If going up was a horror story, coming down was a lesson in 0 gravity drive
And my heart sank further, not knowing next moment we’d be dead or alive
‘Why were we still sitting in a car that’s fated to fall?’ my mind tried to talk
And I leapt out at the first chance, sick of this cliff-hanger, deciding to walk
But the clouds were moving & that meant we couldn’t slow down or stop yet
‘A storm is approaching’, told our guide, ‘driving non-stop is our best bet’
Looking back, we stared into an ominous force cruising noiselessly our way
‘We have to hit the Leh-Manali highway before show time, come what may’
We rolled alongside the Chenab river & several pristine peaks veiled in white
Crossing torrential streams frozen in time & many more such ethereal sights
When the goal seemed near, we broke our spell of silence with a silly smile
And after the last muddy mêlée at Gramphu we joined the highway in style
Soon it began to snow & visibility started playing tricks, but we stayed strong
Grateful to our driver for saving his sanity & enduring us when ours was gone
We'd survived driving through one of the most traitorous terrains on this planet
in our attempt to know a far-out land that had pulled us from far like a magnet
