24. December 2025     It feels Christmassy – and we are heading for Ladakh’s most picturesque place: Lamayuru. A stop at Moon Valley, then on to the monastery. I am always captivated by the pale poplar trees set against the shadowy mountain slopes.     In summer, trucks, taxis, and other vehicles thunder through … Continue reading Ladakh: Lamayuru + Rizong – Never sound the puja more sweetly → Read more

23. December 2025     Juhu – the sun was shining from a deep blue sky, exactly as wished for and hoped! One thing that is always wonderful in winter is the color of the rivers. However, there was not as much water in them as usual. As a result, my photo collection of the … Continue reading Ladakh: Likir + Saspotse – In the far distance the snow leopard cubs are playing joyfully → Read more

22. December 2025     The sun was shining so beautifully that we used the drive to take a lovely photo of each monastery along the way to Sakti.           In Sakti there is Takthok Monastery, with a meditation cave of Padmasambhava. A monk was sitting there performing a long and … Continue reading Ladakh: Sakti + Chemre – Cold Feet in the Monastery → Read more

20. + 21. December 2025     The day before had marked the start of Losar; the next day the head of the Ladakh Buddhist Association (LBA) was supposed to officially open Losar. This ceremony had always taken place at the Chowkang Vihara in Leh, but it had been demolished and was to be rebuilt. … Continue reading Ladakh: Indusvalleymonasteries – Losar La Tashi Delek → Read more

19. December 2025     After arriving in Leh and resting for 24 hours, we set off on our sightseeing tour. For me, it was more about seeing what had changed and what had stayed the same. We first walked through the old town to the palace. I hadn’t been inside for a long time, … Continue reading Ladakh: Leh – Flying Fireballs → Read more

16. December 2025     I still had a whole day in Trivandrum, and since I found the taxi driver quite nice, I asked him to drive me around and show me a few things. The taxi driver’s name is Asif and he is Muslim. In Kerala there are three religions: a little over 50% … Continue reading Kerala: Thiruvananthapuram – Sunglasses not allowed → Read more

15. December 2025     After one last intensive treatment, I left Somatheeram and was taken by taxi to my accommodation in Trivandrum. There I transferred to another taxi, which took me to Sreejith, and together we traveled on to Ponmudi.   Sreejith is a colleague from Kerala who arranges journeys with special encounters and … Continue reading Kerala: Ponmudi – Airy heights and dense forest → Read more

8. – 15. December 2025     On the 8th, I set off for the airport and a little over three hours later arrived far in the south, at Trivandrum Airport. The night before hadn’t been very good, and toward the end of the flight a really bad phase began. I quickly found the driver … Continue reading Kerala: Somatheeram – Meatball in Oil → Read more

5. + 14. Dezember 2025     Before I get to my reflections afterward, I first want to tell the end of the journey. Because it did not go as planned. We had a flight with IndiGo from Dimapur to Delhi and wanted to spend the time until the afternoon visiting the Hornbill Festival again … Continue reading Northeast-India – Afterthoughts → Read more

3. + 4. Dezember 2025     To reach the highlight of the trip, we still needed one more day of driving. In Dimapur we visited these ruins of the Kachari culture. By that point, all these different cultures had simply become too much for me in such a short time, so the visit was … Continue reading Nagaland: Hornbill Festival – a pig donates itself → Read more