The road that leads to Spiti Valley (III)

This article is part of the series ‘The road that leads to Spiti Valley‘.

Finally! Spiti it is !!

I’m as much excited to write this post and share the captivating pictures with fellow travelers and readers. The best part about the ‘Road Trip to Spiti Valley‘ is that the surrounding views change in every few minutes leaving you with a feeling of surprise and appreciation for nature.

The 10 day long enduring road trip that we did to Spiti Valley seemed totally worth once we crossed Nako!!! From the Kinnaur route, one enters Spiti Valley via Sumdo.

Heading to Tabo!!

The road is a bit rock strewn at intervals but mostly it’s a smooth ride. In April’16, lot of work was going on the roads till Tabo, I’m assuming by now the roads must be in perfect condition.

Wondering what to do in Tabo village, just check out ‘Totally Tabo -ed‘, a detailed post on visit to Tabo Village!!!

Tabo, here we come!!!

Road to Dhankar, Spiti. This route happens to be my favorite, the landscape views of ice capped mountains in combination with chocolate hills and Spiti River flowing by, so divine!!!

Doorway to Heaven (II)

What a beautiful place for a temple door to be located!!! Perched on top, seems to transpose you directly into the lap of gorgeous Himalayas 🙂

This shot was captured at Kalpa, Kinnaur en route to ‘Road Trip to Spiti Valley‘. You can check out more heavenly pictures here – ‘Himalayan range at Kalpa‘

Happy Exploring!!!

So TRUE!!!

This beautiful saying by the 14th Dalai Lama has so much depth!!! The spiritual leader in exile escaped to India in 1959 and settled in Dharamshala, India. Dalai Lama has continued the fight for freedom. Read more about his capital in exile here – A rendezvous with History

Vibrant Tibetan prayer flags adorning the Kinner Kailash Range, this captivating picture was captured at Kalpa, Kinnaur, catch more pictures of this majestic town here, you won’t regret it, I bet!!! – Resplendent Himalayan Range

Travel Sickness :(

Travel Sickness is defined as a condition in which visually perceived movement and the vestibular system’s sense of movement are at disagreement. In simpler form, it is the feeling you experience when the motion you sense with your inner ear is different from the motion you visualize resulting in diverse signals sent and received by the brain. Travel sickness is more commonly known as motion sickness and also referred as sea / car / air sickness. In medical terms, the sickness occurs when the inner ear, the eye, and other areas of the body that detect motion send conflicting messages to the brain. One part of your balance – sensing system (your inner ear, vision, and sensory nerves) indicates that your body is moving, while the other parts do not sense motion.

If you experience feeling of sickness while traveling, it’s going to be associated with dizziness, fatigue, queasiness, breathlessness.

The easy way to tackle is – sucking a lemon, orange, peppermint candy, ginger and cardamom.

There are medicines available, so you can pop a pill every time (I use Diamox) but that doesn’t sound like a long term solution of the problem. If the intensity of your travel sickness is huge then reflect on other ways of eliminating the issue.

LOVE :)

♥♥I captured this beautiful and timeless ‘Father-Son’ moment at Sarahan. The lovely trail luxuriant with lush greens make it all the more captivating!!! Ashish and Aayansh are love of my life ♥♥, it’s my humble attempt to pen down a parent’s emotion.

Don’t miss the gorgeous pictures of this town here – Abode of Goddess Bhimakali

Cheers, ♠ Untraveled Routes ♠

 

Totally Tabo-ed!!!

Visiting the Ajanta of Himalayas -Tabo Village

Tabo (Ta- pho) is situated at a wobbly altitude of 3050 meters in the eastern region of Spiti Valley. The tiny divine village will catch your fancy for all the right reasons.

Visit to Tabo was part of our road trip to Spiti Valley. Spiti is one awe-inspiring region that houses few of the greatest surviving monuments of Tibetan art and culture. Historically, Spiti Valley is believed to be part of the Kingdom of Western Tibet.

Glimpse of captivating Tabo village

It seemed as if the incredible road trip had surprises in store for us at every corner. The vast expanse of land,  flawless empty roads, and the Spiti River flowing by, filled us with happiness and wonder for nature. We were already in different world, albeit tired of all the driving throughout the day. Once we reached Tabo, the gigantic and colorful entrance re-energized us, the feel of this small settlement was so contagious!!!

That evening we settled in our rooms, gazing at the bright stars and stunning moon, excited about the next morning.

We started our day early, 5 minutes brisk walk and we were standing right outside the majestic temple complex of ‘ Tabo Chos-khor Monastery’. We had no idea what to expect. Though we had visited monasteries earlier too in Mcleodganj and Manali this one felt so different. (Explore Mcleodganj)

The premises were covered by mud structures crafted beautifully to form particular shape, as we entered the main temple, intrigued and curious , we just kept gazing at the temple!!! The main complex is manifestation of eternal Indo-Tibetan art and culture.

“For those who are tired from the long journey; and for all beings,
witnesses of misery
that have been abandoned by friends and relatives;
this beautiful temple has been constructed.”
(Inscription inside gTug-Lha-kang of Tabo Gompa, Source – Petervanham.com)

Tabo Monastery was built in 996 AD (more than a millennium back!!) covering about 6,300 sq. m , it’s one of the oldest surviving monasteries in the world.

⇒ The Tabo Gompa is second in importance only to the Tholing Gompa in Tibet in the entire Himalayan region.

⇒ The monastery was founded by the king of western Himalayan Kingdom Guge.

⇒The monastery has preserved the Tibetan art, culture and artifacts over passages of time. It houses treasured collection of manuscripts, thangkas (Buddhist scroll paintings), statues in stuccos, frescos and murals depicting tales from the Mahayana Buddhist Pantheon.

⇒The walls are decorated with beautiful paintings. There are 36 huge clay statues adorning different mandalas.

The monastery also serves as one of the greatest establishments for Buddhist history studies and academic activities. This monastic complex is a national historic treasure of India.

Construction of new monastery complex under progress at Tabo, Spiti Valley

 

The temple complex is a national historic treasure of India and protected as such by the Archaeological Survey of India. The monastery complex holds 9 temples, 23 chortens, a monk’s chamber and an extension that houses the nuns chamber. There is accommodation available for travelers as well.

 

The serenity and purity of the complex is indescribable.

You can read in detail about the temples inside complex here – Aarogya.com. You might like to read – Reaching Spiti Valley

Cheers, Untraveled Routes ♥♥

Different Shades of Mountains

Mesmerizing and captivating nature captured in evening hours in a little town called Sangla, Himachal Pradesh during our road trip to Spiti Valley. To know more visit ‘An epic road trip to Spiti Valley‘.

 

Traveling with a Baby!!!

This is part of the new segment on our blog – Beyond Untraveled Routes

Preparing for the arrival of a new life is an ecstatic time for soon to be parents. Right from the happy news, regular follow-up checkups, medicines, preparing for the D-day and welcome of the baby into his abode for life are times to be cherished forever.

Post baby, all the equations in life change drastically including traveling. Every little thing needs to be planned around the baby to ensure his / her comfort and happiness. No parent wants to mess up even tiniest of the things!! Being a first time mom I totally know the feeling!!!

Our incessant love and zeal for travel couldn’t keep us off the roads for a very long time, so we had one memorable journey during my pregnancy. And once our little love arrived, we continued our exploration spree and baby had his very first road trip at the tender age of 3 months and has been traveling since!

We call our little bundle of joy – Aayansh (meaning a source of life).

I’m really glad to share my experiences and tips with the parents because I know first time parents are kind of apprehensive about ‘Traveling with a baby’.

Memories from the Jaisalmer Road Trip

Miles & miles of incessant desert, golden hills, charming folk culture and herds of Camels everywhere, these peculiar elements set apart Jaisalmer. Visiting Jaisalmer was always a fascination and part of our really long list!!!

Finally we planned a trip to Jaisalmer, Rajasthan in Oct’14.This road trip is special because I was traveling in my first trimester 🙂 with little anxiousness and excitement too!!

Jaisalmer lies in the Southwestern Rajasthan and Southern part of the Great Indian Desert.

The Great Indian Desert or The Thar Desert is a large, arid region of rolling sand hills located partly in Rajasthan state, northwestern India, and partly in Punjab and Sindh provinces, eastern Pakistan.

Enjoy complete walk through of the Road Trip here.

 

Super Seven things about Spiti Valley :) :)

Traveling to Spiti? Things you must know, before you go!!

Spiti Valley is one incredible destination that offers variety to your travel experience in myriad ways. The road trip, the distance, the desert valley, the warm culture will evoke emotions never felt before !!!

Though the journey to Spiti is challenging, the good part is that mostly necessary stuff is available at intervals, you will encounter markets while crossing small towns and you will find food, snacks, milk, pay phone and other important things you might need. You will not find any food joints / dhabas / hotels for long stretches of the journey hence it is advisable to carry some munching stuff to keep hunger pangs at bay.

Landscape view of Spiti Valley while on the way to Kibber Village #UntraveledSpiti

Wherever you go, it’s good to do research and have critical information handy, so here we share the first hand information and our experiences that will certainly help before/while planning a road trip to the wonderland called Spiti Valley. Read How to reach Spiti Valley