kazakhstan’s natural wonders where lakes, canyons, and a dune meet

Posted on October 14, 2024 by Rama Arya

Kazakhstan, the world’s ninth largest country, is not all golden steppe land. The country boasts some of the most incredible geographical wonders as well, especially in its southern recesses.

Accessible from the country’s former capital Almaty, they consist of an eclectic array of lakes and canyons which would leave even the most jaded traveller starry-eyed. Yes, they are that beautiful. To ensure they stay beautiful, they are protected under the UNESCO national network of biosphere reserves.

Unless you have the luxury of unlimited time in the country, along with your own transport, it would not be possible to strike them all off a bucket list. Do not even try!

Those that are accessible, not because of any seamless public transport, but rather courtesy of a handful of day trips, are luckily the best of the lot.

When it comes to lakes, Lake Kaindy, literally meaning both ‘birch tree’ lake and ‘landslide’ wins hands down. And it is not simply for its scenic beauty with bare birch tree trunks rising from deep turquoise-blue waters as a result of yes, you guessed right, a landslide. It also trumps the popularity list because of the adrenalin-filled journey needed to reach it.

This comes in the form of a hair-raising offroad adventure across rivers and boulders in Soviet-era vans accompanied with loud Russian rap, followed by a steep downhill walk to the lake’s shores. You could of course just hike the whole way or take a horse ride, but naa, that would be so tame.

Continue reading →

travel diaries: the caucasus and talysh mountains

Posted on August 26, 2024 by Rama Arya

Mountains come in all shapes, sizes, and colours in Azerbaijan. 🙂

Dear Diary,

After exploring the Himalayas and Hindu Kush in recent years, I thought I knew it all about mountains. Those soaring peaks on our earth which reach out to the heavens. Could I be further from the truth. I instead learnt, whilst in Azerbaijan, that every mountain range has its own soul. Even if they happen to be geographically right next to each other.

During my 2-week stay, I travelled into the very inner recesses of the Greater Caucasus Mountains in the country’s north, the Lesser Caucasus Mountains in the west, and the Talysh Mountains in its south-east. And was always, both equally charmed and awed.

Though most travellers focus their Azerbaijan travels to the capital Baku, and the much-touted Absheron Peninsula which surrounds it, a mere few hours on impeccable roads takes one to pristine mountain landscapes and towns curled up in the lap of nature.

I thought I would collate some highlights from those days. For posterity’s sake. Continue reading →

the road less travelled: azerbaijan’s unusual villages

Posted on August 5, 2024 by Rama Arya

In just five to six hours, one can traverse across Azerbaijan’s length or breadth, crossing nine of the world’s 11 climatic zones along the way. And whilst at it, you would most likely not pass another soul.

Of Azerbaijan’s population amounting to just over 10 million, almost half of these live and work in the capital city Baku and the surrounding Absheron peninsula. The rest of the country is deserted. A tiny village tucked away in a forest-canopied valley or perched on a mist-wrapped mountain is as busy as it gets, apart from a handful of administrative and historical towns.

Nature is at its most magnificent on these stretches, free of exploitation for commercial gains and plastic waste. It is a setting which has also created some of the world’s most unique villages.

Take for instance Lahij, a thousand-year-old Persian village on the southern slopes of the Greater Caucasus Mountains. Unable to find suitable building material, the villagers created an entire settlement of homes and roads with river boulders. Over the centuries they also developed copper handicrafts of exquisite workmanship. It is a craft that is still practiced by its residents and has been listed in UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Then there are the villages in Lerik district in the foothills of the Talysh Mountains in south-east Azerbaijan where centenarians are the norm. Home to some of the oldest people that have ever lived on earth, the Talysh people, also of Persian descent, can be seen working on their fields and grinning cheerfully way into their hundredth birthday. At 90, they would be quick to exclaim that they still felt incredibly young!

If Lerik is about villagers renowned for their longevity, Khinalig high up in the Greater Caucasus range is the oldest inhabited village in the world—historians place it at 5,000 years. Its semi-nomadic villagers travelling between pastures have their own language, possess a distinct genetic make-up, and till recently had no contact with the rest of the world. Together with the mountains encircling it, the village and its inhabitants are a UNESCO-listed World Heritage Site.

Fascinating, isn’t it? Here are some more insights into these villages and their incredible secrets on the road less travelled, this time in the mountains of Azerbaijan.

Oh, and when on that road, don’t forget to have a qutab and chai from one of the many eateries nestled deep in dark lush forests. 😊 Continue reading →

kullu manali and their 11 loadstones

Posted on July 8, 2024 by Rama Arya

Loadstone: Noun. A person or thing that is the focus of attention or attraction. In aplenty. In other words—Kullu and Manali.

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Two of India’s most popular hill stations’ names are often taken in the same breath. Even though they are separated by some 40-odd kilometres.

Welcome to Kullu Manali. Two towns located on the verdant Kullu valley in India’s Himachal Pradesh with the ice-blue Beas river gurgling past them.

Free of a colonial overprint, or the culture and faith of an invading ruler, these two towns have in the past, as well as today, continue to epitomize Himachal history, traditions, and heritage. In all its unadulterated richness.

Gods are in abundance here, and so are centuries-old beliefs. The lines between mythology and mundane reality are blurred with characters from the epics Mahabharata and Ramayana popping up everywhere. Ancient sages, mythical heroes, demons, and the proverbial Noah [in Hinduism’s case Manu] who set forth from his ark to kick-start the lineage of mankind. They are all somehow associated with the Kullu valley which has earned itself the moniker ‘Valley of Gods.’

There’s also tall graceful fir trees, rivers fed by melting glaciers punctuated with hot water springs, and wooden homes which have housed many a generation of pahari [mountain] folks inside their weathered walls.

You will need at least a few days to get acquainted with Kullu and Manali’s sites. Hotels and taxis are easily available. Let me not go into them here. Rather let this post be a roadmap of what makes these two towns attract pilgrims and tourists in their droves, always. ❤ Continue reading →

part 3: the spiti trilogy: lahaul, the mystical side of life and himachal

Posted on July 1, 2024 by Rama Arya

Prayer flags at Kunzum Pass. Because the gods live in the mountains.

Welcome to part 3 of my photo diary trilogy on Kinnaur, Spiti, and Lahaul, high up in the Himalayas in India’s Himachal Pradesh.

If Kinnaur is all about the lush flourishing side of living, and Spiti the very opposite—about its barrenness, then Lahaul is the natural outcome of going through both sides of life. It is of tuning in with one’s inner self. I guess you could simply also describe it as meeting one’s Maker.

Here in Lahaul, Buddhist chants echo from monasteries perched atop peaks. Lakes contain deities and so do mountain passes. There is the sacred everywhere, and it is celebrated with much joy.

I would like to share my journey through Lahaul valley with you here. Maybe its magic captures your heart and soul too. 🙂

Continue reading →

part 2: the spiti trilogy: spiti, the barren side of life and himachal

Posted on June 24, 2024 by Rama Arya

Buddha statue in Langza Village. Because the gods live in the mountains.

Welcome to part 2 of my photo diary trilogy on Kinnaur, Spiti, and Lahaul.

This week’s post is about Spiti, a cold desert biosphere in the rain shadow area of the Himalayas bordering Tibet. India’s monsoons do not reach here. Even if they do manage to squeeze their way past the soaring peaks, all they are able to muster is a drizzle. The summers are always dry. The winters are covered in thick snow and ice.

None of which is conducive to agriculture except if carried out on the banks of the Spiti river. The land is otherwise brown and barren, its moonscapes strewn with sand and boulders. Nestled in this arid bleakness are countless ancient monasteries, bedecked and bejewelled with Tibetan Tantric Buddhist iconography. These pockets of sanctity serve as places of refuge, giving strength and meaning beyond a difficult life.

Come along with me to Spiti.

Continue reading →

part 1: the spiti trilogy: kinnaur, the verdant side of life and himachal

Posted on June 17, 2024 by Rama Arya

Sangla valley—Sangla means ‘Pass of Light’ in Tibetan language. Because the gods live in the mountains.

I have always seen myself as an ocean person. I love the rhythm of crashing waves, the smell of salt in the sea air, the white foam breaking into froth around my feet, and tugging me along as it leaves.

And then I went to the Lahaul and Spiti valleys and everything changed inside of me. I became a mountain soul. Those who have been there will understand what I mean.

The Lahaul and Spiti district in India’s northern state of Himachal Pradesh is one of the most beautiful places I have travelled to. Remote and untouched, its offroad route is accessed through neighbouring Kinnaur district if coming in from the Shimla side. When exiting, it continues to Manali to form a loop. Kinnaur and Lahaul are both verdant and green. Sandwiched between them, Spiti, in stark contrast, is a high mountain barren desert perched on the soaring Himalayan range, wild and windswept.

Starting with today, I will be posting a photo diary trilogy of Kinnaur, Spiti, and Lahaul over the coming three weeks. Care to join me and let your soul fall in love with the mountains too? ❤

Note: Lahaul and Spiti used to be two separate districts and were merged into one in 1960. For the purpose of this trilogy, they are treated separately because of their geographic distinctiveness.

Continue reading →

the road less travelled: delft island

Posted on April 29, 2024 by Rama Arya

Forty kilometres off the northern coast of Sri Lanka, is its farthest island—Delft.

It is an unusual name to come across for a tropical island in the Indian Ocean. After all, there is not much in common between the bleached island and the picture postcard region in Netherlands where white glazed pottery with blue decorations have been historically made. The 18th Century Dutch colonial rulers obviously felt differently; for them it was a perfect fit for their new home. Perhaps a gentle reminder of their roots in faraway lands.

Remote and sparsely populated, Delft is the largest island in the Palk Strait which separates Sri Lanka from the Indian subcontinent. Eight kilometres wide and 5.5 kilometres long, it is not just its name which is out of the ordinary. Delft Island used to be a coral reef in the distant past as revealed by the petrified coral chunks strewn on its emerald green beaches. Sans any streams, potable water is limited to catchment areas for surface water and a few pockets of ground water.

Despite these challenges, 1,300 Tamil Christian and Hindu families call the island their home today; their houses clustered around compounds in the north. Empty, windswept scrublands meanwhile stretch out in the south, right up to the rugged charred coastline. Continue reading →

travel diaries: hiking through the horton plains

Posted on April 22, 2024 by Rama Arya

There is a deafening silence as I enter the Horton Plains in the wee hours of the morning. Above me, the silver sun is still trying to find its way back into the sky. It is not an easy task.

A thick blanket of mist and cloud engulf me, the golden blades of montane grass, and the sand-spattered 3.5-billion-year-old Precambrian-era boulders. Every now and then a slight drizzle kisses my upturned face. I peer through the mist, strain my ears for another human sound. A footstep, laugh, threads of a conversation. All I can hear is my own breath. I look at my phone. There is no signal. Continue reading →

travel shorts: hill country—nuwara eliya to ella by train

Posted on April 15, 2024 by Rama Arya

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Most travellers are of the opinion that the only real way to see Sri Lanka is by train. And that of all the rail journeys through the sparkling tropical island, the most beautiful is the one from Nanu Oya [near Nuwara Eliya] to Demodara [near Ella] in the heart of ‘hill country.’ They are not wrong. 🙂

Built in the mid-19th Century by the British colonizers, the train’s primary purpose for the longest time was to transport crates of tea leaves and coffee from the mist-wrapped estates to Colombo Port. The segment from Nuwara Eliya, a colonial town, to Ella, a village steeped in Hindu mythology, is a tourism institution of sorts today. Continue reading →