‘The light of the Himalayas’
Leh is a place that’s all too easy to fall in love with. Set amidst the epic Himalayas, Leh is the joint capital and largest town of the union territory of Ladakh in India. The magic of Leh will beckon you year after year and leave you still wanting more. The moon-like landscapes, desert mountains with splashes of green and snow peaks, monasteries and stupas make you feel far removed from this world.
Dotted with stupas and whitewashed houses, the old town is dominated by a dagger of steep rocky ridge topped by an imposing Tibetan style palace and fort. Beneath; the bustling bazaar area is draped in a thick veneer of tour agencies, souvenir shops and tandoori pizza restaurants, but a web of lanes quickly fans out into a green suburban patchwork of irrigated barley fields.
There are several attractions for tourists around Leh but the ones loved and captured by our traveler are:
GATA LOOPS: It is the name of sharply winding and precipitous ascent in a steep and narrow zig-zag road nestled in the western Himalayas. This roller coaster ride is a series of 21 hairpin bends that take you to the top of Nakeela La. Its many twists turns and narrows can pose a challenge to even the most experienced drivers. It is considered as one of the tourist attractions of Leh-Manali highway because of its stunning location, breathtaking scenery around it and the difficult ascent involved to reach the top.
HALL OF FAME, LEH: Hall of Fame is a museum located on the Leh-Kargil road, near the Leh airfield, about 4km from the city. It is constructed and maintained by the Indian Army as a reminder of the great sacrifices made by our soldiers who laid down their lives defending the motherland in the Indo-Pak Wars.
The museum remains open from 9 am to 1 pm and from 2 pm to 7 pm. The entry ticket is 25 rupees and if you want to do photography, you need to pay an additional 50 rupees.
 
REZANG LA WAR MEMORIAL: Located a few kilometers after the town of chushul, the Rezang La memorial was created in the remembrance of the brave soldiers of 13 Battalion of Kumaon Regiment, deployed under the leadership of Major Shaitan Singh, during the 1962 Indo-China War.
To visit the memorial, a permit issued by the DC office is necessary for the Indian nationals as it is restricted due to the line of actual control. Whereas foreigners are not allowed at all.
Apart from these, Leh is full of many other attractions like Jama Masjid, Leh Palace, Magnetic Hill, Sand dunes of Hunder, Shey monastery, Spituk monastery, etc.
Leh is connected via National Highway 1D to Srinagar in the southwest and Manali in the south via the Leh-Manali Highway. The highways are open for traffic from June to late October. To make the best out of this trip, you should prefer to travel by personal motorbikes or 4 by 4 jeeps. Many taxis are also available from Srinagar and Manali. There are many budget-friendly hotels and homestays in Leh.
The whole journey is so splendid and breathtaking that you will start feeling like you are in a remote wonderland; that’s the beauty of this place.
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