Ladakh
Lamayuru's gompa is one of the most photogenic Buddhist monasteries in Ladakh. Behind glass within the gompa’s main prayer hall is a tiny cave-niche in which 11th-century mystic Naropa (AD 1016–1100) meditated.
The rafters of the main assembly hall hold a large rolled-up thangka that is unfurled during the monastery's Kabgyud masked dance festival on the fourth day of the six lunar month (July).
23.3 MILES
The original murals and statues within these four outwardly modest 11th-century temples are considered the crowning glory of Ladakh’s Indo-Tibetan art…
4.09 MILES
Above Wanla village, tiny medieval Wanla Gompa is dramatically perched on a towering knife-edge ridge flanked by two shattered tower remnants of a now…
10.7 MILES
The trio of millennium-old temple chambers at Manggyu share many of the features that you'll see at the world-famous Choskhor temple complex at Alchi but…
29.04 MILES
Rising above Basgo village on a surreal collection of eroded earthen pinnacles are the photogenic stubs of a once-great palace dating from when Basgo was…
19.92 MILES
Little visited, Chiktan's shattered palace ruins are a startlingly dramatic sight. Originally the 16th-century palace of the Chiktan royals, the structure…
22.17 MILES
The orchard town of Saspol is backed by a conglomerate promontory topped with the ruins of Toyos Khar fortress-palace. Somehow still surviving in the…
12.81 MILES
Originally King Dragpa-Bum's 15th-century fortress, Timishgan's three-storey palace site has an obvious defensive strength commanding the confluence of…
24.91 MILES
Mulbekh is overlooked by the impregnable site of King Tashi Namgyal’s 18th-century castle, high above the road. Burnt during an 1835 raid, the castle has…
4.09 MILES
Above Wanla village, tiny medieval Wanla Gompa is dramatically perched on a towering knife-edge ridge flanked by two shattered tower remnants of a now…
10.7 MILES
The trio of millennium-old temple chambers at Manggyu share many of the features that you'll see at the world-famous Choskhor temple complex at Alchi but…
12.81 MILES
Originally King Dragpa-Bum's 15th-century fortress, Timishgan's three-storey palace site has an obvious defensive strength commanding the confluence of…
19.27 MILES
Stepped handsomely within a hidden amphitheatre of rocky cliff, this lonely but much-revered little 19th-century monastery is famous for its code of…
19.92 MILES
Little visited, Chiktan's shattered palace ruins are a startlingly dramatic sight. Originally the 16th-century palace of the Chiktan royals, the structure…
21.31 MILES
This intriguing little monastery includes troglodyte cell rooms tucked improbably into pillars of unstable-looking composite rocks. It's backed against a…
22.17 MILES
The orchard town of Saspol is backed by a conglomerate promontory topped with the ruins of Toyos Khar fortress-palace. Somehow still surviving in the…
22.19 MILES
Almost opposite the small SBI Bank (not the ATM, which is 200m further east), a small shop hides the entrance to an unexpectedly impressive trio of 5m…