This is Paradise
If you ask me what's my coziest place to sleep in today, I will staunchly and repeatedly say it's the Himalayas. The same question 4 years ago would have a completely different answer.
So what changed? Honestly, it's hard to put into words the tsunami of emotions at the first sight of these mountains. I was completely awestruck, gazing at the mountains, wishing the moment would never end. I can now define the view as my source of happiness, my place of calm and peace, a permanent frame in my mind palace. With all of this going on, it was a privilege to travel this enduring destination on earth called the Key Monastery.
Day 4 (not Thursday) of my Spiti Winter Expedition, I woke up at 4:30 AM like an insomniac peeking out of my blanket into the darkness while stirring my head in that dead silent dwelling room. Pin drop silence with pitch black all around, I just couldn’t go back sleep on this frosty morning. I did what any sane person would do, destroy this sense of calm and quiet with my phone.
My body has never had a problem bearing the cold to a greater extent, but this time it was a true test of endurance. My senses were numb and my sensory organs lost their function. I was numb holding my ice-cold phone struggling to navigate to the weather app for the temperature. Astounded to see the number -28°C, wiped my blurry eyes to confirm I wasn't dreaming and the numbers were in fact correct. Yes, -28°C and feels like -34°C. This explained my body being in shambles at my first experience in such low temperatures. Almost made me miss my cozy bed back home. It's natural to seek comfort in hard conditions, but this reminded me of a quote I read a long ago.
Don’t confuse comfort with happiness
With this quote to motivate me, I decided to step out. At this point, the thought itself was adventurous. Toiletry pouch bag in hand, down jacket on but barefoot, I stepped out bravely with the mobile flash. It was dead cold, every breath colder than the last, I felt iced out. Got some hot water from the landlord’s house and freshened up, every drop of warmth a blessing. But this sense of comfort was short-lived and I couldn’t stay out any longer. So back to homestay I rushed, and down on my bed for an hour or two, waiting for the sun to shine its warmth on these grateful fools, waiting for my comrades to awaken.
The sunrise was refreshing in itself, aside from the lovely breakfast, hot tea and instructions to move on to our next destination. The place we stayed at was a village called Kaza. It’s the hub to most of the destinations around at such an altitude. One can plan their stay here to visit places like Key Monastery, Spiti Valley, Kaza Monastery, Langza, Hikkim, Pin Valley, Chandratal Lake, Komic Village & many more.
While we were drawing towards the Key Monastery, our vehicle broke down. There was around 2 ft of snow accumulated on the trail and nobody was around to guide us on the conditions ahead. The team did a commendable job of coming out of the depth and putting spikes on wheels for our next odyssey.
We reached a dead end and the vehicle couldn't go any further. I was sitting on the first seat in the traveler and plunged into the ice to see the stunning landscapes with mountain walls around. Literally 360° snow all around the place and I was lost to its majesty. Our guide (Rahul Ji), who is my new friend from the mountains, told us that the destination is around 2-3 kilometer's from here and asked our group if we were comfortable to walk. My heart already answered yes before he could ask for my opinion. I was sure. no matter what, it will be the best me who comes out at the other end of this trail. With my adrenaline pumping, I walked unrhythmically, every step tougher than the last. Enduring the struggle against the snow, we reached the destination of this divine monastery. The gate at the entrance looked like the door to heaven, mesmerizing. Upon entering the gates, we see the history of the key monastery. The picture below should compensate for my lack of words.
