Jannat-e-Kashmir

Jannat-e-Kashmir

Very rarely do I keep regrets of being ignorant of something. These are one of those rare times when I feel that I should have had a better set of vocabulary  to be able to do justice while expressing my experiences of Kashmir and its endless beauty.

It is 5:50AM of Day 2 and I sit here in my hotel room in Gulmarg viewing the snow clad mountains from my window (it isn’t fully bright yet but the backdrop of black mountains with white shades of snow is clearly visible). My mom wished to visit Kashmir as her dream destination and they are not much of travelers. She mentioned once to me and as good children we took it seriously, planned one (we only needed an excuse ;-) ) and here we are! 

Day 1 (8th April) : Bengaluru-Delhi-Srinagar-Gulmarg

This summer (with all the global warming, even Bangalore is very hot) this is the best treat we could give ourselves. We (Didi and Darsh joined us too)  took a flight till Srinagar via Delhi . We met parents in Delhi airport as they reached around the same time from Nagpur.  The moment we landed in Srinagar, or well even before that from the plane we got the glimpses of the snow clad mountains. It excited the kids and parents the most as they experienced snow for the first time! I still remember my first snow experience in 2005 during my first visit to USA and how I showed on webcam to my whole family back in Nagpur. Haven been to Switzerland a couple of times I was surprised myself at my excitement quotient. But I guess to experience such beauty in your own country does give you a different sense of pride. 

While we sat outside the Srinagar airport waiting for our taxi, I could breath the chill in the air and a different kind of rawness and simplicity in the surroundings. People are very simple and beautiful. I loved what I saw all around - the locals in their traditional attire of phirans  and men wearing the cap on their head while the women draped a duppatta to cover their heads.

It was starting to get dark and at 5PM we started towards Gulmarg which is a 2 hours drive. On the way we halted for our first steaming hot tea and maggie. In contrast to the natural coldness of the place, one can very well experience the warmth of the people. Maggie should be made the staple food of all cold places. I remember our 'meri wali Maggie' experience when we went to Uttarakhand last year. It is such a bliss! My parents and sister who do not have it do not know what are they missing in life. Thank God that Aashi and Darsh relish it as much as Abhi and I do (Well, that does reduce our share though everytime :-D but sharing is good indeed ;-) ) 

We took our driver Mansoor's suggestion and stopped in a shop to take gumboots, snow jackets and gloves for hire. After having dumped the whole pile in the backseat we continued and reached our hotel Vintage by 7:30PM. The hotel seem to be one of the best in town. It was dark by the time we reached but outside the hotel we could see layers of snow from the winter months settled all around and yet to melt. Children were so excited to touch the snow for the first time. We were given a very warm welcome by the hotel folks and the place seemed to be very nice and warm. Reminded me of the hotel in Dharamshala back in 2002. 

The first thing served to us while we waited at the reception was Kehwa, their local drink in a kullad. Ah! It was just what I needed after the drive. It had a strong taste of kalanji and had grated almonds. With every sip I felt so good, the sweetish strong taste lingered on. Mummy and Didi did not like it and I was quick to have their shares too. 

We had a good night sleep as rooms are very nice and the view from window is that of snow clad mountains. Cannot get enough of them, yet! 

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It's 7AM of the Day 3 as I start to narrate the Day 2.

Day 2 (9th April): Gulmarg - Gondola ride 

Started by waking up early and writing this blog and doing some photography. We had breakfast and got ready to leave for gondola visit. And I thought 'gondola' is a term used for boats as we did in Venice. But here it referred to the cable car which took you till the peak of the mountains. We spent or rather wasted more than an hour deciding on how to go and what to do. We had hired a guide forehand who took care of the being in the queue early morning for the tickets. We had to decide on whether to go walking or take sledge or a car. We left those decisions with Abhi and made the most of the time by playing in snow outside. Mummy had a cut gumboot and was getting upset about it while Didi thought the children are not well protected enough. 

It was interesting to know that in every town only the local taxis can ply and so the taxi we got from Srinagar could not be used in other towns for site seeing. We also got to know that there are unions of sledge walas, horseriders, taxis etc and one cannot intrude in other's space. After much ado at 10:30AM we finally gave in to the pressures of the local union guys forcing us to take the sledge ride. And glad that we went for it! The sledge is a 2 feet long and 0.5 foot wide wooden structure like a plate with a rope tied in front. One has to sit on the sledge with feet on a bar and hold onto another rope near the feet. Very simple but effective mode of transport. The sledge bearers then manually pull the long rope and take you through the snow till your destination. After much apprehensions everyone finally settled for the ride. Once it started, what a joy it was to glide through the snow and enjoy the snow all around. Did feel pity for the people who dragged the sledges with our weights. But so much so for a living. The sledge rides and the helpers do charge a lot for their services but it's understandable from their viewpoint. I was shouting all along and managed to click video while struggling to hold the sledge with one hand :D Once the madness pours in then it goes a long way for me ;-)

After a good 40 minutes of sledge ride we reached the gondola point where there was another queue to get into the Gondola. The kids started to get cranky due to the numbness in the feet and unbearable cold. Mummy realized that she had lost one of her diamond earrings which acted as a further mood spoiler. The hired jackets, boots and gloves were the savior and was a good decision to take them in advance. I was pretty chilled about the whole experience and enjoyed thoroughly. 

Once in the Gondola, we forgot all our problems because within 30 seconds the view all the way down took us by surprise. It was extremely beautiful. Everywhere we saw down were long trees, houses roof covered with snow, footprints. So much of white for the eyes that the heart automatically feels at peace. 

In 10 minutes the eyes were soaked by the views of snow and if that was not enough when we reached the peak the view was even more beautiful. It started to snow light and was very windy and breezy. There were many tourists but with the fog the visibility started to diminish. All around there were small stalls of tea,coffee and kahwa. Then there were people trying to coax the tourists for a sledge or scooter or skii rides. At some distance we could see a huge area with plastic tents under which were chairs and tables and containers with wood and fire acting as fire places. Our guide took us to one of these tables at the far end and was very helpful in making quick arrangements to make us comfortable. 

The people generally are very nice and they ensured that kids are comfortable and warm in no time. We were very hungry and ordered kahwa, maggies, biryani, pulao and what not to refuel us for the way back. We had plans to play in snow but the weather was a spoiler and the kids went uncontrollable. So we had to head back for the return trip of gondola. This time most of us did not want to take the sledge again and so our guide arranged a local car transport to take us back to the hotel. Since it was a small car, Abhi and I walked with the guide half way through till the car came back to pick us. It was a beautiful walk and we used the time and opportunity to click some nice couple pics. The guide seemed like a photography enthusiast too. And why not when he had such a lovely couple modelling ;-)

Once back to the room in comfortable clothes we took a much needed nap till 5PM after which we decided to take a stroll till the nearby temple. This is the temple where the famous song 'jai jai shiv shanker' from an old time hit hindi movie featuring Rajesh Khanna and Mumtaz was shot. The weather was perfect with sun glistening above the snow clad mountains. It was a smallish temple with 100 steps. We came back and had a quiet evening and dinner and hit the bed by 10PM.


Day 3 (10th April): Gulmarg to Pahalgam

After a good filling breakfast we headed for Pahalgam at around 10AM. It is a 3 hours drive though we reached only by 4PM as took halts to buy condiments and kesar etc. On our way saw apple orchards on both the sides and can only imagine what it would be like in peak season. The trees were loaded with white flowers and there were huge patches of the beautiful mustard plants. The driver had put the perfect songs throughout, the old hindi numbers and kept telling us about the different locations in Kashmir where they were shot. 

On our way we also visited a 9th century Avantipura temple which was only ruins of some pillars. The only significance I could gather was that the famous song 'tere bina zindagi se shikwa..' was shot. I had a feeling that since we have seen and enjoyed snow in Gulmarg, the next two places will not be as much mesmerizing. But how wrong was I! As we neared our next destination, the Pahalgam village we saw a big stream of river alongside following us all the way. 

From a distance when I saw our next destination hotel 'The Villagio' I knew this is going to be wonderful. We had to walk a flight of steps after parking the vehicle at the base. It is a boutique hotel where every corner is so beautifully adorned that I could not take my fingers off the camera button. Most antique stuff like old windows with colored glass, wooden old doors, lanterns, old suitcases, antique silverware vessels, pretty colorful flowers and what not! We ordered some pakodas, french fries and tea to refresh ourselves and then headed for the local Pahalgam market which was only a kilometer away. Even the feel of the local streets is so different. There is a simplicity about this place. People are very warm and polite and very often one is greeted with smiles from strangers. There is a rawness in which they speak. A sincerity too. It warms your heart and you feel good. I guess a very important aspect for any tourist place.

We returned back and had a fantastic dinner served on the table. Unlike buffet system here they ensured that the guests were served on the table. Simple food served with love just doesn't fill your stomach but your hearts too. 

The rooms were unique and antique too. Each bed had a bed-pad which can be heated through the remote connected beside it. I loved this  concept. Such a respite from the cold.

Day 4 (11th May): Pahalgam - Viewing the view points & pony ride - Most eventful day of the trip

We were not very sure about the next day's plans as it was extremely cold and had rained throughout the night. But what a day it was! Though it did rain on and off but we were able to make the most of the day. After breakfast of chola puri and poha we hired a taxi to take us to 3 view points. The views enroute were nothing less than 'jannat'! 

First destination was Aru valley which had the most picturesque view so far. The valley was lush green and the clouds were so low against the high snow clad mountains. We purchased some local walnuts here. 
Next destination was Chandanwadi which had a huge glacier near which we stopped and had maggie and tea. 
The last view point was Betaab valley where the hit movie Betaab was shot. That was more like a garden with streams of water and trees all around. Much hyped.

Next was the much recommended pony rides. These offer packages for multiple other view points. Thankfully the rains had stopped and we could go for this one. What an experience! Adventure, fear, fun! There were 3 guides amongst the 5 horses. My horse was named "Baadal" while Abhi and Aashi rode on "Sheru". Our guide was Shibbir, a very simple and sweet looking fellow. He was very polite and took good care of us. We had no clue that the horses will tread through the mountains and the muddy, rocky uneven high steeps. It was extremely scary to start with and all our eyes were only focused on the hooves of the horses. They slowly and with such precision rode on the thin edges of the valley. Real respect for the intelligence of the horses and their care takers too. Isn't easy to manage this whole stuff and moreover with scared shouting tourists! Gradually we were a little more comfortable. We were told to bend in front when the horses took the uphill and bend at the back when downhill lest we topple. I was singing all throughout and managed clicking pictures here too. Slowly I diverted my concentration from the horses to the view surrounding us. 

It took us around one and a half hours to reach the final destination named "Mini Switzerland". Shibbir took us via a different route. We reached a little before the others. It was a huge patch of green land with food stalls in one corner and many vendors selling shawls. It was surrounded by snow clad mountains with huge pine trees. This view had become the new normal here. We spent around 20 minutes here clicking pictures before we headed back for the descent. The descent was faster, about an hour and we were much confident. I guess Abhi and Didi had a tough time since they carried kids too. For a stretch of 15 minutes or so the guides took the kids in their laps, left us on our own with the horses to take their own paths. So much of manual effort and so effortlessly carried! We all were so happy with the overall experience that each felt we had conquered some war. After a generous tip to the horse caretakers and clicking pictures with them and the smiles on their faces, we relaxed in the stream outside the hotel before heading back to the resort. Had an early dinner and called it a day all excited about the next one. Actually we were skeptical about the next day plan as well as it was declared a bandh in Srinagar.

Day 4 (12th May): Pahalgam to Srinagar

We started off a little early by 8:30AM the next day for Srinagar. On our way we visited a carpet making factory Ali Shaw & brothers. It was a typical old style workshop kind of place where a soft kashmiri song played in the background and  around 12 men hand weaving the carpets on vertical structures of fine threads. Each carpet takes around 2 to 9 years to complete. Such an art and what finesse! Adjoining the workshop was a big hall full of carpets and other handmade stuff. We got to see and feel some real pashminas here. The cost was as high as 400 thousand! 

To me the journey towards Srinagar left me a little sad. As we neared the city I could feel that the rawness and beauty was being left behind. We were heading towards a more city-like place. Nonetheless the stay was very nice :)

We checked in around 1PM to the Nigeen cottage, recommended by Nivalink. It was a homestay of sorts run by a lady Shakila. We were impressed since the first glance of it. It had a huge adjoining garden with a large variety of plants and trees. The entry was through a small door very pretty and well decorated which led to the foyer followed by a main entrance which had the dining table and a kashmiri setup corner seating. This led to another common area which had yet another dining but this one was the kashmiri style one with a round table and cushions around it to be served on the ground. It had stairs adjoining it that led to the rooms upstairs. It instantly gave a homely feel. 






Freshened up and went to the tulip garden. shopped in coop. returned back and didi checked out some pashminas. Had dinner. she made special egg plant ka yakini. a special chicken dish for Abhi. Next day for breakfast we had Lavasa (kashmiri roti) and aloo sabji. Srinagar was bandh for today as well but somehow convinced the driver to take us till Sonmarg.