Puh to Kaza. The Journey Continues..
We had gone through quite a day so far. Kaza was our destination for the night and we were running behind time. it was past 5 pm now and we had another 60-70 minutes of daylight left.
Our pace picked up quite a bit as with the Taxi Innovas at our heels. We all stopped at Sumdo Check Post and i hurriedly had our entries noted into the register.
Hunger pangs had also hit us as we hadn't really eaten today. The trusty car kettle was pulled out and hot water poured into Cup Noodles for a quick and tasty snack. A dessert of Dairy milk chocolate renewed our energy and we sped on into the evening.
I was hoping that Karanbir at Hotel Deyzor had been called by Tenzin for our rooms as he had promised. I did not want to get into Kaza too late as that would mean that there would be no one to ask for directions to the hotel. It was cold now and people don't take kindly to late evening knocks on their doors..
The Journey continues..
The landscape gets very stark and Moonlike..Kaza is over 60 kms away still and that could easily mean two more hours
The stark landscape with hardly any traffic..i was missing trees already
It was like being on another planet
Shalkar in the distance..ahead lay Sumdo, Hurling, Tabo, Attarago and Kaza...our halt for tonight!
As the sun set it begin to get colder..the views were excellent though
Lari village in the distance
Then the sun broke through the clouds and the Valley took on an etheral quality.. It triggered a teenage memory. "Roja" played in my mind.
We just had to stop to take in the views..it was worth being late to stop and absorb the beauty around us. The wind had picked up and whistled in my ears..
We moved ahead and soon Tabo came into view. Tabo also has many Hotels and homestays as there is a famous Monastery here. We thought about staying here but decided to carry on to Kaza and our Hosts at Deyzor Hotel who i hoped were going to wait for us.
We entered Tabo
Tabo Monastery (or Tabo Chos-Khor Monastery is located in the Tabo village of Spiti Valley. It was founded in 996 CE in the Tibetan year of the Fire Ape by the Tibetan Buddhist lotswa (translator), Rinchen Zangpo (Mahauru Ramabhadra), the king of western Himalayan Kingdom of Guge. Tabo is noted for being the oldest continuously operating Buddhist enclave in both India and the Himalayas. A large number of frescoes displayed on its walls depict tales from the Buddhist pantheon.There are many priceless collections of thankas (scroll paintings), manuscripts, well-preserved statues, frescos and extensive murals which cover almost every wall. After the earthquake of 1975, the monastery was rebuilt, and in 1983 a new Du-kang or Assembly Hall was constructed. It is here that the 14th Dalai Lama held the Kalachakra ceremonies in 1983 and 1996. The monastery is protected by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) as a national historical treasure of India.
Tabo village was quiet
Tabo bridge was crossed around 6 pm..Kaza was still almost 50 kms away and this could mean 2 hours or more if the road was really bad..
This mountain reminded me of mount Kailash
We all stopped as Chandni wanted to take over from Abhimanyu..One must always pass with these structures on our Right. It is the custom here and when in Rome..
Obelix in full glory
Soon after we were on our way..the roads were no different from before and we picked up the pace. Billowing clouds of dust announced our advance
Maybe not ancient but still got my attention..like a lonely sentinel it stood its ground.
This traditional architecture of the area is sadly giving way to ugly tin roof structures. Gaurav quoted someone famous and said
"Progress is a wonderful thing..if only it would stop"
The river flowed in the deep valley below us
Felt like we entering some forbidden gates
The headlight lit up the road ahead and the fading rays of the Sun reflected off the river which flowed serenely by us
It was getting dark fast..the sun was losing its daily battle..
We sped on..
When we finally got to Kaza it was almost half past 7:00 and dark.
Not only was it night but Kaza had not had power for 2 days. Finding the Hotel in this would prove to be a tough task.
We came to a fork in the Road. There was a sign that said Kaza with an arrow to the left
We took the road to the Left and below and entered Old Kaza..
The roads became really narrow now and we made our way through twisted almost villlage like roads between houses.
This could not be the right way i wondered. It was like being in a small colony of old Delhi with Narrow lanes and T junctions.
I remembered that Tenzin had told me that Deyzor is near the BSNL office and we asked the first Taxi we saw.
He told us to carry on up the road and make a left at the T junction. This would lead us to the highway and we would soon see a road to our left with a sign for the BSNL office.
We followed his instructions and went through some narrow twisted roads and even a small water crossing which looked forbidding in the dark.
A Maruti Van approached from the front and the driver beckoned me to carry on.. we crossed it without drama. He again guided me toward the BSNL office and soon we were on the main highway again.
I realized that if we had taken the Right Turn at the Fork and gone up the froad and not Down to the left side we would have ended up here without any fuss. Infact the next day it took less than 7 minutes to reach the same Fork again as we went into Kaza Market!
Within minutes we saw a Petrol pump and then a cut to the left and a sign with a left pointing arrow that read.. "Hotel Deyzor"
A collective sigh of relief greeted this development. Hot food, WiFi a place to rest and recoup..
When we got to Deyzor at about 8 pm just down the road it was in complete darkness. A couple of candles flickered inside and as our two cars stopped outside the wood and glass door opened and a friendly bearded face came into view.
He smilingly said he had been expecting us hours ago..but not to worry and that our rooms were not given away.
We entered the lobby cum restaurant and saw his friends and American wife at the round table chatting and having dinner.
Everyone turned around to say hello and the four of us took a table as we were all famished and wanted to eat.
Karanbir told us his staff was gone for the night as there was a cultural programme in town but not to worry as he had already summoned them back. In the meanwhile we would decide what to order and go through his superb selection on the Menu card.
A lot more candles were lit and the room along with our moods brightened up. We played Uno while we waited and had hot Coffee to warm up
Soon the cooks arrived and we had a hearty meal of Bruschettas, Mushroom Spaghetti, Salads and Pizza. Dessert was chocolates again.
We soon retired to our large rooms with clean linen and comfortable large beds.. My torch light lit up an inscription on the wall..
I smiled and fell asleep to the sound of Karanbir and his friends laughing and chatting in the restaurant below us.
It had been a long and satisfyingly adventurous day. This was what i had come here for.