Shangri-La might just be an imaginary place in writer James Hilton’s book, Lost Horizon (1933). Then again, maybe not. In this uncertainty lies my hope. Every time I get a chance to travel to the Himalayas, the hope of finding Shangri-La is rekindled. This time, I am heading to Lo Manthang, a walled city in Nepal’s Upper Mustang, to take part in Royal Enfield’s Himalayan Adventure motorcycle ride. Not many tourists have experienced the desolate yet dreamy world of Lo Manthang. The roads that lead you there wind through a breath-taking high-altitude Himalayan vista. To experience it, you have to be free from the distractions of the world below. That is why I decided to stay away from my mobile phone for two weeks. Would I be able to do it in this age when life without mobile connectivity may be an existential crisis waiting to happen?
This is not the first time I am going incommunicado. I had stayed away from my iPhone for 10 days during a Vipassana meditation course in 2012. But the words OTP and OTT were non-existent in those days. Now, the situation is different. Your mobile number is your identity, your brain is stored on your phone’s cloud, and if you do not constantly update your status on social media, you might as well have disappeared off the face of the earth.
There was a sense of adventure as I switched off my mobile phone en route to Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru. For the next two weeks, I would be entertained by nothing but my own company. No time would be wasted on searching for power points to charge the phone. No looking at messenger apps in anticipation of messages that never arrive. No propaganda forwards or nuisance news alerts. For the travel procedure, I was prepared with printouts of vaccination certificate, air tickets, hotel booking details and itinerary. On this trip, it was only going to be me, my motorcycle and the mountains!
The road to Lo Manthang offers no easy ride. Winding your way between sandy tracks, puddles and pebbles demands total concentration. Motorcycling, that way, can teach you so much about life. About how to tackle the hurdles that come your way or when not to cross the limit. Riding is a kind of meditation. I rode with complete calm, my view of the distant snow peaks clouded by the incessant dust and rocky terrain. Finally, I saw a wooden signboard that said, “Lo Manthang—5 Minutes,” with an arrow pointing to the right. The journey had been as breath-taking, if treacherous, as the destination.
That night, I nestled within the quilt and went to sleep early. Without the need to look at unread mails or missed calls in the morning, I woke up brimming with energy, all set for impromptu adventures. One day, I visited three ancient monasteries in the walled city to make friends with its modest residents. Another day.
