About the Image(s)

Ladakh is the northernmost, highest, newest and most sparsely populated among the states and union territories of India. The name Ladakh means Land of High Passes; no point in Ladakh has an altitude less than 9000 feet above sea level. Bordered by Kashmir and Pakistan to the west and Tibet to the north and east, Ladakh has been one of the cross-roads of central Asia. The culture is predominantly Mahayana Buddhist (Tibetan Buddhism). Stakna gompa or monastery is a few miles from the capital city of Leh, and is home to about 25 monks. As soon as I saw this view approaching the monastery, I yelled "Stop!", jumped out of the car, and ran back across the Indus river bridge to take this shot. But there was such a strong and dusty wind blowing that I didn't dare take out my DSLR and change lenses. So this is with my Vivo V23e 5G phone @ 26 mm. f/1.8 @ 1/294 sec. ISO: 100.