How often would you find a perfect photo opportunity walking in front of you? It happened to me in Nubra Valley on my way back to Leh.
Click on any of the images for a larger view
I was driving through the valley on a long straight road being freshly constructed with the tar on it totally black. And I saw two lamas, or Buddhist monks, walking on this road. I had left the last sign of any human settlement many miles back, and there wasn’t any for many more. So where were these lamas coming from and going to? They must have been walking forever.
Anyhow, the lamas walking on this flat road in the valley with the peaks rising all around in the distance made for a delightful composition. The white clouds coming in a deep blue sky made for the perfect contrast. As did the white gravel against the black road. Would you agree with it being one of those photos that have everything right about them?
It was also very timely – within a few moments of my taking the shot, the lamas hailed a passing bus and hopped on to it.
A little ahead, I met a few women workers cleaning the road with brooms made of leaves. It was interesting watching them at work – they seem to be working more in a slow sing-song fashion as if out for a dance rather than work. My guess is they had been employed under the central Government’s National Rural Employment Guarantee Act.
When I asked them for permission to take their pictures – usually a good idea when shooting women – they were excited but had a condition: they wanted printed copies of the pictures. There was no way I could do so here. I offered to post these and they gave me an address – but it sounded hopelessly incomplete. It would just get lost in the Indian postal system. I certainly hope to go back to Nubra again – and will carry copies with me and try delivering it to the address given.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Hello Ajay, fantastic photos and travelouges. Keep it up
Thanks Umesh. Appreciate your feedback.