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wooow

http://www.wired.com/wired/images.html? ... rail&img=1

http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/14.07/chinarail.html

The guy from Wired certainly bought the Chinese propoganda - shame on him - for the price of rail ticket.

" the restive province China has been trying to subdue for half a century." ..... WTF and the rest of the crap about tieing Tibet into the motherland . Tibet is an occupied country. There are some who still remember that it was how history was taught. Has the curriculum changed ?

This railway will now be the final coffin in the Tibetian culture.

Nico - thanks for pointing out the article.



TTFN

Jonathan

hi nico, jjs

yeah... read the article too... there's tons of politics in it...but the train ride is still good. That whole region is mind blowing (including northern india)

they have highest motorable roads also in the region... and some old train tracks through the mountians:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khardungla_Pass

must tell you this story - i was at 16k feet (khardungla pass) just few weeks before i landed in delft (Netherlands), below sea level.

regards,

Raja -

Went to Leh in 1984 - after kicking around Kashmir for the winter. Never went over Khardung La unless its on the main Leh Srinagar Road - but I think I would have remembered the height . As you say mind - blowing scenery and mind blowing overtaking manouvers, especially when overtaking the 3 mile long army convoys as they wound their way up and down to Zoji La and the other passes and around Kargil and Dras . Is this road now closed for tourists due to the terrorists? and everyone now goes in by the new Manali Road. I imagine a flight into Leh would be an exciting trip as well.

I need to learn to ride a horse and then go back and do a proper trek on horseback, into Zanskar - but I'll have to wait till my kids are older.

I must go back one day.


Jonathan

jjs wrote:The guy from Wired certainly bought the Chinese propoganda - shame on him - for the price of rail ticket.

" the restive province China has been trying to subdue for half a century." ..... WTF and the rest of the crap about tieing Tibet into the motherland . Tibet is an occupied country. There are some who still remember that it was how history was taught. Has the curriculum changed ?

This railway will now be the final coffin in the Tibetian culture.

Nico - thanks for pointing out the article.



TTFN

Jonathan

I do agree, I think this is the easiest way to get troops quickly over there if they feel the need, I think it ( they )should be left alone.

really bad landscape integration

P.

1984! It was really different then (even kashmir). I was there in Leh in 2001. And did fly into Leh. Flying was crazy too, Leh is right in the middle of the highest mountains. Google earth has very good res. images of Leh, you must see it with some tilt:
Latitude - 34°10'11.99"N
Longitude - 77°34'48.00"E

I dont remember of the road you mention, I heard of Manali route and flight, I might have overlooked it (or it was closed, wikipedia might have info). For Khardungla pass foreigners needed to register with local authorities. Don't know how it is now.

yep. must go back one day.

jjs wrote:The guy from Wired certainly bought the Chinese propoganda - shame on him - for the price of rail ticket.

" the restive province China has been trying to subdue for half a century." ..... WTF and the rest of the crap about tieing Tibet into the motherland . Tibet is an occupied country. There are some who still remember that it was how history was taught. Has the curriculum changed ?

This railway will now be the final coffin in the Tibetian culture.

Nico - thanks for pointing out the article.



TTFN

Jonathan

Agreed with every single word.

Raja

Thanks for reminding me about Google Earth - I spent all evening retracing my steps.

When I think back how so much was off limits, this satellite stuff must have alot of people worried.

I think the Srinager - Leh road was the only way in in 84. The Manali road was being made or may have just been completed for army engineers only. Anything north of Leh was certianly forbidden.

In 84 Kashmir was still at peace - previously I spent some time in Baramula and Sopore but they are not places I could safely visit again. I had previously spent a winter west of Srinager learning to ski at a ski school associated with the Indian Army Mountain Warfare school there. I have never been so fit or had so much to drink at the same time - the bottles of rum had labels on them " Not fit for Human Consumption" - they were meant for the pack mules !! but of course we drank them. Leh was a small little town and India had 600m people - now its 1billion so I can image its crowded in Leh now .



Jonathan

wow I am impressed... you guys are real adventurers... cool... well, I saw some reports on TV, I see that place is really beautiful... but not for me... ouch.... hehe...

going to shop groceries is an adventure for me... hehe..

I really agree about Thibet.... leave these people alone.... Damn chinese politics... all weirdos...

Herve - not adventurous really - in those days it was actually quite easy to get around - hail a taxi at Srinagar Bus station and ask "Kitna Paisa Leh?". He would think for a moment and give you a price and then off you would go. So the taxi driver is the adventrous one. I even had to give him my map and show hime the way to Leh - fortunately there was actually only one road and it was obvious that going off the road was a bad bad idea. As we left town he stopped to ring home and say he would be away for few days

The adventurous one is the nutter who is on his bike riding (See the wikipedia site) over those passes.


Herve - you should go - Ladhak was full of French, Belgiums and Swiss.

Jonathan

wired "reporter" is a shithead... what planet is he on??
such a simplistic and stereotypical way of seeing the world... just like the magazine.