After the trek to the Buddhist caves in Tabo, we were famished as it was already past 4 pm and we were starving. So we decided to go to a restaurant close by and savour the local delicacies. For the first time we walked on the main road of Tabo village to get a glimpse of rural life.

The mud houses had similar structure, design and colour, very few of them had two or three levels. Some of the houses also had sheds built on the side for the cows to rest. We were trying to figure out why this calf was embellished with colourful ribbons, when a Spitian girl popped out of the window. She looked at us, wondering what we were doing and when she was about to shut the window, Bhavika quickly gestured to her to wait for a picture.


We noticed that most of the houses had twigs stacked just above the door. Just across the road was this young boy filling a glass of water, looking completely dazed. While these Spitian kids were radiating with joy and love, shining like a beacon. Just this short walk brought smiles on our tired face, it didn't serve as nourishment for the body but uplifted the soul. Innocence personified! Cute-looking kids happily posing for the camera with their dolls. We turned behind to look how far we had reached from the caves. Not much distance covered, yet at every step we discovered something different. You can see few of the caves we trekked to, although there is a huge stretch of them that you will see in a picture further down, now its time for your mouth to water. We had a multi-course meal at this restaurant called Zion, the full power cafe. We wanted to try some of the local Spitian dishes like Thantuk, Thukpa and not to forget Momos. Traditionally, momos were only served to important guests when they visited the household. They were a delicacy which were only made on special occasions to celebrate. Since we were starving we ordered for quite a lot of food. We started with shakes (Mango shake Rs 25, Banana Rs 20) then moved on to appetisers that included Veg Momos (Rs 40), Thantuk (Tibetan-style vegetable soup with flat noodles) (Rs 35), Mashed potato with local cheese and fried onions (Rs 50). The food was delicious, especially the Thantuk that had lot of flavours. A meal is incomplete without desserts, so we went on another binge, rice pudding (Rs 40), mango custard (Rs 40 for 1) with fresh mango pieces and banana toffee (Rs 30 for 1). The Mango Custard and banana toffee were scrumptious, so we ordered for one more round, even the guy serving us was amazed with the quantity of food. We were over-nourished now and it was time to walk again. The bill came up to only Rs 395. Zion cafe was more affordable than the restaurant at our guest house.
While we were on top of the mountain our eyes were set on the greenish blue water body. We were not sure of the way, but we started to head towards the fields. Walking through the fields and wide open spaces, with Spiti river flowing on the left and the mountains on the other side, we felt in the lap of nature, who was displaying its immense beauty at every step. We walked on a cemented canal, made to provide water in the fields, along side the river. Bhavika was nervous as there were dog fights taking place in the fields, with huge furry dogs running about barking at other group of dogs, she's scared of dogs by the way. In the picture below you can see some of the dogs standing outside the mud wall of the apple orchard as well as a stretch of caves on the mountain. The wall is made to protect the apples from being stolen, and Spitian apples are well known in India.

As we proceeded on the cemented canal a farmer with a plow approached us from the other side, he was walking faster and as he came closer we realized a trickle of water following him in the canal. As the trickle built up force, he was opening and sometimes closing exits of the water entering the fields. The frog was swept by the water force until he managed to cling on to the sides of the canal for us to take a picture! Picture perfect, shot of Spiti river flowing through the barren mountains like a snake crawling and making its way in the fields.
If you remember the wild orchids we saw during the trek to a village in Parvati, this one is exactly the same except for the colour. Finally we drew up close to the pond, which was quite big; if it was attractive from the top, it was unbelievable when we were besides it. Like an oasis in the desert, the water body was used for irrigation purpose.

The colours were not only green because of the depth in the center, but also brown towards the banks due to plants growing underneath. Air bubbles slowly making their way to the surface as insects came up for a breather and then go back down.

There were small fish swimming about and how can I explain the mesmerizing reflection of the sky, mountains and the colours in all their glory on the surface, shattering with ripples created by the breeze only to form again. As the sun set a group of swallows flew over the pond chasing each other, some flying just above the surface as though they were looking at their reflections on the water. While some played games by skipping over water and just about touching it to make us wonder if they were placed there at that point of time, it was the swallow show in the middle of the desert. The words perhaps can't describe the way we felt, we were, "Woooo did you see that!!!" all the time, our head moving, our eyes following the birds they had all our attention. Even the sole duck and a duckling in the pond were trying to catch our attention but in vain, until the sun started another show. The shadow of the mountains where the sun was setting started spanning across the entire valley, slowly eating up hill after hill.
It was time to leave, when we were in the middle of the fields yet again something magical happened. Straight in front of us, the mountains at the horizon were still the same, the sky was light blue, and right behind us where the sun was setting it was dark blue and grey.
The sky had unlimited gradients in the middle all the way from light blue, sky blue, navy blue, dark blue, blue grey, every shade of blue you can imagine possible, this was the magic in Spiti, we had not seen these shades anywhere else in Himachal Pradesh. We were blessed by the Mountain Gods! We walked towards German bakery in Tabo, picked up a cheese cake, our favorite on this trip. You can see the internal structure in this picture, this is the roof of German Bakery from the inside in Tabo. What a contrasting image pops up in the head when you think of German Bakery! We went back to our room after an eventful day, ordered for dinner. It is worth a mention that the food was delicious at Tashi Khangsar, but tad expensive, like Thantuk costed Rs 60, that's too much for a veg soup. A proper meal for three, comprising dal makhani (Rs 40), rice (Rs 40), mixed vegetable (Rs 50), chapatis (Rs 5 each) and sugarless halwa (Rs 40) came up to Rs 195. Back in the room a game of Scrabble beckoned us, and Bhavika turned out to be the lucky winner, on several occassions!:)

The Ancient Tabo Monastery

The next morning our plan was to catch the bus to Kaza, the main city of Spiti, and go further up to Ki and Kibber monastery. But the visit to Tabo is incomplete without seeing the ancient monastery. We had passed it a few times and never ended up going inside. Called the 'Ajanta of the Himalayas', the monastery holds nine temples, 23 chortens or stupas and seperate chambers for monks and nuns. It is enclosed by a boundary wall built with mud bricks, that separates it from the modern monastery buildings and village. The bus to Kaza arrives anytime between 8.30 am to 12.30 pm, so we had 15 minutes to check the Tabo monastery, assuming that the bus arrived by 9, 9.15 am. Unfortunately all the sections were closed, even the temples that house exquisite wall paintings, stucco statues and murals. But whatever we saw was gorgeous enough, especially the central part. This is the assembly hall where the above mentioned treasures were preserved. The entire monastery was built in a way that it makes maximum use of natural light, the roof had green glass at places and solar cells to generate electricity. On our next visit we would definitely visit the monastery, with that thought in mind we rushed to the Tabo bus stand. It was time for us to go to Kaza, our next stop in the mystical Spiti desert!