With its monasteries, pristine lakes and rugged terrain, actor Karan Grover found the road to solace in Ladakh
If you ask TV star Karan Grover to describe mountainous Ladakh — he has only three words, “Heaven on earth!” That the local folk recognised him from his television show in a faraway land, 3,500 metres above sea level and had him grinning is quite
another story!
In rocky Leh
Karan took the morning flight to Leh from Delhi with his pals, the start of their nine day trip. They checked into a small, ‘non-touristy’ hotel and spent time trying to get acclimatised. “I had heard so much of the place but really, nothing prepares you for the stark beauty of the place,” he admits.
Since he loves driving holidays, he rented a 4X4 and drove around. “I went to the Shanti Stupa (a Buddhist religious monument), then the beautiful Leh Palace. It’s so lovely to see the little local kids who come running to meet you when you go
visiting. I have to also say Leh is a spiritual place with lots of prayer flags on almost every roof. And the sound of a single gong resonates through the air, lending it a very spiritual feel,” he explains.
Pangong Lake
Apart from the trekking and driving, adventure also beckoned in the form of a tented overnight trip to the Pangong Lake. “It’s so serene, virtually an inland sea as it’s 50 km long. Due to the cloud cover, the blue and green colours of the water keep changing. And, only a quarter of the lake is in India and the rest in China,” he says.
The night under the stars was something he’ll always remember. “Our local cook prepared a herbal tea and as it got windier I thought my tent would fly off,” he laughs.
Nubra and Khardungla
What delighted Karan was to use his new wide lens view camera at the next stop — Khardungla, the highest motorable road in the world. “We drove about five hours from Leh to get there. The roads were mostly winding and since the cold had set in, we actually drove through almost walls of ice. The route didn’t scare me, the cold did,” he laughs. Then came a surprise. “At one point I had my woollies on and then suddenly the landscape changed. I came to a sandy zone and had to get onto a camel! So where earlier I was in my thick sweater I now came down to my T-shirt and jeans...it was amazing! I couldn’t help but marvel at the
topography,” he says.
Souvenir time
A Ladakhi jute bag for Rs45 and an agarbatti stand is what he carted back. “But more than all that are the memories of my trip. I hope to go back soon, this time maybe I’ll get adventurous and bike it up from Mumbai,” he says.
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