DAY 2 IN LEH, LADAKH

Hi All, welcome to yet another blog post from my Ladakh Diaries. Zillions of superlatives put together won’t exactly define the beauty called Ladakh. Yet, here is an attempt to share my soul-soothing experience in Leh on Day 2. I hope you enjoy!

The aura of our hotel was so calming. We woke up early and sat outside in the garden with some Ladakhi mint tea to sip and ended up having some beautiful conversations with other travelers – always fun to know stories of people and their adventures. After our breakfast, we all geared up for the long exciting day that was ahead of us.

Visit Alchi Monastery:

We started our drive towards Alchi Monastery which is situated on the bank of Indus River at a distance of 70 km from Leh. Alchi is believed to be the oldest Monastery (constructed between 958 and 1055 AD) and the architectures are decorated with stunning wood carvings and paintings which reflect the artistic and spiritual details of kings during the reign of Himachal Pradesh and Ladakh. The view of the river Indus flowing right behind the monastery was stunning. We spent some time there enjoying the view before we head to our next destination.

We then visited Alchi Museum followed by lunch at the Alchi Kitchen. We ordered some authentic Ladakhi dishes. My favorite among all the dishes we ordered was – Phatting (soaked apricot with its juice). The food was reasonable and tasty. Below are the menu and some delicacies that we tried.

During our lunch, we met a fellow traveler who was on a solo bike ride for a month in Ladakh and we all had a great time getting to know each other over lunch. As we bid goodbye to him, he insisted that we join him for dinner at the local café where the local artists were gathering that night. We couldn’t disagree as to the idea of experiencing local artists perform in their land of mountains hit us really hard.

Visit Likir monastery:

Likir Monastery, perched on a hill in Likir village which is around 20 km away from the Alchi monastery. The white colored buildings with red roofs with a huge 75 feet tall statue of Buddha offers a scintillating view. The building was filled with wall paintings, art, and crafts that showcase the principles and culture of Buddhism.

What we did next was something that we had never imagined we would do during the course of this trip. If you have been following me on Instagram and watched the stories of my Ladakh trip, you would have guessed by now. Yes, I am referring to the river rafting experience in sub-zero temperatures. 😀  So, this happened while we were casually driving back to Leh and we spotted a jeep pass by with a rafting boat loaded on it. Looked quite exciting and that’s when the discussion started -if to go rafting!

Zanskar Trek-River water rafting:

And, with a blink of an eye, we were at the rafting spot to get our tickets. The experience of rafting for 16 Km and swimming in sub-zero temperatures was ultimate and nerve-racking at the same time. We all thoroughly enjoyed. We then chilled at the confluence of the river Sindhu and river Zanskar with some hot chai and pakoras to beat the chills we experience at the river.

Gurudwara Pathar Sahib, Magnetic Hill, Hall of fame, Leh Market, Bonfire Restro:

It was late evening by the time we finished rafting. We visited Gurudwara Pathar Sahib, Magnetic Hill on the way to Leh and, we took a quick stroll yet again in the Leh Market. We decided to go to Bonfire café to see the local artists perform and to meet the biker that we had met in the morning. The place had a unique vibe to it with so full of energy. It was an ideal place to sit, relax, sing, dance, enjoy the place in Leh style.

We also ended up meeting many travelers from different parts of the world, ate the tastiest pizzas, sipped old monk neat, sang our heartful and danced the night out with some random crazy bunch. After the party was over, we hitchhiked to the homestay as our driver had to leave early to get the permits done for the next day. A group of three gentlemen took us all on a night drive in their open-back jeep and dropped us safely back at the hotel. The day was way more than we expected. We got back to our homestay by around 1.30 AM and dozed off in no time.

I have honestly got so much more to share with you. If you have not read my “Day 1 in Leh” blog post, click here for scintillating stories and amazing pictures. There’s still more coming, which I hope you will enjoy. Until then, keep exploring this space!!