view from Thikse Monastery
After lots of traveling during the last few days, we were happy to spend a day in Leh getting ready for the last leg of our journey and visiting some of the city’s sights.
Leh was the capital of the Himalayan kingdom of Ladakh and consequently features some impressive palaces as well as superb monasteries and a beautiful old city centre. We started our tour at the magnificent Thikse Monastery. Resembling Tibet’s Potala Palace in style, the monastery was built in the 15th century AD and houses a 15 metre high statue of Maitreya. The view from its roof into the surrounding valley is spectacular! Afterwards, we visited Shey Palace, once the home of Ladakh’s rulers. We concluded the afternoon with a stroll through the old city centre of Leh with its many souvenir shops and the beautiful Central Asian Museum.
The next day saw us on the road again. Our destination was the remote Zanskar region, which we would reach only after driving for several days along narrow, bumpy roads.
Matt Travels 