Khardungla Pass

Our jeep clambered on. We had been travelling for hours only stopping to click pictures. We were tired, cranky with high altitude sickness, hungry, and ready for the journey to be done with. The high altitude and the low oxygen was weighing down our heads, making the travel much harder. But we carried on because there was this small spark alive within us, that egged us on. And this small spark was awarded when we finally reached Khardungla pass. At 18,380 ft, it's one of the highest motorable pass.
Once we stepped out of the jeep, all of the exhaustion, the overwhelming sickness, the gnawing hunger and the frustration was forgotten in an instant. Before us stretched massive mountains that rose high up above in the sky. Prayer flags waved in the chilly wind, carrying messages of hope and sanguinity. And we stood there, our breaths blown away, our eyes drinking in the beauty that was lying right infront of us.
At 18,380 feet, when your eyes are riveted on the wonders that lie in front of you, you forget about the cold that seeps deep into your skin. You forget about your freezing fingers. You forget about your numb faces. You forget about the prominent lack of oxygen. All that you know and all that you can think of is capturing that moment for everyone to see; for millenniums to come.
I, too, was lost in the beauty that was beholden to me. My hands worked on their own; I took out my camera and started clicking. In that moment, my camera was not just a medium, it had turned into a kaleidoscope that transported me into a different world altogether. A passion burnt inside of me that overwhelmed every other sense. All I felt was utter happiness and excitement of discovering this whole new place; something I have never seen before. The magnificence of the mountains and the fluttering of the flags stirred an familiar feeling in my heart; the feeling of running head along and exploring the unknown.
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