TRAVEL ... CALL OF THE NOMADS
The need to disconnect, go
back to basics and see the `unseen' is making nomadic trails the preferred
travel route
You are in a camping re
treat, but instead of the usual tent, you've been put up in a `yurt' or a `ger'
woven out of soft felt with interiors decked up in ornate rugs. For a guide,
you have a handsome horseman and for food, lots of homemade dairy and alcohol.
You could be somewhere on the Silk Road or closer to the Gobi Desert.
Travelling to far-off lands
to meet and engage with real travellers -the nomads -is becoming a popular way
of taking a break from modern, fast-paced living.“As travellers evolve, they
yearn to experience new cultures in their purest form, and living with nomads
is one of the most immersive experiences. People are visiting the distant and
unparalleled mountainscapes of Mon golia, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan; the
deserts of Africa and the villages of Bhutan,“ says Manmeet Ahluwalia, a travel
expert.
LIFE IN THE SLOW LANE
According to Piya Bose,
organiser of women-only holidays, “More and more people want to move away from
urban spaces and structured itiner aries to surrender to the unpredictable
charms of nomadic trav el. They are travelling for extended periods through the
steppes of Mongolia, the sands of Sahara at Morocco, on the silk route in
central Asia and overland trips through the rugged landscapes of Tibet and
Peru.“ Nomads have been travelling for hundreds of years; they can read the
weather from the sound of birds, the con dition of snow and the pattern of
sand. It is an ultimate life lesson for travellers to spend a few days in
company of these survivalists.
IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCES
Most nomadic societies have
native crafts and activities of cultural relevance that are very attractive to
an outsider. Building gerstradi tional camps in Mongolia, shearing sheep,
milking goats, wrangling horses... nomadic holidays can train you in amazing
life skills.You can drive caravans, camp out under the stars, ride on horse and
camel back, learn local games, and even new dance forms. Here are some trails
to follow...
MEET THE ROVERS
Travel in Mongolia might
take you across the Steppe, where you could stay with a local nomadic tribe in
a ger, riding horses and drinking traditional Mongolian drink airaag made
from fermented milk. The nomads here double-up as your guides, drivers, cook,
interpreters and friends to help you. Go through a local or tie up with a
travel firm offering snow leopard expeditions and fly fishing.
B&B ON SILK ROAD
Breathtakingly beautiful,
Kyrgyzstan has a deep-rooted nomadic heritage. Nomads here breed, herd, eat,
and ride horses and are obviously, superb horsemen. When not producing felt
handi crafts, they love to indulge in horse games. One must-carry souvenir from
Kyrgyzstan is a shirdak a long, colourful, rectangular rug covered in Kyrgyz
designs that's used like flooring in yurts. Nomadic families even give classes
in rug making.
PASHMINA HERDERS
The nomadic pastoralists of
Ladakh and Spiti, herding their sheep and pashmina goats, have been fodder for
landscape and portrait artists for years. “Balancing carpets and blankets
across animals' backs, followed by saddle-bags, stove, and butter-tea maker, it
is interesting to observe their lives from close quarters,“ says Ishita Khanna,
director of an NGO based out of Spiti.
|
Supriya
Sharma
TL
11JUN17
|
No comments:
Post a Comment