As I wandered to a land that many have been to several times for its serenity and beauty I treaded on with mixed feelings of what it would be to witness calm and storm at the same place. I am talking about Leh and Ladakh which has its one end towards China and the other towards Pakistan. The most distinct identity of this place being in Jammu and Kashmir. With milestones that read Kargil 400 kms to military bases with do or die slogans as we went along exploring the beauty of LEH. The milestone of Srinagar just got flashes of what I have only seen on television and read in newspapers and not once did I even want to be near it, even if it appeared on milestones. No wonder though the frozen mountain top seem to be like India s very own Swiss Alps from the aircraft the story on the ground is far from being anywhere close to that. Strangely enough the clouds, the wind, the rivers, the sunlight and the snow which create the mystique of this place are far from knowing where the line of controls are drawn.



As I watched the Sangam (confluence) of the the Indus and the Zanskar rivers I was told that it flows into Pakistan and I only asked in my true innocence how do you draw a line in flowing waters? And as expected there was no reply to that. Guess the people there have asked these questions enough and much before I did.



As I traveled to Pangong Lake I was told only 40% is in India and the balance 60% is in Tibet, till wherever I could see far far away there was just the lake water, I again wondered where is the line that separates the lake into the 60-40%. This time I didn't ask I knew the questions were already echoing in the valleys of Leh with no answers to them.



On my way back I just thought that nature does not follow any line of controls or boundaries - its beautiful in its sum not in its parts, its best as a whole not in divisions, I came back with some amazing memories of Leh and Ladakh - and I would like it to stay that way, limitless without any lines.



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