Grand Escapades
Travel Photography & Travel Experiences of Africa, South America, the Middle-East & Asia
Gangla Village, Ladakh
Ladakh – A mélange of mystic, ancient monasteries, breathtaking landscapes, remote and still partly untouched villages like Bodgang in Baltistan. The main outdoor attraction is trekking, anything from 1 to 23 day (treks), but also rafting on the Zanskar River. Ladakh has also become increasing popular for motor-bikers Continue Reading →
Tso Moriri, Ladakh
If you are looking for information on trekking Ladakh, stop right here! You won’t find any. The day we arrived we decided against it – too hot, no shade, too expensive… Given these conditions, our already measly motivation made a trek never happen. Continue Reading →
Washing the dishes – Ladakhi way! Korzok, Tso Moriri, Ladakh
India is a very cheap place to travel, and Kashmir & Ladakh are not different – Making a good level of comfort affordable, while rock bottom backpacking costs next to nothing. Continue Reading →
Old women praying and meditating, Korzok, Tso Moriri, Ladakh
The evening in Korzok turned out to be really bizarre… Walking around in the dark without streetlights, the tiny village did not come across as particularly picturesque: cubic houses thrown together from stones; bags and other stuff on their flat roofs; lots of rubble all over the village. Continue Reading →
Tso Moriri, Ladakh, India
The drive from Tso Kar to Tsomoriri was nothing to write home about – we had such high expectations! Only a small geyser was a surprise and the last stretch of the road that leads down to the lake is kind of scenic. The highlight was a large herd of yaks that passed, some gigantic. Continue Reading →
Evening light in Tso Kar, near Tso Moriri, Ladakh, India
When we drove in the “village” of Thukje, at a first glance it looked like a heap of rubble. we kept looking for an intact building. And there it was, quite nice, actually. In the adjacent tent a large Ladakhi family was gathering and yes, they had two rooms in their home for us to stay. We were uncertain about whether all these people were staying in the small house or if some was just visiting. Hassan, our driver, noticed our concerns and pointed at another intact building in the distance – a guesthouse: two concrete blocks on a plot of land outside the settlement, ten rooms, some with a view of the salt heaps nearby. Very, very basic, but livable. Continue Reading →
Ladakhi nomads, between Tso Kar & Tso Moriri, Ladakh, India
Once we turned east off the Mandali Road, the landscape turned even more spectacular. Soon we spotted a nomad camp right along the tracks. We had hoped for so much to meet Changpa Nomads… A few kids, barely able to walk, were playing in the dust next to the road. Our stop made the rest of the family leave their tent or whatever chores they were doing. Their burned and frost bitten faces mirrored their harsh life. Living in tents through a winter at 5.000 meters with those extreme temperatures was beyond our imagination. Continue Reading →
Road construction workers at Tagang La, Ladakh, India
At the police check point in Upshi, the super correct police officer found out that our permit for Tso Moriri started the following day. Big excitement! Gilles having a loud and angry telephone conversation with the agency who made the mistake, the mobile phone of the policemen playing music at full volume and all the drivers discussing the situation. Heidi took a look at the map and everything was solved. Instead of doing the loop west to east we would start with Tso Kar, which does not require a permit. Continue Reading →
Lamayuru Monastery or Yuru Gompa, Kargil District, Jammu & Kashmnir, India
During our three weeks in Ladakh, not one single festival was held in a monastery. None! Dates of the festivals are linked both to the moon calendar and to complex astrological considerations, thus their dates can vary widely. We simply did not check carefully enough! Continue Reading →
Turtuk, the last village in the Shyok Valley before the Pakistani border, Baltistan, India
Where we stayed? At Maha Guesthouse. Surrounded by a sea of flowers and greenery it was the first guesthouse that opened, in 2010. But the season was ruined by the horrible mudslide in Leh that year and serious flooding in the Shyok Valley. The super friendly and most helpful owner speaks English really well and cooks delicious food. No wonder his 10 rooms (800 to 1.000 Rupees) are full every day. The increasing number of tourists has tempted several of his neighbors to open a guesthouse as well and we spotted several homestays. Continue Reading →