How to Discover the `New' India. ; Amar Grover Witnesses Buddhist Ceremonies in a Remote Himalayan Valley

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I was bound for Spiti, one of the Indian Himalayas' most isolated and stunning regions. Bordered by Ladakh to the north and Tibet in the east, the Spiti Valley lies at one of India's cultural frontiers, where Hinduism gives way to Buddhism. Closed to outsiders until 1992, it feels and looks more like Tibet and offers the traveller the chance to glimpse the Tibetan way of life while remaining inside Indian borders. The geography is impressive: nowhere is below 10,000ft and its peaks crest 23,000ft. Beyond reach of the summer monsoon, the sparse greenery of this upland desert reflects the harsh lives of its hardy people.

At nearly 15,000ft, Kunzum La (or pass) is one of …