Sculpture of the Colosseum from glaciers in the Indian Himalayas
A man and his son visit the Colosseum in the ice.
AFP
A man takes a sauna in the snow.
AFP
picture
At an altitude of about 3,350 meters in Ladakh, in the Indian Himalayas, a group of artists have built a miniature of the famous Roman Colosseum, using blocks of ice cut with a chainsaw from the frozen river of the small village of Qiling.
The local "Kansing" group was inspired by the project of this sculpture from the International Ice Sculpture Festival in Harbin, China, and set up the small model of the Colosseum of Rome, at the famous Chadar hiking trail, which was closed for two years due to the "pandemic".
The seven-day route runs along the frozen Zanskar River, in the middle of a stunning "ice desert".
"We believe we can organize a festival" the size of the Harbin International Festival, noting that "artists from all over the world can be invited to participate," group member Tashi told AFP.
The group hopes to one day erect an ice building to match the famous ice hotel in the Swedish city of Jukkasjärvi.
And the Colosseum was chosen to set up a location away from the sun's rays that melt the ice, and it is blown by icy winds that ensure temperatures are kept between minus 17 and 20 degrees Celsius throughout the day.
With the support of the local government, the group, which also includes a doctor, has set up a sauna on the bank of the frozen river, where the temperature reaches 60 degrees Celsius in about 40 minutes.
Whoever ventures this experience is supposed to come out of the steam bath wrapped in a simple bathrobe, take it off and leave it on the bank of the Zanskar River, and descend into the freezing water through a gap.
Doing so revitalizes the body, said local policeman, Tundup Gyaltsan.
"You don't feel cold at all," he added.
Follow our latest local and sports news and the latest political and economic developments via Google news