An Expedition

Mt. Kailash, the adobe of Lord Shiva has a number of aspects which engrosses each traveler of his. Different people cover this tough terrain for reasons of their own. Some go for it as its one of the major four pilgrims of Hindus, some take it as a adventure trip and some just for the sake of it. Whatever the reason, but one thing is common – the guts which it takes to reach these heights. Think of it – the Shrey Border it at an altitue of 3725M, with temerature around 27 Deg Celsius at 11: 00 clock in the morning. Talakot at a height of 12600 ft and Mansarovar at an altitude of 4485M with the morning temperature of 13 Deg Celsius. The Base Camp of Mt. Kailash is at an Altitude of 4540M and the Dolma La Pass is at 5430M. These figures might not seem to be much but for the trekkers or the monks who cover this by foot, its a huge thing. Think again, these altitudes become much more tougher with the changing weather/ climate conditions. U never know when things change here, with the mearg...

Lying in the state of Mussoorie at a distance of 270 kms from New Delhi and at a height of 6578 ft, spread on a ridge of 34 kms, its a Hill Station which still reminds of the Britishers who used to live here. With the air still pure and invigorating, the place is next to heaven. The beauty of the mountain surpasses anything else. Its more than ones imagination can take you to. Once called the Queen of Hill Stations, the Hill Station still holds the beauty of Sal, Oak and Pine trees. More of the natural beauty can be seen in the Bhatia Village , about halfway up the ramp. One can see the panoramic view from here. Apart from the Mussoories natural beauty, what attracts its people is the Promenade or the Mall. Extending to a tremendous length, its lessens in is width. With thousands of souvenirs lined up and hundreds of eateries, it has the major clan of crow moving in the evening. Local people, tourists, common folk take a walk in the clouds as they do shopping here. Extending ...

Located in the Great Himalayan Divide, lies the trekking Valley of India called Zanskar. Literally meaning Land of White Copper, it has for decades exerted the allure of Shangri La. The nucleus of the region is a Y shaped glacial valley drained by three main rivers – Stod, Tsarap and Zanskar. Here, even the lowest passes remain closed for seven to eight months in a year with the mid winter temperatures dipping to a bone numbing minus 40 Deg C. Most of the people come to Zanskar either for trekking or for river rafting. Numerous trails wind their way towards north from Padium to Central Ladakh, west to Kishtwar and South to neighbouring Lahaul. The river flows down from Zanskar Valley to Lahaul and Spiti or the either way round. If you are travelling here, then you will be disappointed looking for a comfortable place. It is always better to go through a trekking tourist agent, so that all the accommodation can be taken care of by them. Near to the Zanskar ...

South of Kolkata, the Hooghly fringes one of the worlds largest estuarine deltas, the Sunderbans. Sunderbans mean beautiful forests. These forests are beautiful indeed. The 10,000 square kilometer expanse of marsh land, mangrove swamp and islets formed by silt swept down from the Himalayas. Its remote nature has been so designed as to make place for reserving the regions abundant wildlife which include saltwater crocodiles, gangetic dolphins, otters and the worlds largest population of tigers. This beautiful forest lies in the Ganges Delta, stretching east from the mouth of Hooghly to Bangladesh. The Sunderbans are home to legendary Royal Bengal Tiger, a ferocious man eater. This man eater has adaptive well to this watery environment, and swims from one island to another covering at least 40 kms per day. Other wildlife which love this place are sea turtles, wild boar, spotted deer, olive ridley, sharks. Mingling with these purely wild animals is a population of half a million hu...

Karnataka, the land of one of the most Kings of India – Tipu Sultan, is a land filled with stories of bravery and heroic deeds. Valour and grandeur are the twin roses of the land. Here in this beautiful land lie the beautiful temples of Halebid. Also known as the Holyasar Temples, these are one of the most beautiful temples in entire Karnataka. Halebid was once the Capital of Hoysala Dynasty located 32 kms northwest of Hassan. Once known as Dora Samudra, it was renamed as Hale – bidu or the dead city when Delhi Sultanate forces of Ala-ud-din-khalji swept through and reduced it to rubble. Despite this, the two main temples of the city – Hoysaleshvara and Kedareshvara are in superb in form, art, design and architecture. It is for these temples that the beautiful city of Halebid is still known. It is not known which dieties were originally worshipped, though the double shrine inside the temple are supposed to be devoted to Lord Shiva. Both the shrines contain shivlin...

Leh is tough, often causing altitude sickness to many, but the route to Leh is warm and welcoming. The surrounding calmness makes for a perfect stay and the rustiness in the air calls for a great day ahead. Taking a taxi from Leh Airport will set you on the Srinagar Highway. Karzoo, Suku and Fort Road are the main residential places of Leh. Only two banks take care of the Currency Exchange – the State Bank of India and J&k Bank. Sometimes the HDFC Bank too takes it in its hands. The old town of Leh has the Chamba Temple. Not easy to reach, taking the help of a local seems to be a better idea. Among the most visible expressions of Buddhism in Ladakh are the chess pawn – shaped chortens or stupas at the entrance of the Monasteries. Made of mud and stone or of concrete, most of the chortens are made as an act of piety by the nobles of Leh. These chortens are supposed to the imbibed with mystical powers. The largest one can be found in Shey – The place of old Palaces of Leh. So...

Home to Dalai Lama and Tibetan Government in exile and the starting point of some of the exhilarating treks into the Himalayas, McLeod Ganj is the upper town of Dharamshala. Spread across the wooden ridges beneath the Dauladher Range, the town is divided into two distinct sections. Originally a British Hill Station, McLeod Ganj has been converted into a Tibetan Home by the influx of Tibetan Refugees who left China fleeing the Chinese Oppression. McLeod Ganj is a place which attracts a lot of homeland people as well as foreigners. Its a preferred place for Hollywood Actors with a number of them already visited the place. Despite low temperatures between December and March, it attracts a lot of people throughout the year. Seeing the low temperatures, you will require loads of very warm clothes. Dalai Lama Settled temporarily in Mc Leod Ganj in 1960, four decades later he is still here. Because of his presence the place has become prestigious. His house is one the south edge...