Check out Ladakh's largest and wealthiest
gompa, the stunning Hemis, 45 km from Leh, and beautiful all the way from
its imposing painted façade to its large prayer wheels. Closer to town, Thikse
Gompa is home to an opulent statue of the Buddha, all gold, turquoise and
lapis-lazuli, while Shey Gompa, 15 km from Leh, houses a huge, 3-storied
copper-and-brass Buddha. The 11th century Spituk Gompa is closer home-
just 8 km from Leh- and besides a small collection of beautiful old thangkas
(traditional Ladakhi Buddhist paintings), weaponry and icons, has a temple dedicated to
the tantric deity Vajrabhairava, the embodiment of wrath. Excursions, including
treks, chadar treks (walking on the frozen Zanskar river- the ultimate in adventures!),
motorbike and jeep safaris and mountaineering expeditions also begin at Leh.
Other than gompas, Leh has little to see- except the Stok Palace
and the Shanti Stupa. The Stok Palace, 17 km from Leh, was- and still is
to some extent, the royal residence; other than that, it is home to a small but fine
museum containing exquisite thangkas, weapons, costumes, jewellery and the like. The
Shanti Stupa, a dazzling-white stupa built atop a hill 3 km from Leh's Fort Road, is a
recent addition to Leh's sights, and offers a panoramic view of the Indus Valley, Leh and
the mountains around.
Come to Leh- you'll discover why they've called this stunning land `Moonland', Shangrila'
and `Little Tibet'- epithets which come nowhere close to describing Ladakh's utterly
breathtaking beauty!Getting to
Leh
Leh is connected by air and road to the rest of India. Indian Airlines and Jet Airways
operate regular flights to Leh from Delhi, Srinagar, Jammu and Chandigarh, although
flights in winter tend to be somewhat erratic due to bad weather. Two highways connect Leh
to other parts of India: one from Manali and the other from Srinagar. Both are 2-day long
arduous trips that cover more than 400 km each, but the scenery along both is fabulous.
It's possible to drive your own vehicle from either Srinagar or Manali, or to hire a
chauffeur-driven vehicle in either of these towns. In addition, local state tourism
departments (JKSRTC and HPSRTC, respectively) operate daily buses to Leh. Please note that
the Srinagar-Leh road remains open only in summer, usually June to September, while the
Manali-Leh road, although it remains open through the winter, has little traffic and no
government-operated vehicles run on it during this time.
Leh has very few sights within town- nearly all of them are
outside town, within an hour's drive. It's best to hire a vehicle from one of the many
tour operators and travel agents in town to visit them.
Best time to visit Leh
Summer- between May and August- is the best time to visit Leh, not just because this when
the temperature's at its best, but also because this is when most of Ladakh's stunning
Buddhist gompas (monasteries) celebrate their annual tsechus (festivals). The tsechus
are colourful affairs, most of them two-day celebrations that turn the gompa and its
surrounding area into a fairground, all of it centering around the masked dance-dramas
enacted by the monks of the gompa.
Accommodation in Leh
Leh has plenty of tourist accommodation, ranging from home-stays to more plush hotels,
both government-operated as well as privately-run. There are as yet no 5-star hotels in
the city, but plenty of upscale hotels offer many of the amenities you'd expect from most
hotels. There are a number of good, clean guesthouses too, most of them Ladakhi homes
which have been converted. Wherever you decide to stay, make reservations well in advance.
Should you happen to land up in Leh without prior bookings, scout the Main Market, Fort
Road, Old Road, Changspa and Karzoo areas: they have the largest concentration of hotels
and guesthouses. |
