Blogs from India, Asia - page 10

Gujarat state in western India is geographically and culturally divided in to at least four regions: Saurashtra, Kutchh, North Gujarat and South Gujarat (with Central Gujarat in between). I have lived in Saurashtra for 36 years and North Gujarat for 27 years. Interest in re-(re)-visiting some parts of Saurashtra is therefore natural. I have copied some information (mostly legends) from sources available on internet (not necessarily authentic – I have used them only because I liked the contents). I have also given links to these sources. You may use hyperlinks to read more about the place. I have not re-written the description wherever good source is available. Saurashtra (also known as Kathiawad) is further divided into different areas (which are more relevant historically): Halar (present day Jamnagar), Sorath (Junag... read more

Leh - Ladakh: 23/8/21 to 29/8/21 There are three mis-matched regions of “Jammu & Kashmir” state: (1) Hindu dominated ‘Jammu’ region, (2) Buddhist ‘Ladakh’ and (3) predominantly muslim - ‘Kashmir’. This is not a political commentary on why and how they came together, but now some sense is being brought in by separating ‘Ladakh’ as a Union Territory with Leh as its capital. Leh-Ladakh has many strange ‘world-records’ to its credit. It is in fact a (world’s highest) desert (rain-shadow area) in the Himalayas. Technically this region opened for tourists sometime in the 1970s but has developed as a major destination in the last two decades only. I will arbitrarily divide Himalayas in to six regions (for tourism purpose only) - (1) Snow clad mountains of Kashmir, (2) Deserted mountains of Ladakh and Kargil, (3) Green ... read more

Day-6: 28-08-2021 - Nubra-Hunder to Leh: The last day of the Ladakh tour included a return journey from Hunder to Leh. Crowded it was, as we had seen while passing through two days back, but the people were simply going mad. There was a real traffic jam at 18000+ ft! Vehicles were parked at will wherever there was some space (see video). We stopped a few feet after crossing the peak and did enjoy the snowfall for a while. It was our first experience of snow. Entertaining it was, but it raises serious issues about sustainability of the environment if such behaviour is allowed to continue. If we can restrict the time a vehicle remains inside the airport pick-up/drop-off zone, why not at such crucial and delicate points? On either side of Khardung La there are ... read more

Day-5: 27-08-2021 - Hunder to Turtuk and back: Turtuk is the second northernmost village of India, captured from Pakistan during the 1971 war. Prior to that it was a part of Gilgit-Baltistan. Four villages of Baltistan are now part of India and Turtuk is one of them. The Line of Control is just about 2-3 km from this village. This entire region is very crucial from the military point of view. Warriors in Siachen glacier (world’s highest battlefield) are maintained through this area. The tip of Ladakh is sandwiched between Pakistan on one side and China on the other. Road from Hunder to Turtuk passes through strategically very important Partapur, forward air base of Thoise and Chalunka. Turtuk (9800 ft) is a small village with beautiful green surroundings. It is the lowest point in Ladakh. Most ... read more

"If there is a Heaven on Earth, it is in Kashmir." I realised the age-old proverb after completing the Kashmir Great Lakes Trek. When I was young, my dream was to be a wanderlust and travelling to Himalayas. Like many Bengalis I was influenced by the epic travelogue written by Parimal Dey and Umaprasad, the legendary travel-writers of Bengal. But now I am 60 plus and around six months back, when our family friend Mr Basu offered for participation in the Himalayan Trek of “Kashmir Great Lakes”, I did not take it seriously, at least initially. He was a seasoned trekker and participated in many trekking tours at different parts of Himalayas. Age creates physical disabilities. We became slow, our muscle and limbs do not function as it should be. My fear was I should not ... read more