I’ve been discussing the road to Tawang in the past couple of posts… So, I realized it would be appropriate to provide my dear readers with a little additional content to get a feel for the people and places along this amazing road.

The road to Tawang may start out in the jungle (of which a fair amount was seen in the last post), but it isn’t long before the road winds up into the mountains:

I was impressed by the ability of the people in this region to scratch out a living from agriculture in such rugged environments:

Although there were not many villages, it was common for those that we passed to be perched high up on a mountain or nestled deep in a canyon such as the one below… The only way in or out of such villages is by a very strenuous hike:

However, no matter where the village or what the size, they all seem to have a teahouse:

The Tibetan influence grows increasingly obvious in everything from the architecture of the villages to the appearance of the people as one gets closer and closer to the border with China:

There are plenty of other hazards on the road to Tawang aside from just the landslides, road washouts, mud, ice and military convoys:

The road has more stretches of decent surface up in the mountain passes which is a positive:

Of course, the downside is that it is extremely cold at such high altitudes:

And so, when your 4WD breaks down (which is a common occurrence after the heavy beating on the lower sections of road), it can be rather unpleasant to fix:

Fortunately, if one does break down, there is usually an amazing view or something like this Buddhist shrine nearby to at least slightly offset the unpleasant aspects of breaking down:

Your editor providing a little scale:

You know you’re up pretty high when you start seeing yaks:

The highest point on the road to Tawang is at Se La… The road passes beneath the arch pictured below:

A side view of the arch with prayer flags in the foreground:

Monuments to the many road workers and soldiers killed along this road are underneath all of these prayer flags:

Fortunately, there is also a very nice teahouse at Se La… To say that it is pleasant to take a seat next to a crackling fire with a hot cup of tea in your hands after braving the bitter cold outside is rather an understatement: