“The traveler sees what he sees the tourist sees what he is come to see” - G.K. Chesterton My favourite travel experience is Ladakh. The beautiful landscapes of Ladakh are mesmerising. I took off to Ladakh after my heavy days of shoot in the scorching heat of Jaipur. I went along with a friend called Taruja who is a design student from IIT. Taru and I never knew each other before the trip. She happens to be a frnd’s frnd who I had never met. Ladhak was the only reason that brought us together. Taru is originally from Pune and I’m from Bombay. Before the trip we would call up each other and co-ordinate ticket plans. Taru finally got our tickets sorted out through her Dad’s office. We finally met each other at the Delhi airport signalling what clothes we are wearing and where we are standing. It was kinda funny as we both never met each other before. She told me over the cell phone that she is wearing this black top with a huge white flower on it so I went searching for a girl in midst of Delhi airport rush for a girl in black top with a flower and there she was….the flower was huge though. :) Finally from Delhi we caught our flight to Leh. Travelling with an unknown person can be tricky sometimes as one may not know the temperaments of the other. We initially just spoke about were we came from and our respective interests in life. There were huge similarities between the two which bonded us instantly. We had a ball of a time roaming around the country side. We also got to know each other better this way. Apart from travelling we also did a small research on the Mask Dance in Leh. This is basically Taru’s project and I wanted to tag along so that I could understand more about tantric Buddism. We visited the Dalai Lama Palace and tons of Monasteries. We also met prominent Buddhist scholars and craftsmen who made masks in Ladakh. Ladakh is mysterious and is simply serene. Also one must do the river rafting activity at the Zanskar, visit the Pang gong lake, and witness the Khardungla Pass. The landscapes here keep changing here after every few kilometres. Certain places are absolutely dry and hilly and then in midst of nowhere you’ll find a lush oasis with streaming cool clean water. Also certain hills have sediments of various colours. Ladakh can be a paradise of most geologists. People around are the sweetest and most helpful. Food may not be the best but edible enough. Ladhakies usually live on butter milk and home made milk products. Salt intake is usually high which may not suit the Pan Indian palate. There are loads of restaurants in Leh however. One day, Taru and I were extremely tired due to the long journey to various monasteries and decided to eat something different for a change as we could no longer eat the ladakhi noodles. Luckily we had some farsaans and Knoor soups to our rescue. We also made a few local frnds during our trip who we are still in touch with. Hope to visit Ladakh soon. ask Dance in Leh. This is basically Taru’s project and I wanted to tag along so that I could understand more about tantric Buddism. We visited the Dalai Lama Palace and tons of Monasteries. We also met prominent Buddhist scholars and craftsmen who made masks in Ladakh. Ladakh is mysterious and is simply serene. Also one must do the river rafting activity at the Zanskar, visit the Pang gong lake, and witness the Khardungla Pass. The landscapes here keep changing here after every few kilometres. Certain places are absolutely dry and hilly and then in midst of nowhere you’ll find a lush oasis with streaming cool clean water. Also certain hills have sediments of various colours. Ladakh can be a paradise of most geologists. People around are the sweetest and most helpful. Food may not be the best but edible enough. Ladhakies usually live on butter milk and home made milk products. Salt intake is usually high which may not suit the Pan Indian palate. There are loads of restaurants in Leh however. One day, Taru and I were extremely tired due to the long journey to various monasteries and decided to eat something different for a change as we could no longer eat the ladakhi noodles. Luckily we had some farsaans and Knoor soups to our rescue. We also made a few local frnds during our trip who we are still in touch with. Hope to visit Ladakh soon.