Leh is the largest village in Ladakh, and by village, I mean town. It is similar to anything one might find in the USA: it has banks and post offices, hospitals and taxis, all of the hustle and bustle that is completely unavoidable in India. What lies beyond Leh, even just 20 or 30 kilometers away where the roads end, is where Ladakh begins. The landscape is high mountain desert. The low points sit at about 11,000 feet, and passes generally reach 15-17,000 feet. Despite the lack of roads, electricity, and telephones, life exists; it flourishes. The people work all summer to prepare for the winter, and of course the animals do, too. The allegory of the the grasshopper and ant comes to mind. It is hard to imagine Ladakh in the winter. A man at
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