My trip to Ladakh, I must say, did not have a very good start. What with a sleepless night in the train, an early morning flight to Delhi that left me queasy, and a 12 hour bus journey to Manali that very night, that brought out all that I had eaten that day into a paper bag. No, it was not a very auspicious start.
We had to spend one day in Manali before leaving to Ladakh, for acclimatization, and so, we had the whole day in front of us for local sightseeing. We first went to see the famous hot springs, and were bitterly disappointed when we found that it was just an artificially collected pool of warm water, reeking with sweaty bodies. But the walk up and down proved to be quite entertaining. We met an old lady who had a rabbit with her that she lent for photographs; we had a nice time window shopping, looking at all the souvenirs on display, and of course, looking at the variety of people around us.
Next, we went to Solang valley, which turned out to be just another over-crowded disappointment. And then, I saw the boards offering paragliding services. After a long talk, I persuaded my dad to let me try it out, and finally, my mom, dad and I, all decided to jump the cliff!! After a long ride up the winch, and a rather tedious walk (or slide) down a very steep sandy path, we reached the launching spot. Geared up, I was tied to a professional who was to control the parachute while I enjoyed the view. As the wind blew our way, we ran towards the edge of the cliff before the wind hoisted us high up into the air. And what a sight it was!
Snow-capped mountains all around us, fir trees hugging the slopes of the valley, and the mighty Baga River flowing right below us- that is a sight that I will take to my grave. My dad however, was not lucky enough to jump, as the wind turned the wrong way, and it was time for my college registration.
Still exhilarated and giddy with the flight, I somehow managed to register for my courses. I went back to the hotel, licking my vanilla softy, finally feeling that the trip had taken a turn for the good.
Nice Picture !
Thank you aunty!! 🙂
I enjoy hearing about you trip and loved your photos. Thanks for visiting my blog. Hope you stop by again.
BE ENCOURAGED! BE BLESSED!
Will surely do!! Loved your blog too!! Thank you so much!! 🙂
You are incredibly spontaneous! I would have had to sit down with a cup of coffee and obsess over whether or not I “really” wanted to jump. That picture is worth a thousand words, and you get to keep every one of them for as long as you live.
~ Cara
No… not really spontaneous… Ive always wanted to do it… All my life… So just grabbed the opportunity!! And you are right about the pics!! 🙂 Thank you so much for stopping by…
Great photograph and post. That rabbit looks huge.
Yeah, it was pretty huge… And soft too!! 🙂 And thank you so much!!! 🙂
it seems that some very nice things did happen, especially powergliding! All will be wonderful memories that will not disappear!
They surely are memories that I will cherish for the rest of my life. 🙂
Some travel days end better than they began and yours ended beautifully. So glad you did the paragliding and I enjoyed your description of this once in a life time experience. Great photo.
Thank you so much!! 🙂
How very exciting! The picture is awesome . I am not sure I could have done that without the baggy that you talked about. I loved seeing the picture though and reading about your adventure. I am sure that you will do great in classes! Thank you for the follow and posting comment. I will return the favor and look forward to some wonderful post from you!
Thank you so much… And I am really looking forward to seeing your art works too!! 🙂
Thank you!! 🙂
Thank you for sharing your adventure. It’s quite well-written.
That rabbit is awesome!
Ha ha!! It was really soft and cute!! 🙂
Para Gliding. How absolutely brilliant. Soaring high above the world – like a beautiful bird. Virginia
It really is one moment that I will never, ever forget!! 🙂
A great post! That is the biggest (and most adorable) rabbit I have ever seen.
Thank you!! 🙂 And it certainly is the biggest rabbit I have ever seen too!!