A friend in Zanskar has just returned his son to boarding school in Manali; they took the familiar route of crossing the Shingku La and out to the Leh-Manali road. Apparently there is great excitement and expectation in the air. The road construction has now reached Zanskar sumdo and a Bailey bridge is already well under construction. A 4KM 'tunnel' (perhaps this will be more like the roads in the French Alps that are protected by constructed roofs) is also planned for the avalanche prone slopes before the pass. The inhabitants of Kargyak are expecting a road connection with Manali by 2013. This will make the well-worn trek over the Shingku La a hazardous bus journey: Zanskar's most popular trekking route will slip into redundancy and no doubt eager eyes will start searching valleys that have so far been spared the Darcha-Padum-Lamayuru traffic. I know the majority of Zanskaris will understandably be thrilled at what is an astounding rate of change. Others perhaps will struggle to see the positives.