Alex's Asian Adventure

It took a long time, but I now have (most) of my pictures on-line here. I took something like 1500 photos, and at last count there were 1421 pictures available there. They are sorted by the camera they came from (I had two) and then chronologically, with labels where practical. The photos taken with my digital camera are labelled better because I had the time & inclination to do this. The film photos are as-is from the film scan CD I received, which means they are not rotated into their proper orientation if I took a vertical shot. Sorry.

The usual boilerplate applies: these are my photos, they are my property and I'd be unhappy if someone turned around and started using them for profit without my consent. In other words, please do not print or distribute the pictures unless I say it's okay. If you like something and would like to have a print, email me and I'll be happy to help. The photos taken on 35mm film can be printed to enormous size without quality issues, and some of these shots are spectacular. The scans don't do these photos justice.

If you were on the trek with me, or you think I'd go so far as to call you a "friend", then you're welcome to high-quality prints of whatever you like. In fact, I'll even do all the legwork involved in printing and framing. It would make me extatic to know that other people are enjoying my photography in their homes. So don't be shy.

Here are a few highlights from the Zanskar trek:











This is merely a brief selection. There are more pictures. Some are better, some are worse. Have a look.

27 hours of travel between when I left my hotel in Delhi and when I arrived at home in Canada. 'nuff said.

Another day, more travel. I got up this morning, packed my crapola, and set off to Delhi. I originally wanted to visit Fatehpur Sikri, a big palace compound 40km from Agra, before heading back to Delhi. Unfortunately, this plan fell through because..... it's 40km from Agra, requires crossing into Rajastan and paying some other ridiculous tax, and I was tired of travelling everywhere. No Fatehpur Sikri this time.

Instead, Darminder & I set off to Delhi with stops at:

• Agra Fort
• Akbar's tomb at Sikandra
• A huge white marble yoga worship centre of some sort

Synposis:

• The Agra Fort is pretty cool, despite the fact that it's occupied by the Indian army and used for some mundane purpose other than tourism. Still, it's amusing to walk around it for an hour or so.
• Akbar's Tomb is set in a massive mausoleum that doesn't rival the Taj, but is impressive in its own right. The grounds are big, spacious, and crawling with monkeys. I like monkeys.
• This yoga worship place is the first place in India I see where no one accosted me, no one tried to offer me tourguide services for a fee, and everyone was super-friendly. Plus, it's absolutely gorgeous. It's nice to end your sightseeing on a high note.

I got an email from Richard (a trek-mate) pointing out that when he was at the Taj a few days ago, all that he could think about was how he'd rather be in the mountains. I can't disagree with that point of view at all. As much as seeing a Wonder of the World is nice, and as much as I think the Taj is special, it's still a building and you're enjoying it in sweltering, oven-like heat after paying an extortionary price by local standards. I'd also rather be in the mountains.

I am now in Delhi, sitting in the non-aircond part of my hotel where the computers are. Why can't they just A/C the whole damn place? I'm melting here. Tomorrow, I have to get up at the crack of dawn to go to the airport (Delhi's is about as appealing as O'Hare or JFK) and spend all day travelling. Not looking forward to it.

This was definitely a day of travel. Up at 5-ish, off to the airport 6-ish, flight to Delhi at 7:30. Then, jump into a car and drive to Agra to see the Taj Mahal. Lots of travel.

First things first: flying to Delhi. Whoever said that Tibet is over-militarized should visit Kashmir and specifically Leh's airport. I have never seen an airport with this much security. I'm not talking about rent-a-cops, either; the guards were soldiers with machine guns and rifles. In the middle of an airport terminal! Yikes.

Indian people seem to take airport security very seriously, with a strange exception. Despite the fact that they checked my carry-on twice, x-rayed my checked baggage, asked me to identify my bags before the luggage was loaded on the plane, took away the spare batteries from my camera (a security risk I think), and frisked me three times..... no one looked at my passport. I don't understand.

Anyway, the flight left on time, no problems. I enjoyed the views of Stok Kangri as we were taking off, knowing that it'll be a while before I see the peak first-hand again. Time to say goodbye to Ladakh, the magical Kingdom in the Sky.

I arrived in Delhi with not much fanfare. I was expect an airport pickup, which materialized in the form of..... Darmindar, the driver who took Katie & I to Manali in that infamous jeep ride from hell, complete with two punctured tires. He seemed happy to see me. I don't quite know why. We popped by his "office" (which is an apartment where he lives with his fellow drivers at Dhruv Travels) and the fine people there served me an Indian lunch. How nice. We then took off for Agra in Darmindar's car, accompanied by his Punjabi music .

You know you're in India when you see carts being pulled by camels. You know you're in India when you're approached by someone dragging a bear by a nose ring, offering to have the bear pose for pictures. You know you're in India when stepping outside the air-conditioned car feels a lot like stepping into an oven.

We got to Agra at around 4:30, and at 5-ish we (Darmindar driving, and a guide named Sanjay) headed to the Taj Mahal. Again, the treatment of tourists in India seems a little bit bizzare: they took away the head torch and braeth mints I had in my pack and had me pay 750 rupees admission (just shy of $20) when a local would pay 20 rupees. I don't mind paying a small premium, but 750 vs 20 is a bit excessive, I think. Whoever sets these prices clearly thinks that every foreigner is Mr. Western Moneybags. Grrrr....

Anyway, the Taj is breathtakingly beautiful. If you're not impressed by the architecture alone, then consider that the main buildings are built entirely of white marble, and decorated with inlaid stones from around the world. The entire Qur'an is represented as inlaid black opal on white marble on the various buildings. Nearly every visible bit of whtie marble is decorated with very intricate designs, all of which have a wonderful symmetry....

The Taj really must be seen to be believed, and I think deserves being called a Wonder of the World.

Tomorrow I'm heading back to Delhi for one night. Then, I'm going to suffer nearly 24 hrs of travel time on my way back to Canada. Waaaaaah!

At 9:45 AM on July 3rd, 2006 (India time) I reached the prayer flags on the 6123m summit of Stok Kangri, hugged Lobsang, and collapsed in the snow, exhausted. We took 6.5 hours to go from our camp to the top of the biggest peak in the area, and one of the biggest in Ladakh. You can do the math of when we left camp. Details of the climb coming... later. Summit pictures... now.

Part of the Stok Range, from the roof of my hotel in Leh. Stok Kangri is the big one on the right.

That's me on the summit, brandishing the dead-sexy piolet

Lobsang & I, on the summit

I should also mention that Stok Kangri, at 6123m, is higher than the highest in Canada (Mt. Logan, 5959m) and is only a hair shorter than the highest in North America (Denali, 6195m).