Gypsy at Large

View from my stay on the first day in Leh I had been Leh’d for three times already and knew Ladakh like the back of my hand. So I approached the fourth trip that came after a gap of nearly seven years with a bit of trepidation sparked by reports of tourism boom spoiling the pristine cold desert. Moments after landing in the “Land of Passes”, I realised the misgivings about the callous tourism were not unfounded. I was staying at a place just short of Nimu. So next day after 15 minutes of mild Yoga I headed to Indus-Zanskar confluence. That was the first spot that made me fall in love with Ladakh when I came here back in 2008. Now trash marks the spots along these two mighty rivers – one of them gave India its name. The bevy of ‘selfie-tourists’ have reached this place too. Also present was an edifice selling eatables and promises of adrenaline rush through river rafting. The next pit stop was Magnetic hill, where revving of All Terrain Vehicles reverberated through th...

Siachen Glacier is far beyond what a common person’s imagination can conjure up. Even though the Indian forces have been braving against the formidable foe of weather and other extremities to hold on to the lofty mountains, when I told my mother that I would be heading to Siachen for a month long expedition being conducted by the Indian Army, her question was if it was in China? The question left me amused. The Indian Army personnel have been imposing the national will in those frigid heights and not many civilians are aware what it means to be at that height where chocolate bars freezes so hard that it has to be used as stepping stones. I was one of very few civilians, who were to get a chance to experience first-hand how Indian armed forces personnel are overcoming limits to human body at the world’s highest battlefield, even if for a short period of time. I undertook the journey in 2008 and after nearly a decade I am revisiting the journey that changed me. Pa...

The scene was straight out of the Jungle Book, a dense forest teeming with all sorts of insects and other living beings, humidity threatening to dehydrate you slowly but surely. And thus began our adventure to trek to Nongriat village, roughly 70 kms from main Shillong town. In short we were gearing to play Mogli without Bagheera to help us out. We hit the road from Shillong at around 9.30 am. (Even if you are not a road journey person, do it for the scenic beauty of it). It is the beginning of April and the monsoon season is knocking on the door. Shillong belongs to the state Meghalaya, literally the abode of clouds. So as the sun goes up in the sky, the clouds descend on earth. At Cherapunjee, the erstwhile “wettest” place on earth, the clouds shadows the Noakhali waterfalls and the green valley is turned white. We continue our onward journey as the car drives through series of clouds. We were being told the village would not have anything to much. So we made a pit stop had...