Land of Lamas

LAND OF LAMAS 


Day 01 ARRIVE DELHI
Arrive Delhi by International flight. Meeting on arrival and transfer to hotel. (rooms protected for immediate occupancy)
Breakfast at the hotel
AM : Free to getover jetlag
Delhi - believed to have been founded by the Pandava brothers around 2nd or 3rd century B.C., is one of the oldest cities in India. The city has been raised out of ashes and ruins seven times. Be it the Tomars of the 7-8th century or the Ghori’s, The Khaljis, the Tughlaqs, the Saiyads, The Lodis, the Moghuls and finally the British rulers, each has contributed to the colorful history of the city. 
PM : City tour of Old Delhi visiting the historic Red Fort (from outside), the Jama Masjid, Chandni Chowk and Raj Ghat
Evening : Welcome dinner at a specialty restaurant
Overnight in Delhi 

Day 02 DELHI/LEH
Breakfast at the hotel
Transfer to domestic airport to board flight to Leh
Leave Delhi for Leh by 9W 609 [0540/0655 hrs]
Meeting on arrival and transfer to hotel
Leh is the capital of Ladakh (altitude 3505 m). Sheltered in the north by the Ladakh range and in the south by the Zanskar Mountains, Leh gets very little rainfall. The most attractive feature of the landscape of Ladakh is the Buddhist Gompas (monasteries) Situated on the highest point of the mountain spurs or majestically sprawling over cliff sides, located in the vicinity of villages, these aesthetically pleasing & architecturally interesting Gompas provide the focus for the faith of the highly religious Buddhist people. 
Day free for acclimatization
Lunch at the hotel
Evening : Visit Shanti Stupa & Samkar Gompa
Dinner & overnight in Leh 

Day 03 IN LEH
Breakfast at the hotel
Visit the Leh Fort. Visit the Thiksey Monastery & Cloister school. Packed lunch will be carried.
On your return visit the Shey Monastery
Thiksey – 19 kms from Leh, spectacularly sited, is one of the largest and architecturally most impressive at all the Gompas. There are several temples in this Gompa containing exquisite images, stupas and wall painting of Buddha.
Shey – situated on a Hillock, 15 kms upstream from Leh, was once the residence of the Royal family. According to the tradition, Shey was the seat of power of the pre Tibetan kings. A 7.5 metre high copper statue of Buddha, plated with gold, and the largest of its kind is installed here. 
Dinner & overnight in Leh 

Day 04 IN LEH
Breakfast at the hotel
Visit the Hemis Monastery & Stok Gompa. Pack lunch will be carried
On your return visit the Tibetan refugee children’s village
Hemis – 40 kms from Leh, is the wealthiest, best-known and biggest Gompa of Ladakh. It is situated on the banks of Indus. This monastery, which houses 500 monks, has beautiful paintings & thangkas. It was built in 1630 during the reign of Singge Namgyal, an illustrious ruler of Ladakh. It is divided into two, the assembly hall on the right and the main temple on the left. The temple is known as Tshogkhang. The verandas have a surfeit of frescoes, among them the Buddhist: Wheel of life” (Kalchakra) and the “Lords of the four quarters” besides rows of prayer wheels. 
The Stok Museum has some fabulous displays including period costumes and jewellery of the royalty, along with Exquisite Thankas (scrolls) representing the life of the Sakya Muni.
Dinner & overnight in Leh 

Day 05 LEH/LAMAYURU/LEH
Breakfast at the hotel
Full day excursion to Lamayuru. Pack lunch will be carried.
Lamayuru - The oldest holy site in Ladakh, was the Bon shrine prior to the advent of Buddhism. Also known as Yung Drung (Swastika) it is sited on a high promontory overlooking the village and the valley. The monastery was built in the 10th century on a broken mountain in the valley and consisted of 5 buildings of which only the central building stands today. The Gompa has an impressive 11 headed 1000 eyed image of Avalokiteswara. 22 to 30 yellow sect monks live in this Gompa. 
Dinner & overnight in Leh 

Day 06 IN LEH
Breakfast at the hotel
Full day visit Spituk & Phyang Gompa
Spituk Monastery – 8 kms from Leh, stands prominentaly on the top of a hillock commanding a panoramic view of the Indus valley for miles. Many icons of the Buddha and fine Thankas are found in this 15th century Gompa. It also houses a collection of ancient masks, antique arms and awe inspiring image of Mahakal.
Return to hotel for lunch
Phyang Monastery possesses three main temples. The alter, which is protected by a glass case, shelters many Buddhas among whom are Vairochana, Avalokiteswara of eleven heads and a thousand arms and Maitreya- the coming Buddha. The wall ainting are most interesting
Evening : Take a leisurely walk in the Leh Bazaar
Dinner & overnight in Leh 

Day 07 LEH/ALCHI/LEKIR/LEH
Breakfast at the hotel
Full day excursion to Alchi & Lekir
Alchi is unusual in that it is on lowland, not perched on a hilltop like other Ladakhi Gompas. Built in the 11th century is noted for its massive statues of Buddha and its lavish wooden carvings and artwork. The paintings are in the Kashmiri tradition, which was still very influential at that time. 
Lunch at the Alchi camp
The Likir Monastery is on the old Caravan road from Basgo to the bridge of Khalse. The Main temple contains stupas, statues of Sakyamuni, Maitreya and Tsongkyapa, founder of Gelupa order.
Dinner & overnight in Leh 

Day 08 IN LEH
Breakfast at the hotel
Drive around the Indus valley visiting a farm
Return to hotel for lunch
Rest of the free
Evening : Cultural show at the hotel
Dinner & overnight in Leh 

Day 09 LEH/DELHI
Breakfast at the hotel
Transfer to the airport to board your flight back to Delhi.  
Leave Leh for Delhi by 9W 610 [0735/0850 hrs]
Meeting on arrival and transfer to hotel 
Day free at leisure
Dinner & overnight in Delhi

Day 10 IN DELHI
Breakfast at the hotel
AM : City tour of New Delhi visiting the Humayun’s Tomb, Qutab Minar, the Government Buildings, a drive through the majestic Rajpath to the India Gate, the Laxmi Narayan Temple
PM : Free at Leisure
Overnight in Delhi

Day 11 IN DELHI
Breakfast at the hotel
AM : Visit the Bahai Temple, National & Crafts museum
PM : Free for shopping
Evening: Transfer to a specialty restaurant with Folk dance show
Later transfer to International airport to board onward flight

Day 12 DEPART DELHI
Ladakh is renowned for its remote mountain beauty and culture. It is sometimes called "Little Tibet" as it has been strongly influenced by Tibetan culture. It had a strategic location at the crossroads of major trade routes, but since the Chinese authorities closed the borders with Tibet and Central Asia in the 1960s, international trade has dwindled except for tourism.
Today Ladakh consists of two districts — Leh and Kargil. The largest town in Ladakh is Leh. A majority of Ladakhis are Tibetan Buddhists and the rest are mostly Shia Muslims. 


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