Leh – The Perak sneaks through the house-wall

24. – 29. August 2026

 

 

Ever since I got back to Leh, my health issues have unfortunately flared up again. My nose has been bleeding again (though not super heavily), and I’m experiencing shortness of breath. It is so frustrating. It seems the time in between wasn’t enough for my lungs and bronchial tubes to properly settle down, and the asthma inhaler is really only keeping things from getting complete horrible.

 

So what do I do with this realization?
1. I have buried two dreams: I won’t be traveling to the Changthang, nor will I be doing any more major trekking tours.
2. But I don’t really want to go lower down either, because it’s still too hot and humid there.
3. I am trying to put together a nice itinerary in the Indus Valley.
4. I treated myself to a room with a kitchen for my entire stay here and am settling into a sort of everyday routine in Leh.
5. I am trying to keep a close eye on myself and make sure not to make matters worse.

 

So far, it’s working out relatively well.

 

There’s also always a bit going on in Leh. For instance, there was a candlelight march to remember those killed in the riots a year ago.

 

Even though I have a kitchen now, I still go out to eat sometimes.

 

 

And I keep meeting people, though I barely take any photos of it. It’s always so lovely at Lobzang’s Kharlam Cafe, and it’s so easy to strike up a conversation with folks there. Once, three police officers dropped by. One of them belonged to a Special Anti-Terrorist Force and mentioned that there isn’t really much going on in that regard around here—he hasn’t tracked down a single terrorist yet. Another officer used to work as a guide for Weltweitwandern, but he prefers the police force now, partly because of the steady year-round income.

 

At Nawang’s pashmina shop, I ran into an Indian woman who really loved to shop. She felt a bit embarrassed about her shopping addiction because she ends up buying a lot of unnecessary stuff. But I told her that, deep down, I’m actually grateful people like her are bringing business to the local shops—after all, a town without lively storefronts would be pretty unappealing. She got a good laugh out of that. And Nawang charmed another Indian customer so skillfully that she bought three shawls on the spot. Some people just have an incredible talent for sales. I certainly don’t.

 

Then I brought all of my T-shirts to a tailor to get them shortened. I always find that the ones with a fit I actually like are just a touch too long on me. It’s such a joy how cheap and flawless the alterations are here. Honestly, if you ever have clothes you want altered and you’re traveling to India, having it done here is always a great idea.

 

There was a Biennale hosted here recently which I missed, but they left some of the artwork up, so I was still able to check out two of the installations.

 

 

 

 

 

By the way, the weather is just as it should be for Ladakh: sunny with blue skies and only the occasional scatter of clouds.

 

I walked up to the palace very slowly. It’s always a pleasure to look down over the town from up there.

 

 

And then I ran into Eva. For years, she was an important friend of mine with whom I experienced a lot in Ladakh and met up with regularly in Bavaria for hiking days. Unfortunately, there is a major difference in worldviews that made it impossible for me to maintain close contact. Neither of us would have known how to tactfully set that topic aside. That was three years ago, and I have missed her off and on ever since, because on certain levels we got along so well—levels I haven’t been able to share with anyone else.

 

We met up for coffee and then again for dinner, and it was actually very lovely and familiar again. But we avoided the topic that divides us, and I have no idea if or how things will go from here. Still, I really enjoyed our conversations for now.

 

also went to the hairdresser again, but this time he cut off a bit too much. At any rate, I probably won’t be needing another haircut before heading home.

 

 

 

I also stopped by Dolma’s shop and we had a great chat. And I ran into our best guide, Sonam, and talked about the current trekking situation here (routes lost to road construction, horses getting very expensive, where homestay options are available, etc.). If my health holds up, maybe we’ll head out together after all. That would be so nice.

 

 

In any case, I’ve managed to establish a bit of a daily routine here. However, I’ve had some stress back home (where I rent out my apartment on Airbnb) because my router or connection has an issue that can’t be fixed without me being there in person. That cost a lot of time, effort, and frustration. On top of that, my train line at home is shutting down operations until early November—meaning no Wi-Fi in the apartment and no convenient way to arrive by public transit (the rail replacement bus stop is super far from my place), which makes renting on Airbnb difficult. And since I don’t have any bookings for October yet, my health here is being so annoying, my enthusiasm for India is so low, and my Kashmir trekking dreams are out—I’ve now booked an earlier flight home and will be back by early October.

 

Then I also met an agency colleague whom I hadn’t met in person yet. Mukesh led a Spiti trip for two people and turned out to be really great at what he does. When I heard he was traveling here, I made sure we could meet up. He has a group of eight buddies who have been taking an annual trekking trip together for years, usually off the beaten path. They all live in South India. I think it’s fantastic that they found each other and that it’s been working so well for years. They’re all lovely guys with a great group vibe.

 

I asked if they had a spot left in their vehicle for their acclimatization drive the next day. Yes, I can join! I’ll report on that in the next blog post.