Over 2000 Km by road, in around 10 days. Stunning landscapes, wonderful people. That sums up our Ladakh trip. But how did it actually work? How did we make it happen? Read on to find out! Leh, the capital of Ladakh , is accessible by air and road. Flying into Leh is the easiest, and time-saving option, while the road is the time consuming one, but with the added advantage of driving past some of the most beautiful landscapes in our country. Each option has much to recommend it, and we chose the road for just one reason – altitude sickness. Altitude sickness was one of my biggest concerns, since I suffer from motion-sickness. Yes, I do travel a lot, but that is despite my condition, and, over the years, have learnt how to handle it. I struggled with it when we visited Nathu-La in Sikkim, and wondered if I would be able to manage a week at the even higher altitudes that we would encounter in Ladakh. This was the reason we stuck to a basic plan, of only 9 days in Ladakh, though we
For Faces in the crowd today, I have two strangers.... two people I clicked at the Golden temple, Amritsar....
The first is obviously a visitor, a pilgrim. He looks so happy, at peace... His object is fulfilled. He has had darshan of the holy book., he has got the divine blessing - the prasad....
The second is more alert. He is obviously an employee of the Temple. He is at work, doing his duty, spear in hand. It doesn't matter that in these days of modern weaponry, his spear will be of no use in a gun battle. All that matters is that he is carrying the sacred tradition of protecting the sacred space, in the manner it has been done for years.
There is no fear of what may come. This is the one of the few places where no security check is conducted on visitors. We are free to carry anything inside. Even a camera. As I enter the sanctum, an employee notices my camera, and says, "beta, mandir ke andar photo mat nikalna" (child, please don't take a photo inside the sanctum). He doesn't even wait for my assent before turning away to the next pilgrim. Such is the nature of faith and belief.
These two photos, of two different people represents that same faith and belief, which shows in the happiness of one and the calmness of the other.
Love how they ooze with confidence and pride when they walk... Amritsar- hopefully this year, last year planned in nov and had to cancel :(
ReplyDeleteYes, Aarti! Its so nice to simply sit there and watch all the people there... hope you can go this year.. its a beautiful place
DeleteLovely, will wait to see more in this series!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Mridula!
DeleteHi Anu... you have clicked interpreted the two pictures beautifully.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Desi traveller..
DeleteInterpretation is really good!!!! Nice observation...
ReplyDeleteMANUPONNAPPA.BLOGSPOT.IN
THanks a lot, Manu!
DeleteI loved your interpretations about these two pictures which we normally don't even bother to look at. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Nisha! I actually spent a lot of time just sitting there and looking at people come and go.. i had been there before as a kid, and was trying to remember what it had been like then... and since photography was allowed, went on clicking too :D
DeleteWaoo we are so busy that we don't even notice such things in regular life.. Real good interpretation.
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