Encouraged by my friends to continue putting my thoughts in my blog, I am starting this 3 part series on our trip to Kashmir last year on Christmas holidays. The first part covers Srinagar city, the second part is on Gulmarg and concludes with Sonmarg. We had planned for this trip way one month in advance and I suggest everyone to do so. The first point to ponder was how to get there? Quite a difficult question as there are multiple options but considering we had very less time, air travel was the most suitable(quite expensive one also)option available to us. Trains to Jammu are generally full at this time of the year. Air ticket booking was done on GoAir flight from Delhi to Srinagar which costs around 3500 bucks per head if you book early.
So our journey starts from Delhi airport on board GoAir Airbus A-320 flight to Srinagar. We left ground at around 12 noon and in just half n hour were witnessing one of the most spectacular views on earth, the great Himalayas. You can never imagine the sheer size and beauty of these great mountains unless you fly over them. I had never thought that earth looks so beautiful with its snow clad mountains and valleys from above.
In 2 hours time we reached Srinagar airport. The first thing that you notice on Srinagar arrival is that the aircraft has been surrounded by heavily armed security guards which reminds you that this is no ordinary Indian city. Within half n hour we were outside the airport. Srinagar is no different from any other Indian city with its usual traffic and crowd. What makes it different is the presence of Indian Armed Forces in every nook and corner of the city, though their numbers have declined considerably now.
We met one Yousuf bhai at airport and he offered us to drop to a houseboat which he knew very well. It took us around 30 minutes to reach the famous Dal lake. House boats of different shapes and sizes with Shikaras moving between them dotted the landscape. We took one shikara to our house boat. The house boat was quite beautiful with all the facilities though they charged 1600 bucks per day which included breakfast and dinner. After resting for a while we took the same shikara for a ride around the lake.
Dal lake is one of the largest lake in Srinagar and is famous for it house boats and shikaras. Other places of interest around Dal lake are Nehru Park and Char Chinar(4 chinar trees in the centre of the lake). Shankaracharya temple can be seen on the top of the northern side of the mountains. It was getting dark and temperature was falling rapidly so we moved back to the warmth of our house boat. The other attraction in Srinagar is the Shankaracharya temple, situated on the top of the mountains but unfortunately no cameras and cellphones are allowed inside for security reasons so we could not photograph Srinagar from the top.
Srinagar was the summer capital of the Mughals and they have built beautiful gardens all over Srinagar – Mughal Garden, Nishat Bagh, Nasim Bagh, Shalimar Garden and Chashm-e-Shahi Garden. Though at this time of the year it looked barren. The best time to visit these gardens is during May-June when the flowers are at full bloom. Apart from the gardens there is Hazratbal Dargah and the local market to be seen. Rest there is not much to be seen in the city. Venturing out in the night is not recommend even in the main city. Two decades of militancy has taken its toll in the valley and you can’t experience it unless you visit the city. Tired after this whole day enjoyment it was time to hit the bed. Next day it was time to explore Gulmarg.
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