We had changed buses at Chamba bus stand on our way to Khajjiar because the road to Dalhousie was snowed out. Chamba seemed like a crowded place, but then all important bus stations are full of people. I had faint memories of Chamba, having explored it almost two decades ago on a roadtrip with my…
Wisdom of Tradition : Food in Indian Baltistan
As a region, Baltistan refers to the area after the end of Nubra Valley in Ladakh. Before the partition of undivided India in 1947, Baltistan was a part of Ladakh. Presently, most of the region comprising Baltistan comes under Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) and only a small part of Baltistan lies in India. Baltistan was once…
Attending a Kumaoni Wedding in Kumaon
After a monumental day that began in Kasar Devi, with not-so-pleasant visits to Nainital & Haldwani that somehow ended in Bageshwar, things could only get better from here. Life seemed much better next morning; the Delhi to Munsyari bus had been changed to Delhi – Thal and was supposed to leave from Bageshwar at 9…
Failures on the Road : Running in circles, in Kumaon
It was a difficult time. I was battling my inner demons with regards to travel in the state of Uttarakhand. After a narrow escape with disaster in Garhwal that happened in the month of February/March 2015, I did not have the heart to be on the road for a month or two. And when I finally…
Agra beyond the Taj : Places and Experiences
Numerous autos screeched to a halt, when they saw us walking. We were staying at Agra’s Fatehabad Road and within a few hours had understood the fine art of shameless bargaining with the shrewd autorickshaw-wallahs of Agra. They had asked for 150 Rupees once for taking us to one of the gates of the Taj,…
An Evening at Hunder Sand Dunes
We had left from Leh early in the morning and our destination for the night was Hunder. But first, bigger things awaited a bunch of us travel and lifestyle bloggers. While we were nearing 5000m on the way to ‘the highest motorable pass in the world’, I felt dizzy with excitement; don’t know if it…
Spiti Valley in Winter : A Travel Guide
Winter Spiti Travel Guide Websites, blogs and travel guides on the internet might make one believe Spiti valley is inaccessible in the winters. For the adventurous soul, this might turn out to be the best time to visit Spitis. There are hardly any tourists around and one can have all of Spiti to themselves. Winter…
Offbeat Explorations in Leh
After detailed visits to the popular and worthy sites of Thiksey Monastery, Shey Palace, Leh Palace, Stok Palace, Namgyal Tsemo etc etc, I had an urge to know more about Leh. After all, a place on the old caravan route to Central Asia had to have more to it. In summer there were so many…
Tso Moriri Lake, Ladakh : A Travelogue
When you happen to visit a place multiple times, in different seasons; all the various memories and anecdotes start coming together. After two days of deliberation, I have finally decided to let go and and start this post. This has brought about a flood of nostalgia, those were the days when Tso Moriri was pure…
Life in Malana, In Photos
With centuries of history behind it, Malana certainly seemed intriguing. The initial look of the village hadn’t been inspiring at all, every home looked to be built in concrete and it felt like a dirty village. I have documented these experiences and more in Winds of change in Malana. I was quite keen on attending Malana…
Temple of ‘Divine Madman’ in Bhutan : Chimi Lhakhang
It had been a balmy evening in Punakha. Somewhere along the way, our guide Sangay had pointed out that next morning our walk to ‘The Fertility Temple’ would begin from a particular place. He also mentioned that the temple was made in memory of ‘The Divine Madman’. It had sure aroused my curiosity; for a…
A Mixed Experience – Mechuka in Arunachal Pradesh
It was my first trip to the Northeast in February 2017, and immediately someone had thrown up the name Mechuka at me (Also called Menchuka). I was told by my acquaintances in Guwahati to reach Dibrugarh and then make my way to Aalo (Along) and then Mechuka. As regular readers of Travelshoebum might know, planned…
