First, I got the best shock of my life when I exited the airport and came out.I found myself engulfed in the midst of barren Trans-Himalayan Mountains.When you reach Ladakh, you are advised to give yourself a day or two to get acclimatized to the conditions, since it is extremely cold and you can barely breathe.A visit to the nearby Shanti Stupa in the tiny city cannot be missed, which is a Buddhist-themed, white-domed stupa built in 1991 and inaugurated by His Holiness The Dalai Lama.While back to our hotel late in the evening, a stroll through the main market of Leh introduces you to traditional Ladakhi artifacts, an array of shawls and stoles, variety of warm and furry woolens, age-old German bakeries, Tibetan refugee shops, Chinese traditional picks, to name a few.The next morning we set off for a tour to nearby places.The first on the list was the Hall of Fame museum.Constructed by the Indian Army, this museum is an ode to the bravehearts of the Army.Next stop on our anvil was Spituk Monastery, an 11th century monastery.Centuries-old Buddha statues and demon faces are present inside and various offerings in the form of juices, chocolates, biscuits and wafers are offered.It was then, time to visit the ‘Sangam’- that is the confluence of Indus and Zanskar rivers, flowing through the countries of Pakistan, India and China, situated in the midst of the cold desert on the Leh-Srinagar National Highway.Magnetic Hill was our next stop, which is just a couple of kilometers away from the ‘Sangam’.A big board in bright colors read :” Magnetic Hill-The phenomenon that defies gravity. Park your vehicle in the box marked with white paint on the road”.And as soon as you do that, the vehicle automatically begins to move inspite of keeping it on neural.After a scrumptious ‘langar’, we set off for the revered Leh Palace.It was a royal palace, constructed in 1600, and the royal family stayed there in the nine-storied palace.Ancient paintings, ornaments, crowns, dresses and mythological stuff can be found in the palace, which is located right in the middle of the town.My late evenings were reserved for the delicious pastries and bakery stuffs from the German bakeries, which have been operating since decades in Leh.So, the next morning it was time to embark on an extravagant journey to Nubra Valley.After a 2 hour drive, we reached Khardung-La Pass, which is the highest motorable road in the world.The place houses the highest café in the world and it is the highest pass of the world. On the way, one could find several small traditional eateries like ‘dhabas’. Maggi, thukpa, rajma-rice are the most famous meals one can get on the highway, which is closed for more than half a year owing to excessive snowfall. We reached Nubra Valley in the afternoon. In the evening, we went to see the Hunder Sand Dunes, located near the Nubra Valley, which holds the distinction of being one of the world’s and India’s only cold desert. A ride on the Bactrian or double-humped camels is mandatory since it is only found here. The sand dunes in the midst of barren mountain landscapes are a treat to the eyes. The contrast of Indus river, Nubra desert, Trans-Himalayan Range, snow-covered mountains are a full-package in one place. This is the place where Ladakh separates from the Karakoram range.Diskit Gompa, which is in Nubra itself was the first place we visited that day. It foresees a 32 meter statue of Maitreya Buddha facing down the Shyok River towards Pakistan. We had to get ready for a hectic next day to the marvellous Pangong Lake. The Pangong lake flows from India to Tibet.It is the highest saline water lake in the world and the hues of the lake changes from red to green to various shades of blue throughout.While returning to Leh from the lake, we stopped at the Chang-La Pass, which is the second highest pass of the world. Day 6 begun by a propitious visit to the Thiksey Monastery.It is claimed to be the largest monastery of central Ladakh.The Maiterya Buddha sits inside the 12-storied Monastery.Various century-old Buddhist scriptures,statues of deities and devils are common attractions there.