with a visit to the
District Magistrate’s office to apply for the permits to visit the Restricted
Areas of Pangong Tso and Tso Moriri. However, despite me having the letter of
support from the Military Police, the Magistrate refused to give me a permit to
visit Marsimik La. But given that the area beyond Lukung and Pangong Tso is
controlled by the Military, I should not have a problem going there.
Surprisingly, I thought that the permit to visit Hanle was given by someone
sitting in Bangalore. But Hanle is right there in my permit. And the rates have
gone up. For a five member crew, it cost me Rs 1700. I do not remember it being
so much. Anyway...
After the permits were in hand, we headed off
towards Kargil and the first stop was at the Hall of Fame. It was, as always, a
very sombre and poignant couple of hours I spent there. It is so very
inspirational to relive the stories who are ready to give their lives for the
honour, safety and security of the country. Many of the pictures we saw were of
soldiers who had died fighting. The Hall of Fame is primarily dedicated to the
1999 Kargil War and the pictures, captured weapons and documents and the sheer
impossibility of fighting a war in those inhospitable conditions, brings a
whole new respect for the Indian armed forces and the men and women in uniform.
It was also a personal journey for me since
my Father’s regiment the Third Gorkha Rifles and his battalion 4/3 Gorkha
Rifles had fought at Kargil and are duly recognised at the Hall of Fame.
Moreover, the Kargil War was fought by 8 Mountain Division, the Division my
Father commanded.
I really loved the picture of a missile with
the words cjalked on its side ... From Raveena
Tandon to Nawaz Sharief. In fact the manner in which these brave soldiers
see the humour and bright side of such a useless conflict is laudable to say
the least. Anil and I picked up a souvenir each. Knowing us, what else could it
be but a hip flask inscribed with the words HALL OF FAME.
We headed on and soon we reach Gurudwara
Patthar Sahib. Once there was a evil demon who was terrorising the local
populace. Tired of being harassed and persecuted, the locals called on Guru
Nanak who came and started meditating near the village. The evil demon wanted
Guru Nanak out of his territory and rolled a huge boulder down the mountain.
Guru Nanak did not budge and as the boulder hit him, it miraculously turned
into wax and moulded itself around him. Thinking that he was dead, the demon
came down to check and found that he was alive. Frustrated he kicked the
boulder and his foot too went into the molten wax. He realised that Guru Nanak
was indeed a divine being and immediately gave himself up to him. He never
terrorised anyone ever again. In fact, in Ladakh Guru Nanak is revered as Nanak
Lama.
We had langar khana at the gurudwara and it
tasted heavenly as always. There is so much faith behind the preparation of
each meal that it cannot but taste heavenly.
From the divine to the ridiculous. Magnetic
Hill that is supposed to defy gravity and in fact pulls fully loaded cars
uphill. We put it to the test and sure enough, the heavy piece of metal that
was out vehicle started rolling uphill. This is an optical illusion, but a good
one. We took a bottle of water and put it at the exact spot from where our
vehicle was being pulled uphill. The bottle too started rolling uphill. So much
for gravity defying phenomenon.
The next stop was a visual delight. The
colour of turquoise and blue and brown and green all merged together at the
confluence of the Indust and the Zanskar rivers. It is a breathtaking sight to
see the two mighty rivers merging and then flowing ahead as one.
We drove back from the confluence near the
village of Nimu and headed for the Spituk Gompa from where we moved to the
fantastically located and aesthetically wonderful Shanti Stupa. The Japanese
prayer hall was being renovated and was closed, one place where I usually spend
some time. Did walk up to the Shanti Stupa and spent some time there shooting.
It was sunset by the time we finished and we
headed off into the market to pick up some cash and for dinner. Dinner was at
the Norlakh Family Home that serves the most delectable momos one can ever
taste. I have at least one meal here and this time too was not disappointed
with the momos.
Back at the hotel, to pack for tomorrow. We
are headed off towards Tso Moriri for a recee of the passes that I have never
been to before. Maybe we did cross it in 2003, but that was a long time ago and
I needed to know the route for the world record effort. It is a long drive and
we will camp at the lake tomorrow night. It is going to be cold and the night
in tents and sleeping bags are something I am looking forward to.
Time to hit the sack. I’ll see you when I’ll
see you. Cheers.
The Travel Trendz Trilogy can be followed at http://traveltrendztv.com/traveltrendztrilogy.php and https://www.facebook.com/traveltrendztv.
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