The terrain is totally different too. Himachal Pradesh, though at a very high altitude is very green. The Himalayas there look very friendly and benign. Ladakh on the other hand is nothing but barren landscape and black jagged sharp edged mountains that look rather menacing !
We started off with the Lamayuru Monastry near Alchi. To reach Alchi, we passed the Confluence of the Indus and Zanskar river.
A prayer flag flutters over the confluence of the Indus and the Zangskar river - The dark muddy one is the Indus and the one in lighter shade is the Zangskar. You can clearly see the confluence.
Lamayuru is supposed to be near what was a glacial lake centuries ago. The Lansdscape there is Known as the Moon Landscape.
When You see it, you do get an impression that you are not standing on Planet earth but have been taken to another planet.The landscape is eerily like that of the surface of the Moon. It has a beauty and grandeur of it own.
The landscape continued to be brown and muddy with no sign of greenery. A few houses clung precariously to the side of the mountain.
The Lamayuru Monastery signified everything Ascetic and Austere.
The young lamas added some color and cheer !
The Meditation Chamber for the monks - It stands alone symbolizing abstinence and solitude.
The inside of the Monastery was bright and colorful, contradicting sharply with the drabness outside !
On our way, we saw prayer flags everywhere. Guiding and protecting us on our Journey !
I loved the windows and the corridors !
The windows in the above corridor opened to a magnificent view !
The Likir Monastery is most famous for the 23 meter high gilded gold statue of Maitreya or the Future Buddha.
Grand shots! Good they allow photography.
ReplyDeleteThe monastery here in Coorg too is a great piece of architecture.
Yes they do. Glad you liked them !
DeleteThis looks so great! The pictures clicked are beautiful and so is the story accompanying it. I am so looking forward to my Leh visit this summer and these pictures make me even more excited!
ReplyDeleteYou would love Leh !
DeleteWow !! The Photgraphs are so appealing. I also love the classic shots of the monastries
ReplyDeleteThank you !
DeleteBeautiful Beautiful Beautiful... sigh.... wonder when will I ever go to this land.... I hope I get to do it in this lifetime... i have been dying to do this circuit and yet it evades me every year... sigh...
ReplyDeleteLucky lucky you ! :D loved the pics... so os much :D
Its an enchanting Land !
DeleteFantastic pictures....the monasteries are always fascinating..have been to those in Sikkim, Nepal, Hong Kong and Bhutan. The prayer flags are such a lovely reminder that God is all around.
ReplyDeleteThank you Corinne ! Yes the Prayer do make us feel as if God is all around us !
DeleteBeautiful! I have only seen the monasteries in Sikkim, which were also similarly lovely!
ReplyDeleteI am sure they are !
DeleteBeautiful pictures. I would love to visit Ladakh - I've never been to a monastery. Thanks so much for sharing your visit.
ReplyDeleteLadakh is an enchanting place ! do visit !
DeleteRuchira, I love the stories of your travel. You shoot them beautifully and word them better. Chuck your job and become a travel writer. The world needs you! BTW fav pic is the rivers meeting and the green landscape.....loved it.
ReplyDeleteNote to self :Must visit Ladakh..............soon!
Thank you my dear ! Working on it !
DeleteWow...thanks for choosing to write travelogues What mystical surroundings, just soul stirring- I am so inspired that I just need to pack bags, renounce the world and set on that journey :-)
ReplyDeleteGo go gog !! Travel is the best experience !
DeleteThanks for giving the glimpse of these monasteries in ladakh. Its strange to think of ladakh as a barren land !! The journey for sure wud be tough. Would love to go there ONE DAY.
ReplyDeleteRemembered monastery pics I clicked in Manali and coorg
Monasteries are peaceful irrespective of the belief
ONE MORE AMAZING monastery is the one Isaw in Singapore in China town. It was marvellous
It is a bit tough but so worth it !
DeleteThe austerness of tht place makes the specka of color stand out rt...
ReplyDeleteyes it does !
DeleteThey are so wonderfully beautiful and soothing.
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting so many pictures of all the wonderful monasteries you visited :)
Bhavya
Just Another Blog
Glad you liked it !
DeleteRuchira, I have always been fascinated by monasteries, even though I've never actually been to one. And now I know why. Your pictures and the accompanying story are so telling, I feel as if I travelled with you. Why are monasteries so beautiful? Must be the solitude and the prayer.
ReplyDeleteI am sure it is the solitude and prayer !
DeleteThis post of yours along with its beautiful pics pushed my heart into a time travel!! :)
ReplyDeleteGlad you liked it !
DeleteWow, I love belonging to this century with the internet ... one can arm-chair travel. Lovely pics, loved reading this and taking in the experience
ReplyDeleteThank you !
DeleteMy ancestry is from Himachal, so I have seen some part of it. Ladakh is still a dream, which this post is pushing towards reality!
ReplyDeleteAkhil.
Ladakh is worth a visit. But then Himachal is so beautiful !
DeleteBeautiful pictures. I can't help but exclaim once again, "Lucky you!" :)
ReplyDelete:P
DeleteThis post is so pretty!!!
ReplyDeleteSerene, rustic mountains, beautiful scenic textures all around!...Wonderful!!!
:)
Thanks for taking us through a wonderful visit!
Glad you liked it !
Delete..i am from this part of the world..and you have beautifully captured my homeland...'Ladakh '..
ReplyDelete..Ladakh is every photographer's delight..the rustic terrain..the rickety Gompas..the meandering rivers..the scattered villages..the grazing cattle..and the thin parches of green..adds to its charm..
..it is the only place in the world where you can enjoy your solitude..a perfect retreat far away from the cosmetic and chaotic city life..
..the last Shangrila..still standing tall.. :)
You coem from an enchanting land Rigzin ! Ladakh is indeed beautiful. I would love to go back again and again and again !
Delete..and one more thing..it makes me happy to know that you once.. were a student of JNU..i am also a student of JNU.. :)
ReplyDeleteReally what are you studying !
DeleteYou've traveled a lot. I have never been to only one monastery in Manali, can't recall its name. Lovely shots :)
ReplyDeleteBreathtakingly beautiful pictures Ruchira!!
ReplyDeleteI so envy you. Thanks for the grand tour...lovely pictures.
ReplyDeleteYour pics are out of the world! I really had a time travel and felt calm looking at them. Love the mountains so much!
ReplyDeleteSuch a delightful read. You do have a way with travel writing. Enjoyed reading this :)
ReplyDeleteLove monasteries myself. Having visited only one (the Coorg one), been itching to visit Ladakh for long now.
Beautiful pictures and a great post!
ReplyDeleteShirletta @ Shirleyisnotmyname
Beautiful photos, loved this one. Am partial to monasteries too, haven't visited many, but on my to-do list! Thanks for sharing these gems.
ReplyDeleteFour Leaf Clover
A really delightful read and some breathtaking shots ! :)
ReplyDeleteLove the images and contrasts
ReplyDeleteI remember reading a book on these monasteries but your pics are breath taking!
ReplyDelete