I am in Delhi en route to Bangalore from Ladakh

I am in Delhi en route to Bangalore from Ladakh

I am in Delhi en route to Bangalore from Ladakh.

I managed to get a plane ticket from Leh to Delhi for USD$175 on Jet Airways. The shortage of seats from two weeks ago has waned as the season has moved on. The plane was full but I passed from the waiting list onto a confirmed seat in a days time.

I booked another flight from Delhi to Bangalore on Jet Airways for USD$150. It was USD$134 but the price bumped up in the couple of hours between checking the price and booking the first ticket at the Jet Airways office.

It was hard to leave Ladakh. It is a beautiful place and the weather was really nice. The guesthouse owners and other residents there are very friendly and amenable to tourists. The tourists in general are very outdoor-oriented, booking treks and jeep safaris to monasteries and scenic areas. If they are guilty of anything it is of being goal-driven.

The security at the airport in Leh was very restrictive and redundant. It was also confusing. Rules were announced that no carry-on baggage of any kind was allowed; then laptops and cameras were allowed but without batteries; then digital cameras were not allowed at all. These announcements were made before and after passing through security and X-Ray scanners, requiring me to go back through security again after I was carrying laptop and camera with batteries.

We had a cloud ceiling at take-off. This was mildly disappointing, as on a clear day we could have seen the full extent of the Himalayas. As it was, though, we got to see the highest peaks poking through the cloud bank like rocky and icy islands in a sea of cotton. No digital cameras were allowed on the plane, so I only have my memory of it. Although my memory isn't great, it may be just as well, as sometimes I look at my photos and think, It sure looked a lot nicer than that....

I am in Delhi en route to Bangalore from Ladakh