Group 1: 12. – 20. July 2009
Day 1 – Arrival in Delhi
On our way to the Tibetan plateau and The Great Tibetan Marathon, we will arrive in the capital of India, Delhi. Only for a brief stop though, as this is the day all participants in group 1 gather together. Upon arrival at the Delhi Airport, we will meet you at the arrival lounge and transfer you to your hotel. Though there are not any pre-arranged activities on this day, if you arrive early, you are wel-come to spend the afternoon exploring the chaos of India’s capital city. Please refer to our bulletin board in the lobby of the hotel to find out exactly when and how to meet the rest of your group. No meals are included this day.
Day 2 Delhi (216m) – Leh (3,505m) / Flight to Leh and acclimatization
We leave very early in the morning to drive to the domestic airport in Delhi. We are going directly deep in the Himalaya Mountains and up to the Tibetan plateau.
The destination of this flight is known as the small capital, Leh. The largest city in the area Ladakh. After the flight from Delhi, we set out for one of the most sensational flights in the world. The flat Indian plains are quickly superseded by the deep valleys and white peaks of the Himalayas, which are in turn replaced by the pale pink and brown nuances of the high Tibetan desert plains. Very few flight paths are so dramatic as this flight up to the Tibetan plateau, with its magnificent vistas over the white clad peaks of the Himalayas below us. During the 90-minute flight, we glide less than 1000 meters over some of the world’s highest mountains. And you will not believe your eyes when the pilot directs the plane downward toward the narrow Indus Valley, where we then aim to land in a moonlike landscape along the great Indus River. The airport in Leh is situated at a height of 3,520 meters, less than 5 kilometers southwest of Leh.
At that height, you can become a bit dizzy or light-headed, so we will drive directly to Leh to take lodgings at our small cosy family hotel. Since the city is located so high above sea level, we very strongly recommend that you take it easy for the rest of the day. This is in order to get used to the height and to acclimatize. Without exception, everyone will feel the thin air with symptoms such as slight dizziness, headaches or nausea. And the only relief is to rest – in the hotel! That is NO short walk in the pleasant town of Leh. Stay in the hotel! All meals included this day.
Days 3, 4 & 5 – Leh (3,505m) / On your own
For the next 3 days there is not a planned agenda. So there is every opportunity to tone down the training and instead use this period to recharge your energy deposits for THE DAY when it will all be released. But at the same time remember, that it is the thin air and the great height that will cause the most problems. And therefore, one should naturally not discontinue physical exercise, so that muscles become slack and sluggish. Pace yourself at a VERY sedate tempo the first two days, and then a combination of walk-ing and jogging the last days will probably suit most people best. And there are a number of small trails to take, both in and around Leh. All meals included this day.
Day 6 - Leh (3.505m) / Morning run in Leh – On your own
This is the day before the last physical check-up before the sacred long horns sounds off in the courtyard. In other words, there is a 3-kilometer “pleasure run” early this morning, where we can get an idea of how we will manage the run in the thin air during The Great Tibetan Marathon tomorrow.
ALL participants in The Great Tibetan Marathon must meet up at the monastery in Leh. The Danish team of doctors and the Danish Athletic Team will give the final instructions for The Great Tibetan Marathon 2009.
After the briefing we start the 3-kilometer check-up and pleasure run. The route goes through the narrow streets and lanes of Leh, and the run ends op at the same monastery. And here it will be possible to meet with the different groups of officials behind the Great Tibetan Marathon. When that is over and done with, well, this is the day before The Great Tibetan Marathon, and we can only recommend once again that you take it easy the rest of the day and save your energy for the ultimate most difficult run ever. In the evening all runners meet for a pasta party ensuring we get the right fuel before the marathon. All meals included this day.
Dag 7 - Leh (3,505m) - Hemis (3,800m) - Spituk (3,400m) - Leh (3,505m) / The Great Tibetan Marathon 2009
We wake up early for the day that is set aside for the even which most of you are coming for - The Great Tibetan Marathon 2009. At 04:45 both runners and spectators are driven from their respective hotels the 45 kilometers to the starting line at Hemis monas-tery.
Arrival at Hemis will be at about 06:00, followed by the official blessing of the runners - “Race Puja” - at 06:15. The monks of Hemis monastery will be singing mantras and playing drums and horns followed by a personal blessing of each runner. This will certainly wake us and frighten off the demons we must have brought with us from our home countries, so we can run with a pure soul and mind.
At 07:00 the blowing horns of Hemis sounds, signaling the start of The Great Tibetan Marathon and at last one of the worlds hard-est marathon begins!
Runners doing the half marathon and 10 km will be driven to their respective starting points as soon as the last marathon runner has left the monastery.
Although it is an official international marathon race with official times, medals and certificates for all, we must emphasize that it is also a jogging race, where the experience is primary and where completing the course is more important than winning. Therefore, there is no special prize to the first place finisher. As runners eventually cross the finish line at Spituk monastery, there is transport-tion by jeep back to Leh and the hotels. In spite of our sore muscles, due to time restrictions, we are going to celebrate the com-pltion of the world’s hardest marathon already this evening. And at 19:00 everyone from all hotels will be driven to the venue of the banquet. This day includes breakfast, lunch and a formal dinner.
Day 8 - Leh (3,505m) - Delhi (216m) - Agra
With regret, we must now leave the Tibetan highland and colourful Ladakh. We wake up tiredly with the sun, eat breakfast and then drive out to the small airport in Leh. On the way back to Delhi, we can however enjoy another wonderful flight over the majes-tic peaks of the Himalayas.
We thus return early in the morning to Delhi, which besides being the third biggest city in the country has been the capital of India since 1911.
From Delhi we drive direct to the city of Agra where we will visit the famous and magnificent Taj Mahal.
Very little is known about the early history of Agra. In fact it was not until the beginning of the 16th century that the city became a capital of the kingdom of the great Moguls, and Agra became a powerful center on the Indian subcontinent. The great Moguls were more than just a Muslim tribe that came from the Afghani-Persian area and invaded a huge part of northern India. With a reign that extended from the year 1500 to 1700, the great Moguls were probably the most significant of all of the foreign rulers.
Today Agra is a large widely spread city, which is mostly situated on the western side of the Yamuna River. And the main attraction is without doubt, the Taj Mahal, which can still make the hearts of the most hard-boiled globetrotters to beat at double pace with emotion and enthusiasm. Depicted by the classical Indian poet, Tagore, as “a tear on the face of eternity”, Taj Mahal is undoubtedly the pearl of Indian architecture, and simply one of the most fascinating edifices in the world.
It was the Sultan Shah Jahan who erected Taj Mahal as a mausoleum for his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died under tragic circumstances during childbirth. And the mausoleum, which was founded on a 4-meter high base, was built from 1632-47 in Persian style and surrounded by four thin minarets. In sparkling white marble, decorated with millions of semi-precious stones, the structure radiates an unusual calm and harmony – something that is otherwise rare to find on these wide roads. And it is extremely difficult to detach yourself from this architectural wonder.
All meals included this day.
Day 9 - Agra (169m) - Delhi (216m) / Departure
After breakfast we will visit the Red Fort. The fort was constructed in red sandstone in the years 1565-73 by the ruler Akbar. The fort is an impressive and well-maintained structure, which bears distinctive marks by the shifting rulers, from the red sandstone by Akbar to the silky white marble with inlaid semi-precious stones contributed by Shah Jahan. From a room with a lovely balcony in meticu-lously carved marble, we can see the Taj Mahal over the Yamuna River - the same view that Shah Jahan enjoyed in his last years of his life. Shah Jahan’s son, Aurangzeb, was power-hungry, and after he forcibly took over rule from his father, he killed his younger brother and made his father, Shah Jahan, a prisoner in the Red Fort. From here, Shah Jahan enjoyed the view of Taj Mahal until his death.
After lunch in Agra we depart for Delhi. In Delhi we will have a few rooms in a nice hotel for wash and change. At the hotel we will also enjoy dinner before we drive to the International Airport.
Hopefully it is a large airplane that we return home with at night, because both our suitcases and souls are certainly about to burst with the unforgettable experiences as we journey home.
All meals included this day.
Kindly note that the above program should be regarded as a general guideline and it is subject to change.
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