Leh &; Ladakh - 'July 2010'

8 Nights 9 Days.

 Also known as ‘ Little Tibet,’ Ladakh has cultural & religious influences drawn from Tibet, Mainland India & Central Asia. Roughly 80% of the population comprises of Buddhists who are largely tolerant & non interfering. Prayer flags & prayer wheels greet visitors to most villages, while high above hills, huge ‘gomphas’ act as watchtowers. Ladakh has much to offer, be it watching a game of Polo in Leh Town, or the sight of the Moravian church built in 1855, the striking view of both the Zanskar & Indus rivers from the Thikse Monastery, or the strike of Brahmini Ducks on the Tso Morari Lake. The silence inside the incense filled monasteries or the cascading river-raft ride on the river Indus. Ladakh offers natural beauty on one of the highest plateaus in the world.

Your Tour Escourt

Join Hector D’Souza on a fascinating tour of Leh & Ladakh. Hector is the founder and president of L’orient Travels. He has been traveling from a young age and has visited over 200 places in India. His Travels have been documented and featured in various leading news publications such as, The Times of India, Hindustan Times, Bombay Times, Dreamscapes Canada etc. He has lived in America and spent considerable amount of time traveling in Europe.

Hector is fluent in English, Hindi; speaks German and Spanish. A fitness freak, he is a qualified Ashtanga Yoga teacher from the Yoga Sanctuary in Toronto. He is presently a guest lecturer with the Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies, Mumbai.

L’Orient Travels has been featured for its expertise on Indian Tourism in various news publications including, TTG, Singapore; Travel News Asia, Hong Kong, Travel Impact Newswire, Thailand and Travel Biz Monitor, Mumbai.

LADAKH

DAY 1 LEH - Depart Delhi for Leh. Arrive Leh Transfer to Hotel. Visit the Leh Palace- The nine-storeyed building with typical Tibetan architecture has sloping buttresses and projecting wooden balconies. In pitiful shambles today, the building is dark and has gaping holes in the floors. Be sure to carry a torch before venturing in. The palace has a small Museum spread over several rooms connected with narrow passages. A collection of old thangka paintings and royal arms are displayed here, Sankar Gompa- Home to twenty lamas, the monastery is surrounded by a high mud wall and several chortens (memorials). A central courtyard is surrounded by monks’ quarters and at the top of the main building is the house of the Kushak. The residence is marked out by a golden spire and the dharma chakra with two deer flanking it. The main prayer hall or Du-khang is reached by a flight of steps, Shey Monastery - The Palace sits on a ridge below the fort. A victory stupa crowned with a gold spire is a significant feature. The gompa houses a 15-metre high blue-haired Buddha. The shrine is maintained and attended by monks from the Hemis Monastery. The copper and brass status is richly decorated with precious stones. Paintings of bodhisattvas and protector deities surround the statue. Dinner and overnight at hotel.

DAY 2 LEH - After breakfast, Visit the Spituk Monastery Towering over a conical, the 3-chapel monastery dates back to the 11th century, when it was founded century by Od-de, the elder brother of Lha Lama Changchub Od. He was the one to introduce a monastic community here. When a translator, Rinchen Zangpo, came to this place, he said that an exemplary religious community would develop there. This statement led to the naming of the monastery as Spituk, meaning Exemplary., Stok Palace The Stok Palace is located on a glacial deposit of pebbles and overlooks fields of barley grown on terraces on the mountains. Standing four storeys tall, the Stok Palace was the official residence of the royal family of Ladakh and was constructed in 1814 by Ladakh's last ruler & Matho Monastery. Matho is the only gompa of Ladakh that belongs to the Saskya order of Tibetan Buddhism. The oracle of the monastery is a priest, who resides in the monastery itself. Also situated near the monastery, are a number of sacred shrines, of which one is dedicated to the guardian deities. Matho Monastery of Leh Ladakh hosts the Matho Nagrang Festival, on an annual basis. Dinner & overnight at hotel.

DAY 3 LEH - After breakfast, depart for Phey, to experience a 4hr rafting ride on river Indus. And enjoy the ride at Nimu village. Return back to hotel by jeep. Afternoon free. Dinner and overnight at hotel.

DAY 4 TSO MORARI - After breakfast, drive to Tso Morari lake via Chumathang, enroute you will possibly meet Changpa shepherds, of the Tibetan origin. Tso Morari lake is approximately 40km long, with an average width of six to seven km situated at an approximate height of 4500 mts in the district of Rupshu, south-east of leh, it is flanked by the Trans- Himalayan range and the Great Himalyas. One can see bar-headed geese and Brahminy ducks breeding in hundreds on the little islands in the Tso- Morari. Dinner and overnight in tented camps.

DAY 5 TSOKAR - After breakfast, depart to Tsokar lake - formed by melting of ice masses left behind by the retreating glaciers, is stunning cobalt blue in colour. During winter, the surface of the lake becomes frozen and it is possible for animals and human beings to walk over it. . Tsokar to the west of Tso Morari lake are much smaller lakes. Dinner and overnight in tents at Tsokar.

DAY 6 TSOKAR LEH - After breakfast, depart Tsokar for Leh via the Tanglang-la pass- regarded as the second highest mountain pass in Ladakh, is located in between the snow clad mountains of the great Himalayas perched at a height of about 5325 mts it lies in Leh district of Jammu and Kashmir. Arrive Leh late afternoon. Dinner and overnight at hotel.

DAY 7 LAMAYARU - After breakfast, drive to Lamayaru monastery. The dry lake bed has undulating mud structure that looked like lions, the hill took the name Sengge Syang (Lion Hill). Lamayaru is known for these ‘moonscapes’, which have an uncanny resemblance to the surface of the moon. Return back to Uley Topko camps for overnight stay in tented accommodation at camping grounds. Dinner and overnight at Uley Tops.

DAY 8 LEH - After breakfast, a short trek to Ri-dzong monastery, the only place in Ladakh where monastic discipline is followed in its orthodox form. After lunch, drive back to Leh via Alchi, one of the oldest monasteries in Ladakh. Alchi has an Indian style of architecture and décor, and the only remnant of Indian Buddhism in Ladakh. Dinner and overnight at hotel in Leh.

DAY 9 DELHI - After breakfast, depart Leh for Delhi by Kingfisher Red 3342 at 0810 hrs, arrive Delhi at 0925 hrs and transfer to international airport for onward journey.

TOUR ENDS

Tour Includes:

All travel and sightseeing in a/c Toyota Qualis/ Scorpio Jeeps.

Accommodation on twin sharing basis with all meals.

Sightseeing as per program

Entrance fees to monuments

Accommodation in comfortable tents when camping.
All taxes and entry fees

Services of a professional guide

Tour Cost Does not Include:

Expenses of a personal nature

Hotel accommodation in Delhi if staying overnight.

Any item not specifically mentioned as `included’ in program

Hotels:

Leh: Lotus Hotel or Similar.

Tsokar: Tented Accommodation or Similar.

Tsomorari: Tented accommodation or Similar.

Lamayaru: Uley Topko camps