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Ladakh Diaries Part 1 - Out of Leh

Ladakh Diaries - Out of Leh
Ladakh brings out something else in me - I want to say spiritual, but not being one, it would sound hollow. But it does soothe me, and brings some kind of inner calm.
Today was Phyang, a small agrarian village about 20 kilometers northwest of Leh. It’s claim to small town fame is the Phyang Monastery perched on top of a mountain, and its Renpoche who has been supporting innovative and sustainable practices. It’s more recent claim to other fame are its ice stupas, invented by Sonam Wangchuk, the man who inspired the Rajkumar Hirani film “Three Idiots”. 
We went looking for remnants of the ice stupas, and I believe I found it. Ice stupas were SW’s idea of using gravity and pipes to take glacial melt and eject it 20-30 meters up into a cold, minus 20 degree air sometime in November, and see it freeze as it hits the air. Each “ice stupa” holds about 120,000 liters of water in ice form till the beginning of spring when glaciers have not yet melted. These stupas however melt earlier as they are lower in altitude, thus aiding the planting season. Brilliant isn’t it? We plan to go visit Sonam Wangchuk’s SECMOL Institute in Phey, not far from here. 
Tomorrow we attend the festival at the Phyang Monastery, and then drive down to Da Hanu, a distance off the Leh-Kargil road. It’s an Aryan Valley camp, where apparently the last of the “pure-bred” Aryans still reside. Excited as always to explore the less-ventured part of Ladakh.





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