TEMPLE PONDS OF KERALA

 

THE PILGRIMAGE TO KAINDY LAKE

Pilgrimage - a journey to a place that is connected with somebody/something that you admire or respect (OED)

Air Astana deposited us at Almaty, the largest city and the cultural capital of Kazakhstan, at the crack of dawn after a 4.5 hour- flight from Mumbai. Kazakhstan does not need visa from Indians and hence immigration was a breeze. We exchanged money. The bank accepted almost every currency on earth, but the difference in buying and selling rates was staggering except for the USD, Euro and Pound Sterling.

Outside, the air was chilly at 15 Celsius.

I was disappointed not to see an apple outside the airport. The fruit not the phone. Instead, there was this kitschy suitcase, in front of which we posed dutifully singly and in groups for getting ourselves photographed as proof of visiting Almaty.

Our Bus.

Our dashing guide.

We drove eastwards. Our destination was Lake Kaindy, not very far from the border with Kyrgyzstan. We left the city quickly. An hour later, we stopped to eat packed breakfast at a trucker’s stop.

I kept dozing off. The landscape was flat and barren without a single habitation in sight. I was reminded of my many journeys across Mongolia. Occasionally, the flat terrain was punctuated by grey-brown craggy hills, reminiscent of Ladakh. The sky was flawless blue, with hardly a cloud in sight.

And slowly the landscape changed. Clouds began to roll in. Mountain ranges began appearing in the horizon. The barren plains got punctuated with meadows. Occasional flocks of cattle registered their presence.

We stopped for late lunch in the tiny town of Saty. The lunch introduced me to the Kazakh bread – Baursak. It is more of a fried pastry.

After a leisurely lunch, we checked in to Hotel Kolsay Prestige, totally encircled by mountains with horses grazing in the distant slopes.

A short nap later, we were ready to resume our pursuit of Lake Kaindy.

Since, the bus would not negotiate the rugged terrain, we split into groups to be driven in Russian Bukhankas. The drivers were daredevils in the mould of Schumacher and Verstapppen and raced against each other. They made roads when there were none. We drove over gravel and pebbles, past boulders and ploughed through streams. All the while the landscape got greener and greener and grew more and more picturesque.

After a 30-minute bumpy and at times hair-raising ride, it was time to foot the last mile to reach the lake.

Artificial lakes are formed when a river is dammed. Water upstream of the dam spreads and submerges vast tracts of land creating a lake. The vast Lake Nasser, the consequence of the Aswan Dam, is a classic example. Compared to Lake Nasser, Lake Kaindy is a minuscule water body formed due to the water flow in a gorge being blocked as a result of a massive earthquake in 1911. The rising waters submerged a forest of spruce trees, and it is these partly submerged forest that give Lake Kaindy its mystical aura.

Lake Kaindy reminded me of our own Sangetsar Tso (aka Madhuri Lake) in Arunachal Pradesh close to the border with China. Both these lakes were a result of a natural calamity and have partially submerged forests. They are close to the border with a neighbouring country. They are both remote and difficult to access. And finally, they are both extremely picturesque.

We observed Lake Kaindy from three different perspectives – at the water level, mid-level and a panoramic view of the gorge. The hue of water changed from each perspective. The shifting clouds and the whimsical sunlight added to the drama. I had a slight tinge of disappointment. All the photos of the lake that I had binged on in the days leading up to this journey had a distinct green tint. This was conspicuously absent. The shades and hues of blues dominated. This is the beauty and power of nature. She chooses to reveal the form that she wants us to see. Our guide tried to explain that this could be due to the temperature and a fresh intake of glacial melt. Scientifically speaking, the colour we see depends on a cocktail of reasons stretching from scattering of light to the concentration of minerals and nutrients in the water and the consequent algal blooms.

We spent a mere 30 minutes at the lake. But they were filled with serenity. I craved for solitude to be alone with my thoughts. Twilight was advancing rapidly and it was time to retrace our steps.

As we trudged back to our hotel for a well-earned dinner and rest, many thoughts flooded my mind. In the heart of the Tian Shan, Kaindy revealed itself not as a destination but as a reminder of the fragility and ephemerality of life.

The 1911 Kebin earthquake with a magnitude of 8.0 caused widespread destruction. Over 770 buildings in Almaty were destroyed, which was almost the entire city at the time. 450 people were killed. It also resulted in 201 km of surface faulting in the valleys. And ironically it created the delightful Lake Kaindy.