Around Padum
Zanskar: view from the Stongdey monastery of the Zanskar valley and river; Zanskar, India.
While having breakfast, a guy at the restaurant volunteered to take us around the gompas since he had some work there; but he was nowhere to be seen when it was time for us to start. We waited for a while and then started towards Zangla. The road to Zangla is completely tarred after which there was construction work going on towards extending the road. We took an off-track from here and ended up at the Nunnery near the village. A couple of kids showed us the main prayer hall and then an old lady took us around to another prayer hall which also served as the library while a class was being conducted outside amidst the trees. The old palace was also visible on the way back but we did not go there all the way, but enough to get a view of the river, instead driving back to the Stongday monastery.
Perched on a hill - as most monasteries seem to - with a path leading up from the valley to the top is the Stongdey monastery, but now there is also a back road. A few kids were having milk in the courtyard while a prayer session was in progress in a small room by the side. We went around to get a view of the valley, with the river flowing below the mountains and the houses spread across the fields in a small village. On the way back down, one of the student monks came with us as a pillion as he needed to get to the village below.
Early morning the next day was the time we went to the Karsha monastery, the biggest in Zanskar. An old man was sitting in a corner and looking over the valley; another was making balls out of dough while chanting a prayer; three kids on one roof seem to be chit-chatting and another two were carrying a bucket of flour up the steps; could not see anyone else in the whole complex: either all of them were inside in prayer or all of them had gone somewhere out. The view of the valley is again great here; after relaxing for a bit it was time to get back to Padum.
We stayed at Hotel Ibex in Padum, run by Mr. Norbu. Padum is not connected to the electricity grid, instead electricity is provided to the whole town by a generator from 7pm to 11pm; the voltage is low but enough to charge batteries. Padum is right now connected by road only to Kargil but work is already under way on two roads to connect it to Nimu/Leh and Darcha(both of which are trekking routes now).
Part of 'The Trip/2007', Aug/Sep/Oct/Nov.