Naishita's Tales

People often ask me why I keep going back to the mountains. Honestly, it's a fair question. The Himalayas have given me freezing nights, dusty trails, altitude headaches, aching muscles, long road journeys, and enough discomfort to make a beach vacation sound very appealing. And yet, every time I return home from a Himalayan trip, I find myself looking at maps, saving trek itineraries, and wondering where to go next. The strange thing is that no two Himalayan journeys have ever felt the same. From the barren cold deserts of Ladakh to the green valleys of Kashmir, from the dreamy snow-covered peaks near Keylong to the peaceful foothills of Uttarakhand, every region seemed to have its own personality. Some mountains challenged me. Some surprised me. Some calmed me down. And some completely shattered my expectations. Maybe that's why I keep going back. August 2023: I always thought the Himalayas would look somewhat similar everywhere — snowy mountains, cold weather, pretty views, ...

I know I’m starting to write about this quite late, but as they say — better late than never! And I simply couldn’t let this one go undocumented because this was truly a one-of-a-kind trip. Some journeys are too special to remain just memories tucked away inside your phone gallery; they deserve to be relived through stories. Right?  So I’ll try my best to recollect all the memories, funny little incidents, unexpected adventures, and the quirks of biking at such high altitudes. So hop onto the pillion seat, because this story is going to take you on quite a ride. I always thought Ladakh would be about dramatic snowy mountains, dreamy lakes, and once-in-a-lifetime adventures. But somewhere between the freezing winds, dusty barren landscapes, security gates, bike breakdowns, unexpected tent stays, endless laughter, and peaceful monasteries, this trip became so much more than just another travel experience. What started as a last-minute addition to a “boys bike trip” slowly turned into...

Some trips are planned months in advance. Ours usually start with “Should we go here?... or maybe there?” 😄 After much discussion and confusion, we finally chose Bir — mostly because flying off a mountain somehow sounded like a perfectly normal vacation activity 🪂😂What followed was a journey filled with colorful monasteries, dreamy cafés, mountain roads, and a paragliding experience that came with a lot more hype than fear.  Day 1: Tsering Jong Monastery Coming to the details, after finishing our already-missing-it Manali trip ( https://naishitastales.blogspot.com/2026/05/a-random-plan-that-turned-into-magical.html ), the travel discussions started all over again 😄 For the next part of our journey, we were confused between two options — Kullu and Bir.  Bir had always been on Nithin’s list, mainly because of its world-famous paragliding experience. His first flight near Lonavala had left him with goosebumps and memories he couldn’t stop talking about. Ever since then, he h...