The Ladakhi Voyage

Bronze Award participant Bhaswati Basumatry from Miles Bronson Residential School, Guwahati, completed her Adventurous Journey. Bhaswati is sharing her journey experience with us.

We twenty-five Bronsonians were sprouting with excitement when our IAYP Adventurous Journey trip destination was finally revealed. We were more than happy to travel to the land of the mountains, i.e., Ladakh. We were all thrilled when we boarded the Guwahati flight for Delhi on 10th of June, 2018. We stayed at Guwahati for a night and took the next morning flight to Leh.

Landing at Leh was a whole new experience! We and our two teacher escorts were in awe by the high altitude and knew that our adventure had actually begun. Our trip was in association with an organization called Thrillophilia, who let us stay at their premises for a day. We were strictly instructed to keep drinking water and rest for a whole day so that our body could adjust to the new environment and increased altitude. The next morning all were geared up to move towards Khardungla pass. Although we had to go through a lot of difficulties, we stayed strong and crossed the highest motorable road in the world. After Khardungla pass, we set off for Shey, where we had our lunch. It was an amazing experience while interacting with a new culture. We spent the night in a camp, under the organization Bikamp. The camping experience was great as it was set in a beautiful natural location. The next day, we had to go to Kargil. We went to the zero point and also visited the Kargil War memorial. We also visited the very peaceful Land Yuru. The overnight stay in Kargil was followed by our next morning trip to Srinagar. We had to travel the whole day. On finally reaching Srinagar, we spent the night on a houseboat in the Dal Lake. Staying in a boathouse was really intriguing as all the transports had to be done by boats. The beauty of the Dal Lake was too mesmerizing! The next day, we all went for a shikara ride, the main attraction of Srinagar. That very day, we had our flight to Delhi at around 3 p.m. We were very upset as we did not want to leave. We were all so attached to the beautiful land of Ladakh that when we boarded the Delhi flight, all went mum!

This trip made us realise that life is not easy. Hardships come, but surviving it depends on us, whether we want to run away or face it. Travelling to a height of 18000 feet above sea level was not easy, but we faced it. The IAYP trip has empowered us with a lot of learning lessons. Meeting new people and knowing their culture has given us a sense of satisfaction. Although we had to leave, the Ladakh memories will be forever cherished in our hearts.