Article #76 : The Kashmir Diaries

Kashmir is known as “The Paradise on Earth”. It is a universally acknowledged fact and I am nowhere an exception to disagree. In fact, those who have visited this place like me will strongly agree. It’s been a week now and I can’t get enough of those mountains. Still, I feel as if they are Infront of my eyes. The Snowcapped mountains that are blue and white in color, the various types of Chinar, Poplar, Deodar, Pine trees, the lakes and rivers, the valleys, mesmerize you as you travel all the way in Kashmir. Someone said it right, Kashmir is not a destination, it is a journey, a beautiful journey that should never end. Well, in this article, I am here to describe my Kashmir journey and highlight why it is important for you to visit this place at least once in your lifetime.  

Before I start describing my journey, I think it is important to share my obsession with Kashmir.  

It was July 2019 when I was planning for my third solo trip and came across Kashmir. Google took me to a website where I happened to chat with a travel agent, shared my contact and eventually tried planning the trip. But unfortunately, it turned out to be cyber fraud. Although I took it as an experience and started dealing with the fraud, the trip to Kashmir was something that imbibed on my mind.  

That was the beginning, I started thinking about Kashmir. I started following those pages on Facebook and Instagram. Even I started reading about Kashmir on the very famous Quora. Coincidentally two things happened when I was supposed to visit Kashmir in August 2019. Firstly, I fell sick completely on that week and secondly, Article 370 was abrogated for Jammu and Kashmir. There were military forces deployed in the valley and a kind of lockdown took place. All the tourists were sent back from the valley. If I had been there, I would have experienced a lot of inconvenience during the trip. 

Moving ahead in 2019, the conditions in the Kashmir valley were not suitable for the visit as even Internet services were shutdown followed by harsh winters. In the meantime, 2020 arrived along with the infamous Corona Virus. The world also experienced a series of lockdowns. My obsession with Kashmir only started growing. I learnt so many things about the place, the history, culture, food, economy, present conditions and what not. In fact, I released two episodes on my Podcast with the story of Kashmir. There were times when I used to dream of visiting Kashmir. But as soon as I woke up, the reality was quite different. If there was a video or an online post or a web series or a movie anywhere about Kashmir, it started attracting me like a magnet. The covid stayed for a long time by not allowing people to travel much.  

2020, 2021 and 2022 passed by. Finally, 2023 arrived with some rays of hope for me to travel to Kashmir. My personal life as well screwed up pushing me for the solo trip to Kashmir. This time, I didn’t want to go with any travel agents. So, I booked the flight and hotel tickets on my own. I read some blogs and did a lot of research on where and how to visit the best places in Kashmir without taking anyone’s help in the worst-case scenario. But luckily, my best friend’s colleague is from Srinagar, Kashmir. Since the transport is not well-developed in the Kashmir valley, I need to go for a Private Taxi. Since I got a trusted contact in my circle, I went ahead and made a deal with the cousins of my best friend’s colleague in Srinagar.  

I was very excited that finally almost after 4 years of obsession, I was going to see the most beautiful place on earth. I was ready with my checklist and the trip plan for 7 days. But exactly, 2 days before my journey, I got viral fever. I was afraid and took the tablets immediately although I avoid a day or two otherwise. But it didn’t come under control. I was afraid that it was not Covid again since the cases started rising suddenly. I experienced the worst nightmares of cancelling the trip. Even on the day of journey, I was weak and not completely alright. Still, I packed my bags and started moving forward leaving everything on God. 

It was 29th April 2023. I had my evening flight to Amritsar at 4:25 PM. I was ready by 1 PM and tried booking an auto to catch the bus that goes to the airport. But it took almost 40 minutes for someone to accept the auto ride. Although it was cool in the morning due to heavy rain last night, the climate changed drastically in the afternoon, and it became hot. Adding insult to the injury was the traffic that ate my time while reaching the bus stop. Strangely, I never had to wait for the bus during my previous trips. But this time, I had to wait for 15-20 minutes and finally the bus arrived. I did feel bad looking at the bus driver as he stopped the bus at various locations to make it full of the passengers. On top of it, the conductor enabled the driver to stop the bus until he collects all the tickets and I questioned myself on why he couldn’t collect the same in the moving bus. I was afraid that I would miss the flight owing to these reasons.  

But just 40 minutes before the departure, I arrived at the airport. I already received a call stating that the check-in baggage counter was closed. Still, I thought of giving it a try and visited the counter. They denied my baggage since I was late. I requested them in a pleasing way, and they asked me to handover the baggage directly at the flight boarding gate counter in the next 5 minutes and if that was not possible, they could not help me further. I went through the security checks and started running fast towards the boarding gate. Finally, I was able to pass on my luggage at the counter and got onto the flight. I was the last person to enter the flight full of sweat, uncombed hair (due to the bus travel), and a reverse direction belt hanging half of it out (due to security checks and lack of time to adjust). I asked myself if the adventure had already begun at the airport. At the same time, I thanked God for giving me enough courage and strength to get into the flight after all that happened since last 2 days. 

It was 4:30 PM in the evening when our flight started from Hyderabad. Since the flight timings as well as the flight costs were quite uncomfortable for me if I take a flight from Hyderabad to Srinagar with a connecting flight from Delhi of course, I decided to take the flight from Hyderabad to Amritsar on Saturday, rest for the night in Amritsar and then take the flight to Srinagar from Amritsar the next morning. I even thought that I could visit the world-famous Golden Temple in Amritsar. But at the end of the day, only that is written in the destiny is bound to happen. 

Unlike the previous bookings, this time I had chosen MakeMyTrip to book my flight tickets and the hotels. One advantage that it provided me with was choosing my exact seat for the flight. So, obviously I had chosen the window seats for all my flight journeys. But the least did I knew was that I would be learning the flip side of sitting in a window seat. 

Coming back to the story, although the flight started, I was still sweating due to the so-called mini adventure that I had at the airport. I felt like using the washroom to fresh up. But there were two ladies sitting beside me and I was quite hesitant to ask them for a way since I already arrived late in the flight. At the same time, I felt a little weak and damn hungry since I had only two plates of Idly and coconut water since morning due to my poor health condition. However, I had to admit that there was something magic about these flight journeys. Physically, I was weak. But mentally, I was active. I was on clouds and cloud Nine at the same time.  

In the meantime, the air hostess started serving food to everyone in the flight as if she heard and understood my hunger. It was almost 5:30 in the evening, I got completely relaxed and started having the evening snack food that they provided in the flight. Having food on an on-going flight is always one of its kinds of experience. Watching the clouds and having a hot Pav Bhaji, cool drink and Choco lava cake enabled me to become physically active person in a while. I could see the girl beside me reading the famous book, “Ikigai: The Japanese secret to a long and happy life” and soon fell in sleep. 

Another hour passed by, and I reached Delhi. I could see the wonderful Lotus Temple from the flight and like any other city, the aerial view of Delhi was just amazing.  

Finally, I got freshened up and started roaming in the Delhi airport after finishing the mandatory security checks for the connecting flight. It was a large airport and there were so many food stalls. The Carnatic Café impressed me with its ambience and food. I had my favorite Onion Uthappam although it was high in cost. I reached the boarding gate for the Amritsar flight and called my friend’s colleague to inform him that I had started. During the conversation, I told him that I was not completely fine and had traces of weakness due to the viral fever since the last 2 days. He instantly made me feel relaxed by saying that his own uncle is a doctor. I was quite relieved that I was going to meet some known friendly people in Kashmir who would take care of me even if something went wrong. 

Ultimately, I got onto the flight to Amritsar around 9 PM. The exciting part about solo trips is you get a chance to meet new people, make new friends, listen to their stories and share your own stories. If not getting a chance to talk to people, at least you get a chance to observe people. Where on earth can we find diverse people with diverse cultures and diverse traditions except in my India? The flight was mostly occupied by Sikh people whose homeland is Punjab. The Turban that they wear gives them a unique look. After Kashmir, I was fascinated towards Punjab, maybe because it is the neighboring state and famous for its delicious food. Only a foodie like me can appreciate the Chole Batture and the variety of Parathas that Punjab offers. Strangely, I felt so good watching those people and the way they talk.  

Beside me sat a newlywed Punjabi couple. Both the guy and the girl looked good and simply they were like made for each other. The guy was highly romantic and continuously conversed with the girl during the journey along with kissing her every now and then. I wonder how he ignored all the co-passengers in the flight. Apart from the unknown people, I noticed that the guy’s parents were sitting just in the side row. Still, he was in his own world with the girl.  

Soon, the flight reached Amritsar and guess who welcomed me at the airport? The mosquitoes. There were so many cab drivers reaching out to the passengers landing from the flights at the airport. Since the cabs turned out to be costly even for my hotel that was of just 2 Kilometers from the airport, I opted for an auto. Here I got my first friend on the trip, Sukha Singh, the auto driver. I inquired him about visiting the Golden Temple. He said that it would be open from 2:30 AM in the night and since he was doing night shift on that day, he could take me to the temple anytime once it gets opened. But it was already 11:30 PM at night and it would take another 1 or 2 hours for me to go to sleep completely. Moreover, I had the flight the next morning at 9:30 AM and I should be there in the airport at least by 7:30 or 8:00 AM. Already I experienced the chasing adventure at Hyderabad airport. I thought that I couldn’t get minimum sleep for the night since the temple visit would take at least 2 and half to 3 hours from the airport. So, I felt that would be risky and above all, my health was only ok and not completely fine. Hence, I told him that I would visit Amritsar some day and visit the Golden Temple leisurely. 

Sukha Singh dropped me at the hotel late at night. I checked in the room only to find out that I could not lock the room from inside, there was neither towel nor soap that were arranged before I explicitly asked them. It was so hot inside the room due to the summer effect although it was normal outside. Not sure if it was out of excitement that I would be finally visiting Kashmir after being obsessed with it since last 4 hours or was out of anxiety whether I would be able to reach the destination safe on the next day, I was unable to sleep for a long time. It was just a sort of rest taken in the room. Somewhere in the night around 2:30 AM, I slept and woke up with the alarm at 6:30 AM. Another disappointment added to the list, there was no hot water. The hotel management checked it and simply said it was not working with a vague smile. I had no words to say at that moment, but obviously thought it would reflect in their rating. 

Sukha Singh arrived in the morning to pick me up again as soon as I called him. He safely dropped me at the airport again saying some things about Amritsar. He promised to show me the city next time I pay a visit. I saved his contact and moved on. It might sound odd, but one feel good moment on the way was when I saw something written in Punjabi language. Might be because it conveyed to me that I was in a different place than in my city.  

There were two things which made me worry a little since the day I was planning this trip. Any guesses? Not the terrorism in the Kashmir valley as I always have full trust and confidence on our Indian Army. One was the rise in Covid cases in the country and another was the rise of Khalistan Movement in Punjab. I heard the Separatist and Preacher of Khalistan, Amritpal Singh was hiding in the Golden Temple Amritsar and there was an internet blackout in the city. But luckily, he was arrested just a week before my trip and normalcy was restored. As far as the covid cases were concerned, I was relieved as and when my friend’s colleague confirmed that they had a doctor in their relatives, and they would take care of me.  

Moving on to the story again, I reached Amritsar airport and checked in the baggage. I felt the security checks were tight at the airport compared to the other airports. It might be because of the separatist movement that happened recently in Punjab. I couldn’t find something better to eat as there were only bakery items at the airport. Soon, I got onto the flight to Kashmir.  

I was just waiting eagerly for the destination to arrive. But before that, the flight provided me with a view of the snowcapped mountains. It was the first time in my life that I saw snow from the flight, and it was so beautiful. I quickly started taking the video. I could feel the versatility of my trips since I experienced beaches in my last trip to Pondicherry and now, I was about to experience the mighty mountains or the Himalayas in this trip to Kashmir. The aerial view of Srinagar appeared amazing yet quite different for me when compared to other cities because in Mumbai or Delhi or Hyderabad, I could see those tall buildings, the skyscrapers from the flight whereas in Srinagar, I could only see the ordinary houses with lush green meadows. Later, I got to know that there was never a concept of flats or apartments in Srinagar. However, at the same time, it is one of the well-developed cities of India.   

As soon as the flight landed in Kashmir, I noticed my prepaid mobile sim stopped working. Even today, due to the insurgency and instability in the Kashmir valley, only postpaid mobile sims or local sims work. I asked the mobile operator before taking the postpaid sim and he said that calls could be traced only through the postpaid sim. As my postpaid sim was working, I received a call from the cab driver, Absar Bhai. I quickly collected my checked in baggage from the conveyor belt and moved out of the airport. 

The first step outside the airport was very special for me since I started experiencing the chill along with the Sun in the Kashmir valley. In general, if it is a sunny day anywhere, I prefer to stay indoors or inside the vehicles (if travelling) for most of the time. But for the first time in my life, I had to change my preference because it was too good outside with that cold air touching the body along with the Sun.  

Absar Bhai received me with a warm welcome and we started on our way to the hotel. I felt so good looking at the roads, the Indian Army (2 soldiers in every street), and the mighty mountains. I became too curious to know each nook and corner of the city. Although I didn’t eat anything since morning, I felt my stomach was full looking all around, looking at the place that I had been dreaming to visit since last 4 years. Still, we stopped at a Punjabi restaurant, and I had the famous chole Batture. Again, I preferred eating it outdoors rather than indoors. It was spicy, but I felt as if the cold air touched my taste buds and made it cool. Quickly, we reached the Jannat Guest House, the hotel that I booked for my stay.  

Introducing Mr. Billal, the owner and Tauseef, the servant of Jannat Guest House. They too received me well. I heard of the hospitality that people from Kashmir offer and then I started experiencing it. Tauseef cleaned a room and arranged it for me. I asked for a bottle of water and when he gave it, my question to him was did he bring it from Freeze? He smiled and replied that the water would be that cool in Kashmir. He also told me about the electric cable that was inserted in the blanket of the bed to make it warm during the nights. He asked me not to pour water or any other liquids on the bed by mistake and not to cover up the blanket as that could result in electric shock. 

It was an ordinary room with a large bed and wooden wall. After that disappointing room in Amritsar, I felt good staying in the room in Srinagar. I took a rest for a while answering those curious friends who started asking me about the place after looking at my WhatsApp status and came out only to see a mighty mountain just from the hotel entrance. I could also find veg hotels beside my guest house.  

After an hour, Absar Bhai arrived, and I started my trip in Srinagar. My first destination was Shankaracharya Temple. It was on top of the Shankaracharya Hill located opposite Dal Lake. The uphill journey in the car was amazing with a lot of turns. I felt it to be accident prone. But I noticed there were so many vehicles on the way. As soon as I reached the temple, there was a security check followed by around 240 steps to reach the presiding deity. The steps were of a certain height and for someone like me not having such sort of major physical exercise throughout the day in general, it would be difficult to go through. I felt tired only after taking 15-20 steps, but the excitement and willpower to reach the top for the darshan only let me keep going with the chanting, “Har Har Mahadev” along with the fellow Travellers. I encountered a couple from Chennai on the way who also knew Telugu. It always feels good when you talk with someone in your native language in such places. They were surprised to know that I was a solo traveler. I gave a smile and moved on. 

At last, I reached the top of the hill and found a mesmerizing view of Srinagar city. I completed my darshan first and then started taking snaps. The temple was so enchanting with a large shiva lingam and a priest chanting mantra. I even saw the place where Shankaracharya worshipped Lord Shiva and found it beautiful. It was a sunny day with the cold air touching the body and I was on top of the hill. I took some time roaming around the temple taking snaps from my mobile and camera. For some reason, I felt like not going down might be because of the spiritual atmosphere. But soon I received a call from Absar Bhai, and I had to start moving down the steps. On my way back, I saw so many people still climbing the stairs to have the darshan. There were even old women not only from India, but also from other countries. One of them asked me about the number of stairs left and I told her that they were left with only a few more steps. Since I read the info that the temple closing time would be 3 PM, I passed on the same to them. Another woman was scared if she would miss the darshan and started moving fast. I tried to calm her down by saying that she still had 50 minutes and she would reach the top in another 10 minutes and have her darshan. She smiled and moved on.  

There were lot of differences between my previous trips and this trip to Kashmir. The major one was hiring a cab for which there were both pros and cons. Talking about the positive side, it was the place with less transport facility and to a lesser extent, there was still insurgency and instability in the Kashmir valley although we hear that nothing as such happened in the tourist areas since the economy of Kashmir majorly depends on the tourism. So, hiring a cab would be the best option for a hassle-free travel. Secondly, in such a place having people whom you could trust was equally important. However, on the contrary, you would not have freedom as you need to be ready at the time the driver picks up and somehow move according to their plan. You could not even visit as many places as you plan since the so-called travel agents restrict your movement and of course everything would come at some cost. I understood this when Absar Bhai hesitatingly revealed on the first day that they would take me only to 3 places a day in Srinagar although they were charging 2.5k per day and it came out as a shock for me since they have hidden that fact from me since the time, we had been planning this trip over the phone calls. 

Coming back to the story, as soon as I came down the steps, I found Poori and Halwa served everyone. I was a little unsure whether to eat or not, keeping my health in mind. But again, I thought that I should have it as Prashad in small quantity. So, I had it and got into the cab for my next destination which was the shikara ride on Dal Lake.  

Dal lake is a vast lake with an area of 22kms with colorful shikaras all over it. The boat rider took me over 7 spots in the lake, the first one which he showed me was the houseboat wherein the famous Door Darshan serial was shot named, “Gul Gulshan Gulfam”. It might sound surprising for you if I say that I recollected the serial name after the trip and started watching it on YouTube only due to the reason that I had been obsessed with Kashmir. I got to know a few more new things about Kashmir after watching the show like how the life of a houseboat owner would be and what are the problems that they usually face, how Gulmarg and Pahalgam had been the major tourist destinations since the 1980’s.  

Moving on, the second spot was a park and the third one was the water activities place. The fourth one being the major spot, a mountain view. The boat rider took some snaps at me at that spot. In between, another shikara arrived towards us asking me to taste Kashmiri Kahwa Chai. As it was registered in my mind, I immediately said yes, and I must say it was too good. The boat rider took me to a spot wherein I tasted Paneer and walnut chutney. It was also good. Another boat rider came on the way and forced me to take some items that he had like chains, hookah, etc. But I smoothly denied. I was asked if I would like to do any water activities and sports on the lake. I smoothly denied it as I was busy enjoying the natural beauty of the surrounding mountains and the pristine Dal Lake. I could see there were a lot of shops with groceries, clothing, food, daily essentials and what was not being sold on the lake. The fifth spot was the vegetable marketplace. People staying in the nearby villages arrive early in the morning and arrange a floating vegetable market in the Dal Lake which is very famous in Srinagar.  The Sixth spot was the place where the lotus stem (Nadru in Kashmiri language) grows. The last spot was also some field that he showed. I again got the call from Absar Bhai to complete the shikara ride soon as it was almost evening, and the Mughal Gardens would be closed for site seeing. It was something which I didn’t like again as I wanted to experience everything leisurely, but someone was behind me, and I had to go according to their plan.  

My third destination was Chashme-Shahi, one of the Mughal Gardens in Srinagar. It was beautiful and I took some snaps everywhere. But I felt ladies would enjoy it more than me. Moreover, there would be a lot of hidden history behind the garden which the tourist guides would narrate. Absar Bhai’s cousin Abrar was my guide, and he was the one with whom I had the complete deal. All the financial transactions would be dealt with by him. In fact, he had assigned Absar as the cab driver for me. I heard he was busy taking care of another client who unfortunately fell sick in Kashmir. That was the reason he was not there with me for the first 4 days. In three ways, it was good for me because I was able to save some 3.2k in the first place and for the remaining two reasons, I would like to keep them as suspense elements at this point to keep you hooked.  

Once again, moving back to the story, after Chashme-Shahi Garden, I visited Botanical Garden which was a large one. I could say both were equally good with tall trees, small waterfalls and various kinds of flowers in the backdrop of mighty mountains. I was curious to know the cotton falling all around the road from the so-called poplar trees. Absar Bhai introduced me to the poplar trees and told me that cotton is infectious and that it could cause cough, cold and fever. 

It was almost 7 PM after I completed roaming around the garden and with much difficulty, we were able to find one shop that had coconut water. I had it to eliminate the heat inside my body due to the spicy food available. Absar Bhai dropped me at the guest house, and I took a rest for a while. I went to the hotel beside my guest house for dinner. It was fine yet incomplete since he did not provide curd. When I asked the hotel owner who was from Uttarakhand about it, he told me that people would prefer to have curd during the summers only for three months and after that, no one would touch it. I was surprised on why they did not arrange it even during the summers. It was cold at night. I made the blanket warm with the electric cable and went to sleep keeping my fingers crossed for the days ahead in Kashmir. 

It was 4:10 AM in the morning. I felt there was some mosque near to my guest house with which the Muslim prayers started early in the morning with loudspeakers and made me awake. Personally, there shouldn’t be such loud noises coming from mosques or churches or temples disturbing the public. After some time, I again fell asleep only to wake up to the alarm at 6:30 AM. Absar Bhai asked me to be ready by 7:30 AM. But I found the absence of hot water in the washroom although Tauseef Bhai promised to provide it by 7:00 AM on the previous day. Since I did not have his number by then, I tried calling Mr. Bilal. After following up with him twice and Tauseef checking in the washroom, finally they provided the hot water. Quickly I got ready and got into the cab with Absar Bhai. Mr. Bilal tried to ask me a few questions about my cab package and all, but as Absar Bhai suggested on the previous day, I tried to skip his questions and did not provide any concrete response.  

We started our journey to Sonamarg(Meadows of Gold). According to my research, there are 3 places to visit in Sonamarg, The Thajiwas Glacier, Zojila pass and Zero point. But Abrar Bhai said that there would be nothing at Zojila pass and Zero point and moreover, they would be on the way to Kargil, the highway towards Ladakh. So, I was left with only one option to visit the Thajiwas Glacier. I felt it to be compromising although I had been giving them a hefty amount for the tour.  

It was early in the morning around 7:30 AM. I could see life had started for the people again in Srinagar. I found cute little kids waiting eagerly for their respective school buses along with their mothers. They were so white and red in their skin color due to their stay in the mountainous region. I even found the Indian Army soldiers along with sniffer dogs checking the corners of the roads for any suspicious activities. I felt so good taking the early morning journey in the picturesque Kashmir valley. The houses were quite different, with large gates Infront. Going through the mini roads of downtown Srinagar, I had a question mark after observing each and everything on the way. The varieties of vegetables, the type of dresses people wear, the kind of houses built, I was curious to know each and everything about them although I got information about a few things during the journey. The type of dress that they wear is called Kashmir Pheran, a traditional dress that is made up of cotton or wool to protect them from the cold, especially snow. The new vegetables that I found were some variety of bottle guards and Lettuce. Absar Bhai stopped for a while in between to handover some baggage to his brother-in-law Kesar Bhai.  

Slowly we crossed Srinagar and the natural beauty only kept growing all the way along. I felt very hungry as it was almost 3 hours since I woke up and did not have anything in the morning. Absar Bhai stopped me at Raja Dhaba and as soon as I stepped out, I felt it to be so cool with the wind blowing although it was a sunny day. I sat inside the hotel with my hands folded to get rid of the cold. During our conversations the previous day, Absar Bhai understood that my body could not tolerate spicy food. So, he asked the people at the hotel to prepare the Gobi Paratha without chili powder or spice. They brought it in an ordinary, non-spicy way and I loved it along with the sour pickle. Since I was damn hungry at that time, I asked them to prepare one more. They were quite happy, and this time brought the Gobi Paratha with chili powder added to it. Although I loved it, I was little afraid whether my body would support it or not.  

We resumed our journey, and I was awestruck with the mountainous views. I started seeing snow for the first time in my life. I was equally amazed with the flowing rivers between the rocks everywhere. Soon, we reached Sonamarg and my phone was filled with the videos taken throughout the journey.  

As soon as I got out of the car in Sonamarg, at least 8-10 people surrounded me for various reasons. One would like to ask for pony ride, another would like to join me as a helper, one more to take photos on my way to Thajiwas Glacier, another old man to sell hat and hand gloves, last but not the least, one more man to rent me the long shoes. I was totally confused on whom to answer. But soon I realized that you don’t have to respond, they know their own ways to make the deal and all we need to do is just go with the flow. I opted for the pony ride as it was not possible to walk or go by vehicle to the glacier. However, I refused the so-called ‘helper’ whose job was to only hold me throughout the ride so I would not be afraid. The photographer forced me to consider him at the time when I was quite uncomfortable with the horse, and I tried hard to resist him. But at some point, I felt that it would be good if there would be someone to take the pics so I could enjoy the natural beauty all along. At that moment, I understood that due to the public demand, everywhere the prices in Kashmir start with thousands of rupees and not hundreds. You would be shocked to know that 2k was the final price that I arrived with the photographer.  

It was my first pony ride in Kashmir. I must admit that I was a little afraid as there were so many ups and downs in the mountainous region. The first lesson that I learned in the ride was when you go down the hill, you need to lean back and lean front when you go up the hill. It was a sunny day with cold breeze all along and the photographer was taking the snaps. I was just enjoying the icy mountain views although there were some hurdles here and there in the pony ride. I did not like the ride so much. But to reach the glacier, there was no other option. I felt it was like a never-ending ride.  

After an hour or so, we reached the Thajiwas Glacier. I got off the horse and wanted to take a deep breath or rest for a while as there were some chairs available to sit. It appeared to me to be a tiring journey. Soon, people started coming to me to offer sledging on the snow. I was not in a good mood due to the pony ride, and I resisted it. I wanted to take as much rest as I could while watching the snow everywhere around. People started asking me to have coffee or tea or at least Maggi. Since I never had the habit of coffee or tea, I simply denied it and was not in the mood to have Maggi either. My photographer asked me to come along with him in the snow so he could take some more snaps. Since it's been a while, I started moving up the hill. Although it appears to be very near, the moment you start climbing the hill, you will get to know that the path is not that easy. I was quite careful since it was my first experience in the snow and there were high chances for me to slide here and there. After reaching a certain distance, I wanted to rest again as I felt it was hard to breathe. The photographer cooperated with me and started taking the snaps as and when he found the right time. He even encouraged me to climb even further after a while and I started moving again. He taught me how to take the snow in our hands and how to crush it for the better snaps. That was the moment I started enjoying. Never ever I thought in my dreams that I would survive in such cold weather and snow because I had tonsils back since childhood and always had cold if the climate was cool. I started loving the moment and living the moment to the fullest. I had more than 100 snaps taken along with some videos in between wherein I started even dancing for a few moments in the snow.  

After some amazing moments, we started going down the hill. The path was tricky, and you could tilt down anytime. The photographer offered his hand and helped me move down slowly. As he said, he was born and brought up in that region. So, he knows how to move carefully as he had fallen sometimes since childhood and learned to walk or run in the snow. He successfully took me down the hill although there were one or two misses when I was about to fall. As there was no mobile signal in that region, I paid him in cash and started back to the initial location in Sonamarg on the horse.  

It was almost 2 PM in the afternoon and I could see there were so many people coming on the horses to the glacier at that time. It became cloudy suddenly and appeared as if it was about to rain although there was not even a single drop of it. The hostler was talking all the way with others in Kashmiri language which I could not understand at all. The ride was completed, and I paid him around 4K.  

I started my journey again back to Srinagar with Absar Bhai. I simply fell in love with the mountains. Even on the return journey, the mighty blue mountains with white ice in between started teasing me from a long distance and I felt like just watching them for a long time. Not just the mountains, I even fell in love with the rivers that flow down the road all the way in between the rocks. Those were the sights to behold. I wanted to go down the road and sit on the rock to enjoy the river. But we moved so fast that the place passed by. Even, it was 3 PM already and I did not have my lunch.  

We reached Raja Restaurant that was also near Sonamarg. There was lot of heat developed in my body due to the food that I had been eating for the last 2 days and even due to the lack of butter milk or coconut water. Generally, mammals get impacted by the climate, if it’s cool outside, even if their body remains cool. But I was always unsure why my body remains heated up all the time even in such cold climate. So, I ordered Jeera rice, raita and butter milk. Although the hotelier asked me if he could replace Jeera rice with Kashmiri Pulao, I resisted it thinking Pulao would be spicy with chili powder added to it as I had the experience of having the spicy food everywhere in Kashmir. But life always teaches you something new, the hotelier brought raita with a lot of chili powder added to it. I wondered who on earth would add chili powder to raita? I tried asking him to replace it without chili powder, but he started saying that such kind of things should have been told before. I somehow managed to eat and finally ordered one more butter milk to cool my body. After I came out, Absar Bhai asked me if we could start. But I told him that I would like to spend some time near the river that was just beside the hotel. I felt that I was very close to nature by looking at the brown river flowing between the rocks, green trees surrounded along with the view of blue mountains. At some point, I thought life could just take a pause at that moment. Moreover, my obsession with Kashmir since the last 4 years was justified and I found it to be worthy, meaningful as it was that beautiful.  

We started moving towards Srinagar in the car. Since I had only 5-6 hours of sleep with some disturbances last night (the loud music in the mosque and Mr. Bilal shouting Tauseef for some time), I slept in the car for around an hour. As soon as I woke up, I could see the car had stopped at some point and Absar Bhai was taking some documents. I realized that I could simply trust Absar Bhai as nothing happened when I fell asleep. My bag with camera and other essentials was as it was before. Absar Bhai told us he was trying to make arrangements for the toll plaza permits and all on our way to Pahalgam tomorrow. I asked him not to take me to Pahalgam tomorrow since I noticed there was an 80% chance of precipitation the next day. But he started saying Pahalgam would be beautiful even in the rain.  

On the way, we met Faizan Bhai who was the actual colleague of my best friend Mahesh. From Mahesh who stays near to my home at Hyderabad, I got to know Faizan Bhai and from Faizan Bhai I got to know Abrar Bhai and from Abrar Bhai, I got to know Absar Bhai. I felt happy meeting him although it was our first meeting. Faizan Bhai was very friendly and talkative. He even said that he would invite me to his house on my last day in Kashmir. I thought that my curiosity to know how Kashmiri people live in their homes would be fulfilled. At that moment, Faizan Bhai revealed that Absar Bhai was going to become a father soon. I congratulated him and felt happy for him. Faizan Bhai showed me the views near to his home which he kept as the WhatsApp status few days back. I could even find Indian army convoy near to his home. I understood that Faizan Bhai helps his known contacts in travelling Kashmir. In fact, he himself is a travel buff and he loves to go camping in the mountains.  

Soon, we parted our ways and started moving towards Srinagar. Absar Bhai showed me apple fields on the way. Since he had to attend his wife’s function, he asked me if I would be comfortable if his brother-in-law Kesar Bhai would drop me at the guest house. I said that I was fine with it. Exactly, at the point where Absar Bhai met Kesar Bhai, I found coconuts available just like in Hyderabad. The previous day, the coconuts were with some cover and not in an ordinary way, but here it was in the right way. I had coconut water and started on my way to the guest house with Kesar Bhai.  

Kesar Bhai was also friendly and talkative. We talked about so many things about Kashmir in a very short span. I was impressed with his unbiased way of narrating things and even took his contact number. He showed me the houses of the Kashmiri Politicians like Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah. He even described the way things started taking a turn with the name of Srinagar Smart city project ahead of G20 Summit in Kashmir. He showed me how the barricades were removed at the places that were there before to show that the military checking and instability is no more in Kashmir. He even told how the large trees were simply pulled down at some areas in the name of development. I asked him about the impact on Kashmiri people after the abrogation of Article 370. His answer was quite convincing, he said that they don’t mind if Kashmir is part of India or Pakistan or Independent. But all they look for is jobs for young people. Before the Article 370 abrogation, it was better. But now, it has become quite tough for the youth to get employment and there are heavy taxes levied on individuals. He gave his own example and even of Absar Bhai. He told me both were educated and still running their businesses. The only reason was the lack of jobs. His clear-cut understanding of various things enabled me to discuss more. He even said that previously, people from Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (which they call Azad Kashmir) used to enter Indian Administrated Kashmir easily and even vice versa although very less people used to travel the other way to Pakistan. But now, the security is so tight that the borders are highly monitored to avoid all kinds of infiltration. He promised me to come along with me to Gurez valley in future if I happen to travel. He safely dropped me at the guest house and left for the day. 

I took a rest for a while looking at the beautiful snaps taken, had plain Maggi since I wasn’t that hungry and slept soon getting excited for my next destination, Pahalgam. 

As usual, the loud namaz from the nearby mosque woke me up around 4 AM. But I slept again, and I think it was 5:30 AM. Someone started knocking my door and I woke up with sleepy eyes. There was an old man standing Infront of me after I opened the door. He started saying that there was some leakage from my washroom. I told him that there was nothing as such and even asked him to verify if he had any doubts. He checked and left the room. There was no leakage indeed. I have this belief of not looking at anyone’s face as soon as I woke up in the morning, so I did not maintain any eye contact with him. Still the day turned out to be worse.  

I quickly got ready by 7:00 AM and went down to have breakfast at the hotel beside my guest house. I told Tauseef that I was disturbed in the morning today. He simply gave a smile after listening about the old man and slowly beat his head. It was raining continuously as Google weather stated. I went inside the hotel and had Poha for breakfast with pickles. It was good. 

Absar Bhai arrived around 8 AM and we started our journey to Pahalgam. One Kashmiri word that I became familiar after listening from Absar Bhai with in the last 2 days was Wanza which means tell me. I asked him if he could teach me Kashmiri and he said yes although it did not happen. Throughout the day, we discussed various things starting from love, marriages, the cultures, residential buildings and discovered how they are different in Hyderabad and Kashmir. I told him how a marriage became business for the girls these days, how they get support from their families although they are wrong, how they demand things from the husband and how Indian men are suffering these days due to the biased laws that simply support the girls without any proper evidence. In fact, divorces have become so common these days that we tend to hear at least one case in each family. Absar Bhai was quite shocked to hear all these things. He said that it started happening only due to the financial independence that girls are getting these days. To some extent, it is true. Although I agree to the fact that everyone needs to be financially independent irrespective of the gender, I believe no one has the right to demand another, may it can be a wife to a husband or vice versa because we are human beings, and we are attracted towards love. We can win over people only through love, not by demand or any other means. Absar Bhai said that in Kashmir, people will not marry a girl until and unless she is completely accustomed to cooking. Also, a smaller number of girls do their jobs outside and most of them are homemakers. Just like the good old days, even today, you can rarely find divorces in Kashmir.  

Coming back to the story, on our way to Pahalgam, we stopped at Pampore, the saffron town of Kashmir. The idea was to buy dry fruits. Absar Bhai took me to one of his school friends who was running a dry fruits shop in Pampore. The shopkeeper was also very friendly and welcomed us with two cups of Kashmiri Kahwah Chai. In Kashmiri language, Kah means 11 and wah means superb. So, it translates to superb with 11 ingredients. He showed me the packet of 11 ingredients and even narrated on how the Chai is made adding saffron honey and dry fruit powder. I enjoyed the amazing tea. Then he started bringing so many dry fruits like cashew, almond, walnut, pistachios, berries and even apple chips, Kashmiri chili powder and what not. Above all, he brought the famous Kashmiri saffron and showed me the difference between original saffron and a duplicate one. Take Saffron in your hand, add a drop of water to it. The original saffron remains red in color and turns the drop of water to yellow whereas the duplicate saffron changes its color from red. I was quite impressed with the way he narrated everything. He even started bringing different types of byproducts made from Saffron like the scents, deodorants, etc. Although I felt like buying everything, considering my budget in mind, I bought 9 things in the shop that includes Saffron, almond, walnut, pistachios, berries, apple chips (apples cut in pieces, dried in sunlight and stored in the packet), dry fruit powder, saffron honey and Kahwah chai masala ingredients.  

It was still raining like cats and dogs outside. I was quite hesitant to go on the trip although we had the car. Absar Bhai said the climate would be unpredictable and it could easily become sunny in no time. I felt relieved and we moved on. He showed me the exact place wherein the infamous Pulwama attack happened. He said that although the army convoy passes through one side of the road, the traffic would be stopped at the other side. The way he was talking about Indian army, it was quite evident that he as a Kashmiri Muslim does not like India and Indian army. He did not share much of his views, not sure if he did not want to reveal or did not have the grip over the subject pertaining to the Kashmir issue. He was a simple guy, good at heart and determined to do his job so much that although I call him Bhai, he never hesitated to carry my shoes when I used to change at all places. In fact, I used to feel bad as I treated him more as my friend than a cab driver. 

The road to pahalgam was good. It was a national highway that reminded me of the way from Gachibowli, Hyderabad to the Hyderabad airport with toll plazas everywhere. Although the roads were good, the never-ending rain did not let me enjoy the journey much.  

It was 12 PM in the afternoon. We stopped at a restaurant for lunch. As I said before, the day turned out to be worse, so much so that it was the disastrous experience that I had during the entire trip. I had to wait for a lot of time for lunch to arrive and it was not so good at all. I tried hard to complete the plate as I did not want to waste the food. In the meantime, I met an old couple from Bangalore who sat just opposite me. Even they were surprised that I came on a solo trip. The rain impacted them as well since they complained that their day was getting wasted due to the rain. It was only a small conversation, but I felt good talking to them and receiving their best wishes for my trip ahead. 

After lunch, I started my journey again with Absar Bhai to Pahalgam. In between, I could find some people waving with their hands to stop the car and taste their apple juice on the roadside. Soon, we reached the destination along with the rain. Absar Bhai spoke with someone on the call and that guy came towards us with an umbrella. I was sure that these people had some deals in the backend. The guy took me to a poster showing the places in Pahalgam with their cost. I told him that I would like to visit Aru Valley, Betaab Valley and Chandanwari. He said that since it was raining heavily, there could be landslides that might block the traffic in the upper regions of the road where the places that I was referring to are located. Instead, he wanted me to take a pony ride covering 7 places on the way. I started saying a big No for the Pony ride as I did not like it on the previous day. But he told me I was left with no other option after coming from a long distance to Pahalgam. In the end, I had to agree with a deal of more than 5k.  

I must say again that it was the most disastrous day of the entire trip. Although I started with the horse ride, it was quite irritating to see the mud all over the road in the down and continuous rain pouring from up. They provided a raincoat and shoes at an extra price. But still, I was not at all comfortable and could not enjoy the ride.  

The ride started from the roads of Pahalgam market and then into the forest. A small boy was assigned to me for driving the pony. When I shared with him my difficulty taking the ride, he asked me to just look at the top, the mountains and the location around so I could enjoy. But the rain never allowed us to enjoy the views by looking at the top. In fact, it even covered the mountains with clouds. The first point on the ride was the shepherds' homes.  It was said that the last king of Kashmir, Maharaja Hari Singh gave all those homes to the local shepherds. He used to visit Pahalgam to hunt animals. The second place was something related to the story of Pandavas. I could not remember exactly. The third place was Dabyan valley, the fourth being Kashmir valley, the fifth was a waterfall, the sixth, again I could not remember. The main reasons that I could not concentrate on my pony ride were the continuous rainfall, mud on the bottom, inconvenient paths the horse was taking, and above all, my clothes started becoming dirty during the adventure. It was damn irritating. The seventh place was Baisaran valley which is also called the Mini Switzerland. I was asked to get off the horse, take a ticket and visit the meadows. All the horses were kept aside for rest at that place.  

On the way, I felt almost like crying due to the horrible experience from the rain, mud, mountains and the horse. The boy stopped the pony at each of the places and asked me to give him my mobile for taking my pics. In fact, my poses were also horrible. At the beginning of the ride, they pulled the raincoat over my head and due to the inconvenience, I pulled it off my head. My hair style became so bad that it was quite evident in the photos that I completely lost myself. I forced myself to give poses. At one of the points, there were two guys who came to me offering pigeons in my hands. Although I got the snaps clicked with them, I did not like my expression and with that disturbed hair. The boy even asked me to get down at a waterfall. But I denied him as there was mud all the way along and my newly wore jeans simply became dirty like anything. It was my favorite jeans. Keeping all this aside, as I feel, when life takes away something, it also gives you something else. After all these inconveniences, finally there was a place that I could enjoy, Baisaran valley. 

Baisaran valley is a very beautiful place with green meadows, lush green trees, clouds meeting the mighty mountains. It’s a hilltop green meadow dotted with dense pine forests and surrounded by snowcapped mountains.  Although I was feeling irritated with that adventure, for some time, I kept everything aside and enjoyed the place by quickly taking some snaps and videos. There were also some benches to sit. It was just like a park with beauty all around. I felt there would be some other way to reach the place instead of taking a pony ride because the small arrangements that they made at the place like having 2 or 3 benches, a small roof construction and even ziplining, they could not bring in the required equipment all along only through horses. I sat on a bench in the lap of nature for some time and roamed around the valley. There was a river flowing at the side of the valley with a lot of sound, maybe because it was a peaceful place, the sound of the river was so loud. There was also a shop to eat or drink something. But looking at my situation, I did not feel like having something. The boy came towards me asking to take snaps. I told him that I was fine with the selfies, and we can start our reverse ride. But I must admit that it was a picturesque beauty.  

We started our reverse journey on the pony, which was even worse than before. The horse was choosing its own path. It was going at the edge of the mountains and that was scary for someone like me who just started taking pony rides. The boy tried to convince me saying that they were trained horses, and nothing would happen to the tourists like me. But I could not imagine falling from the top of a mountain edge from which the horse was going. Another disgusting experience was the path where the horse had to take a small gap between the mountains that was filled with water. The horse position itself was causing a lot of uncomfortableness to someone who sits on it. On top of it, there were the steps that it took on the mud water that only spoiled my clothes as much as it could. When I tried to say something about it, the boy told me I should not as the horse could understand everything. While the name of my horse in Sonamarg was Bullet, the name of my horse in Pahalgam was Raju. The boy even said that the horse only listens to him and not to anyone else. I felt pity knowing the fact that the boy would be given only 500 although I was about to pay his owner 5200. The boy told the price which he would get easily goes in arranging food for the horse. While the path itself was worse, I felt the boy made it even worse by directing the horse to move in a direction that was more uncomfortable. I became so serious about that boy for taking in such directions saying those were the shortcuts. On the way, I could hear people saying that they would never take a pony ride again. I could see children crying and asking their elders to lift them from the horse. At the same time, I found a guy coming with his music box full of high-volume Bollywood songs to make his ride smoother. After almost 2 hours, my worst ride finally came to an end. The boy came towards me asking a tip, I resisted it and even told his owner that it was the worst ride ever. In fact, I confronted Absar Bhai as he brought me to Pahalgam on a rainy day despite my denial. I told him that I had a disastrous experience never like before. Then he asked me to visit Betaab valley so I could feel better. The downpour came down for a while at that moment. 

The same guy who assigned a pony for me arranged a cab to visit Betaab valley charging 1250 which was non-negotiable. I was really shocked to see how these so-called people from the associations of the respective locations are looting the tourists in the name of pony rides and taxis. It was just a 20-minute ride on the car to Betaab valley. 

I had to again take an entrance ticket to view the valley. But then I felt it was more than worth it. Betaab valley was even more beautiful than Baisaran valley. The views around were simply mesmerizing. I couldn’t take my eyes off the beauty for a while. On one side, there were blue and white mountains; on the other side, there was a hill with clouds touching it; on the other side were the white mountains. On top of it, there were lush green meadows on the ground. The Lidder river flowing at the corner of the valley left no stone unturned with its beauty. It is said that the Bollywood movie Betaab was shot here and soon, the place became a big hit so much that it was named after that movie. I enjoyed roaming in the place with some snaps and videos. I loved it so much that I made a video call to my family so they too could see the beautiful place. I could see people from every corner of the country enjoying the place that includes small children and even very old elderly people. There was a children's park in the valley for recreation. 

The moment when I started back, one old man came along with me and started conversing with me. He told me he was from Rajkot, Gujarat. He was surprised to know that I came on a solo trip to Kashmir. He too didn’t like the way; the rain spoiled the trip. I felt nice talking to him for some time while we were on our way back. He asked to come with him for a tea, but I said that I would like to visit another place called chandanwari and politely resisted him. I spent some time at the Lidder river although I did not feel like leaving the place. The river waters were also so beautiful with green and white in color.  

Although I asked the cab driver to take me to Chandanwari, he said it would be too late since it was already 6 PM in the evening. If I had stayed in Pahalgam that night, then he would have driven me forward to Chandanwari. But since I had to go back to Srinagar that night, he said it would be tough owing to the climate conditions. The reverse route was also so beautiful that I felt my two eyes were not enough to watch and appreciate the beauty. I was completely satisfied visiting Betaab valley. But I cursed the pony owner who forced me and wasted my time of 4 hours since afternoon with hefty amount. Otherwise, I would have visited Aru valley and Chandanwari. No wonder, Abrar Bhai and Absar Bhai had so much to do with it. 

I paid the complete price of 6450 to the guy in Pahalgam with whom I had the deal for a pony ride and taxi to Betaab valley. I was sure Absar Bhai would have got something out of it in my absence. At the end of the day, it was purely business. The place survives majorly in the tourism sector. Lakhs of tourists from the country and even beyond the country visit Kashmir every year so much that their count only kept increasing over the years. Only due to that demand, people were simply looting the tourists in the name of their so-called services. 

I started my return journey to Srinagar with Absar Bhai. He invited me to his house just for namesake of course since it was on the way to Pampore. There was a traffic jam on the way, and it took so much time returning to Srinagar. I was not happy looking at my dirty clothes due to the horrible pony ride.  

It was almost 8:30 PM when Absar Bhai dropped me at a hotel asking me to finish off my dinner. I had dosa and sambar that night. The order arrived after a long time. The sambar was too hot and spicy, but I started shivering in the biting cold. So, I had to take it although I was afraid that it could affect my health.  

Absar Bhai dropped me at the guest house and left for the day. I did not like the way when he started cribbing that he would never take his clients to the hotel for dinner, instead they would be dropped directly to the guest house. He said that I was the only one who was given a sort of special treatment as a friend. But nowhere did I find it to be special because on the first day itself he revealed the fact that unless his clients pay extra, he would never take them beyond 3 places in Srinagar for a day. The same happened to me. There was no change in the price of the cab per day even for me. In fact, I read in one of the blogs that it would be the same price for a private cab, 2.5k per day. So, I could not feel anything special. Moreover, I felt it would be better if he had dropped me at the guest house instead of taking me to a hotel for dinner because there were so many hotels around my guest house that offer better food than the hotel which he had taken me to.  

Moving on, as part of the daily course of action, I got refreshed and started watching the snaps and videos of the day. Oh, my goodness, the videos were also not so good. I felt in all the trips that I had so far, there were good and bad moments. So, on this trip, that day was almost full of bad moments except Baisaran valley and Betaab valley.  

Time passed by and I was about to sleep for the day. At that moment, Tauseef Bhai knocked on the door asking for my Aadhar id proof. On the very first day, since I did not have the Aadhar id hard copy, he took my driving license for xerox and managed. But on that day, there started some inspection in all the guest houses and resorts from the police ahead of the G20 Summit held in Kashmir. So, I did a WhatsApp of the Aadhar id to Tauseef Bhai and slept for the day. 

The beginning of Day 4 made me afraid as I had stomach upset due to the spicy sambar that I had on the previous night. I became so weak that I called Absar Bhai and told him I would like to take a break for the day. But he started saying that I would be charged even if I did not utilize the cab for the day as if I signed an agreement with him. Again, the same question arises in my mind, how come I was special? They would like to do the same thing with me just like any other customer. So, according to me, he could not come and brag about the so-called special treatment that they were providing for me. But if I keep it aside, like I said previously, they were the trustworthy people for me in an unknown place and I never wanted to start any sort of argument with them about anything. In fact, the good part was Absar Bhai built courage in me by saying that he would take me to a doctor if required and suggested I initially take a tablet, rest for a while and see if things would be better. I got ready, had breakfast and then took the andial(Loperamide) for diarrhea and went to sleep again. After 2 hours around 10 AM, I woke up to the call from Absar Bhai. I told him I was feeling much better due to the tablet effect and with the extra sleep that I got on that day. After I landed in Kashmir, I slept only for 6-7 hours as it was getting 12 in the night by the time I went to sleep, and I had to keep an alarm at 6:30 to get ready in the next one hour. But on that day, I got an extra sleep of 2 hours which made me feel better. I asked Absar Bhai to pick me up at 11 AM so we can resume the trip. He suggested me to cover some more places in Srinagar itself on that day owing to my health condition as there were good doctors and hospitals in Srinagar compared to any other places in Kashmir. I was also fine with it. 

To my surprise, it was still raining on that day. We started around 11 AM. Absar Bhai showed me how the roads construction was taking place and how the traffic was being diverted ahead of the G20 Summit in Kashmir. Even I could see the posters attached at every nook and corner of Srinagar city. Since it was raining, I asked Absar Bhai to take me to a museum as I could spend some time inside and escape from the rain. Absar Bhai inquired Abrar Bhai and told me I could spend only a few minutes in the museum as it was not a great place. Still, I asked him to take me there as I am a lover of old things. Truly, I believe there is nothing in technology and development, in fact, the good old days were great when there used to be kings and I suppose I would have been one of the poets in any of the kingdoms in my previous birth. 

I visited Pratap Singh Museum in Srinagar. There was a security check at the entrance asking for my Aadhar card details after I took the ticket, and I was asked to leave my bag in the locker. I was told photography was not allowed in the museum for free. Since I got the feedback from Abrar Bhai that it was not a great place, I ignored it and went inside with zero expectations. But, to my surprise, it was indeed an amazing place, so much so that I could even say that it was the best place that I visited in my entire trip. I would call it a hidden gem that would not be included in any itineraries.  

The museum is comprised of 6 rooms to visit. If you are a history buff, then I am sure you would also love it just like me. It contained so many old sculptures of Hindu gods like Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, and even goddess like Durga from the ancient times. Even before Islam, it was Hinduism that existed in the Kashmir valley and those artifacts were a solid proof for it. In fact, they stress the fact that Hinduism is still prevalent in the Kashmir valley. Apart from the sculptures, there were old coins, old judicial papers, old currency notes, old swords, knives, cooking utensils and what not. I simply went back to that good old era. I wish I could get a chance to live in those days. Not only were there artifacts from the Kashmir region, but also there were artifacts from the Ladakh region as the entire region used to be called Kashmir itself in those old days.  

The admin at the museum offered me to take 2 complimentary photos of the history of dynasties that ruled Kashmir since 1000s of years back. I could simply say that Kashmir was the center of culture for all the religions at some point of time. I even came across some foreigners who were interested to know so many things about Kashmir’s history through the artifacts available in the museum. I must appreciate the way they have been maintaining the museum. There was even some house model sort of things that were made to resemble that of the old days. It was truly an eye feast for me. 

While the outlook of the museum talks about royal panache, the interior displays abundant antique objects collected from Baltistan, Gilgit, and from different corners of Kashmir. 

The collections of artifacts displayed in the museum are divided into different categories based on the similarity between the objects. Sections like archaeology include items such as Pandrenthan Sculptures, Awantipura Sculptures, Parihaspora Sculptures, Ushkar and Buddhist Antiquities from Ladakh. 

In the manuscript section there are books, royal edicts and deeds which date back to the seventeenth century and late nineteenth century. Written in Old Persian, Gilgit, Arabic and Kashmiri language most of these documents are written either on the bark of the Birch tree (Bhoj Patra) or Kashmiri handmade paper (koshur kagaz). Some of the most significant items are Tafseer-i-Kabeer, Kashmiri Koran, Haft Paikar Makhzan Asrar, Sikander Nama, and Shahnama. 

The metal ware section hosts royal as well as common utensils made with exclusive designs. The collection of decorative items displays 300 artifacts in all which are made using 8 types of metals such as enamel, tin, copper, zinc, brass, Iron, white metal, chipped turquoise and Tibetan metal. 

In the textile section, the Kashmiri Shawls enhance the pride of the museum and are an indication of Kashmiri weaving style and excellence. 

Other sections are enamel ware, collections of decorative art, naqashi, papier mache items, natural history collections and some more. 

Out of everything in the museum, I loved the statues of people depicting their differences in the culture like Kashmiri Muslim man and woman, Kashmiri Pandit and his wife, Ladakhi man and woman, etc. 

In between my visit, Absar Bhai called me to come out for the next place. But I told him I would like to see the museum for some more time. At that point I regretted not paying 200 extra for taking photos as I never thought I would love the museum a lot as I received not so good feedback from Abrar Bhai. The visit almost came to an end and there was no point in again start from the beginning taking the photos as Absar Bhai was waiting for me outside. As I highlighted before, this was another difference that I found in this trip compared to other trips, the independence to roam around a place as much time as you can. I appreciated the museum before the people there and then I left the place. 

We went to Raja Restaurant in Srinagar, and I had only Jeera rice with butter milk as I was just recovering from my stomach upset that happened last night. The food was just ok, but I felt little weak due to lack of proper food with vegetables since a while by then.  

My next destination was Nishat Bhag, another Mughal Garden. It was also beautiful. The rain stopped suddenly, and I could see the sun shining. I roamed around the beautiful garden taking snaps for a while. I could see huge crowds everywhere. There was a place wherein the tourists had a chance to get ready as the local Kashmiri in their attire and get a photo. If there had been someone with me at that time, I would have tried it. I sat in a place under the shadow of a tree in the garden and all I could find around was sereneness. I was involved in some thoughts of how it would be if I had a house just beside the garden with a view of it. But soon, reality set in and I had to start from the place. 

Absar Bhai was surprised that I did not spend much time in the garden. I said that I feel for ladies it would sound more interesting than me. Then he spoke with Abrar Bhai and started moving towards Hazrat Bhal Shrine, the famous mosque to visit in Srinagar. I was not happy with the way he said that it would take so long for him to move from Nishant Bhag to Hazrat Bhal Shrine, but still, me being his friend, he was fine with it. I was surprised that he was charging me 2.5k per day and still complaining about the distance. When I verified the cost of petrol in Kashmir, it was more or less the same as in Hyderabad, 105 per liter. He got a new car and the milage would be good at the beginning. It was hardly 5-6 kms distance and it would not be the cost of what I was giving per day, still, he talked as if he was doing me a favor. I kept calm at that moment as I did not want any sort of argument or fight over that. Moreover, On the brighter side, he was friendly and stopped in between for a while so I could have the coconut water that was so rare to find in Kashmir. 

Soon we reached Hazrat Bhal Shrine and met Abrar Bhai. He is tall, handsome and well educated, quite comfortable speaking in English unlike Absar Bhai. But I could find some sort of attitude in him. He took me inside the Hazrat Bhal Shrine Mosque and started saying about their customs. I found it so calm and peaceful inside the Mosque. There were like two separate rooms for men and women to offer prayers. He told the Shrine was built taking inspiration from the one in Mecca Masjid in Saudi Arabia. He even said that there is a specific direction wherein all the Muslims pray that points towards Mecca and showed me the people doing it in the Mosque. He pointed out the threads and said he does not have belief in such customs. He showed me someone doing prayer on his knees and said that it was never part of Islam. Since both Hindus and Muslims coexisted in the Kashmir valley, he said that they inherited this kind of prayer from Hindus. Although it was quite sunny outside the mosque, it was still good as there was fresh air blowing here and there. He took a video of me along with the pigeons near the Mosque. He asked me if I wanted to take some more snaps and stay near the banks of the Dal Lake as it was just behind the Mosque. Since I was feeling weak on that day, I said that I would like to do shopping for Pheran, jacket, shawl and blanket or visit another place in Srinagar. He simply resisted taking me to another place as it was their so-called hidden rule that they could show the tourists only 3 places per day and I was disappointed. Instead, he said that he would take me to a shop in Srinagar that was more than 100 years old. I was excited to see that and all 3 of us started moving forward. I told him although he never asked me to give the cab charges, I need to give him at least for the last 4 days and transferred 10k on his phone through Google Pay. I said that I would give him the remaining amount during the end of my trip, and he was fine with it. 

We reached the Khazir Sons showroom in Srinagar that was established way back in 1880. I was shown different types of shawls, pashmina, carpets, and sherwani. The shopkeeper felt happy to know that I came from Hyderabad as he himself stayed in Hyderabad for more than a decade until the Covid-19 arrived. While Absar Bhai stayed in his car, Abrar Bhai came along with me and was only giving some serious looks trying to analyze me in his own way. I liked a few shawls but was shocked to see the prices owing to their premium quality material. I bargained for a small amount and finalized one shawl to buy for 5k which itself was very high on cost. I understood from them that it could be used outside to save ourselves from the cold, or even during parties. I felt that it gave me a rich look too. The shopkeeper kept on talking about Hyderabad as he was aware of all the places. He even said that he was giving me a discount only because I came from Hyderabad. One interesting fact that I learned in the shop was the difference between a normal shawl and a pashmina. If a normal shawl has some design on it that’s made of cashmere wool, then it is called pashmina. I remember the word from one of the songs from the famous Bollywood movie, Fitoor.  

It was just 5 PM in the evening and I reached my guest house. My room was on the first floor and there were stairs of certain height to reach it. I was thinking somewhere and while going on the stairs fell on the front. Luckily, since no one was available at that time, I quickly stood back and went to my room. After some time, I could feel a little pain in my knees and hands. Still, I went down to the hotel beside my guest house and had Onion Uthappam. The serving guy in the hotel recognized me with a smile as I became the daily customer for them since last 4 days. I came back to the guest house after taking a short walk towards the end of the street, went through the pics and videos for the day, talked with my mom, listened to the songs and went to sleep. 

Day 5, I woke up as usual at 6:30 AM in the morning with the alarm on my phone. I got ready and started listening to the enthusiastic song from the garbage collector vehicle on the road. Every day, that loud song made me cheerful, it says, “Hello Bhaiya, Hello Bhabhi, Hello Hello Ji, Khachre Wali gadi mein sab khachra dalo ji”  

I received a call from Absar Bhai saying that Abrar Bhai would join us on that day to Doodhpathri and since it’s a nearby destination from Srinagar, we could start late around 10 AM. I thought if he had told me about this on the previous day, I would have woken up little late in the morning. But since I already woke up, I felt there was no point in again going to sleep. So, I went down to the hotel and had Poha again. Then I started exploring the street for buying a Jacket to my friend along with another small suitcase as I already did lot of shopping in Kashmir. But I could not find anything that suited my requirements. So, I returned to the guest house and took a rest for a while. 

Around 10 AM, Absar Bhai arrived, and we started to Doodhpathri from my guest house in Srinagar. On the way, Abrar Bhai got into the car. I felt odd when they asked me to sit in the back seat citing the reason that the local police would raise an objection and as per their rules, the driver and the guide should be sitting in the front seats of the car and the tourists in the backseat. It sounded so weird to me, and I felt they were openly lying to me. I even felt uncomfortable because the view from the front seat of the car has always been good as you could look at the front and side whereas it is not the case with the back seat. Moreover, I hired the car, I hired the guide and still I need to adjust. In fact, I felt the guide was not required. But Abrar Bhai told me he arrived on the call from Faizan Bhai as Faizan never wanted him to leave me alone. Since he had his other clients, one of them being hospitalized due to heart attack, he could not join me for the last 3-4 days.  

So, we started our journey. Abrar Bhai tried to say a few things about the city here and there. But beyond that, I could only find him talking with Absar Bhai sitting in the front in their native Kashmiri language. Although he said sorry in between that only they were talking and making me feel bored, it sounded for me that he said only for namesake. He showed me the recent developments in Srinagar city ahead of the G20 Summit on our way. I was curious to see the iconic clock tower in Lal chowk, Srinagar. He showed it to me from a certain distance while we were passing by and said that they were trying to rejuvenate it. I found him to be a foodie as he was stopping at some places to have some snacks. Even he shared one Masala Roti with me that was like a wrap with Chole inside. I found it just to be ok, not so great. I could see some Malls sort of establishments on the way. When I asked Abrar Bhai, he said that Srinagar city does not have any malls, but only shopping complexes. At the same time, he said the city is a large one and is 2.5 times bigger than that of Singapore. On the way, I even got to know the places like Parimpora and Batmaloo which I read in one of the blogs before and analyzed to understand the places so I could plan the trip all by myself in the worst-case scenario. I slept for a while during the journey. 

As soon as I opened my eyes, we almost reached Doodhpathri. Abrar Bhai advised me to have lunch at some point before the place as we could not get anything to eat once we reached the destination. But when I opened the car door, it was too cold. I went inside a hotel and started shivering. I could not even manage to sit in any of the chairs inside the hotel as it was that cool. As far as I remember, it was almost 10-degree temperature at the place.  

I ordered Kashmiri veg pulao with zero spice in it because I understood that everywhere in Kashmir, we need to explicitly mention about the spice level, otherwise, it would be too spicy by default. I had to wait for some time for the food to get ready. In the meantime, I saw a young couple romancing just behind my table. Abrar Bhai came inside to check on what I was going to eat. The pulao arrived with some chutney and without raita. In fact, a mixture of some vegetables as a spicy chutney is something that they called raita at the place. I was surprised and told him that I was looking for raita with curd and onions in it. As he said he could not provide it at that moment, I had to adjust with only curd which he bought it from outside. The pulao was tasty, and it made me recover from the nail-biting cold for a while as it was served hot. Due to the cool climate, everywhere in Kashmir, as soon as the food arrives hot, you can find vapor in the air spreading. 

After lunch, we crossed one lane and that was it, we were in Doodhpathri. I must admit that it was another beautiful, offbeat destination. The entire place was full of lust green meadows with icy mountains in the background that made it a perfect picturesque location. It reminded me of Pahalgam. Abrar Bhai made a deal with one of the pony owners for the ride in their Kashmiri language. I was again surprised to know that it costs 5k for the entire ride covering 7 points in the forest. What came as a bigger surprise was Abrar Bhai as well accompanied me without any explicit cost for him. Then I understood that he made a deal with them to ensure that I give the cost to both of us. With another 500 Rupees extra, I was given long shoes and another jacket. 

We started on our pony ride. There was mud in some places due to the incessant rains. When I was getting worried about clothes being spoiled, Abrar Bhai told me it is all part of the adventure. After a moment, when even he did not care about his pants being spoiled, I realized that yes, it was all indeed part of the adventure. One good thing that happened due to Abrar Bhai’s company was he took some good snaps and videos everywhere. He is a great photographer.  

Our first point was the place wherein the famous saint of Kashmir, Sheikh ul Aalam Sheikh Noor din Noorani prayed leaving all the worldly pleasures. Abrar Bhai showed me the place where he used to cook, he used to tie his goat, he used to pray and once when he was in search of water in the meadows, to offer prayers, he pricked the ground with his stick to search for water and milk came out, hence the name Doodhpathri, valley of milk. There were also some threads tied at the place as per the beliefs of Muslims. We took some snaps at the place and moved on. 

The second point was the hotel Hi-Speed resort. There was a road parallel to it, but I was told we could not cover some points if we took the complete path through road. I could see the development was still in progress, but it was less crowded compared to Pahalgam and Sonamarg. 

The third point was Kishanganga or Shaliganga river. It was very much white in color on one side and as it flows, the color turned green on the other side. We got off the horses and enjoyed looking at the river. I felt that I was very close to nature, and it was a beautiful place to behold. We took videos again and moved on. 

I could not remember the 4th and 5th points, but now I understand that the next time if I take an adventure like this, I need to make a note of everything so it would be a good memory to write in a blog. The sixth point was a mud house wherein the shepherds would stay during the summer season. I heard a similar story in Pahalgam and could correlate with it. 

The last point was the famous film, Raazi shooting location. I was surprised to know that the film was shot at the place with a gate depicting the border between India and Pakistan way back in 1970s. My respect for the film’s director only grew after this as I was already a big fan of the film. 

I thoroughly enjoyed Doodhpathri. Everything was beautiful at the place, the meadows, the mountains, the horses, the goats, the trees, the rivers and what not. My horse ate grass at several points and even drank water at the river. I must appreciate the way the horses were trained although I saw one of the horses let a tourist girl fall from it. I wondered how the girl again agreed to sit on the same horse although the horse was resisting.  

After a long pony ride of more than 3 hours, we reached the beginning position. There was no mobile signal at the place. So, I could not transfer money to them via phone. Abrar Bhai and Absar Bhai collected the cash whatever was present with three of us and it turned out to be 5500 which was required for them. I did a google pay to Abrar Bhai as soon as the signal came on our way back. At the same time, he even asked me for the payment for gondola ride in Gulmarg as he was in the process of getting a ticket. Although the ride charge was 1700 covering two phases, Abrar Bhai charged me 2500 saying that his agent was demanding the amount owing to the less time. I felt that I had already informed him to get the gondola tickets on the first day itself and he did not take the interest at that time and now, he was charging more complaining about the time factor. But since I was enthusiastic about the ride, I transferred it to him. 

On our way back to Srinagar, we stopped at another location. The brothers (Abrar Bhai and Absar Bhai) had roti and noon chai. They even let me taste them, I found them to be good. The Noon chai was salty. 

Abrar Bhai told about their mountain hikes and adventures, how they used to have picnics in the old days, and he even showed a video wherein Faizan Bhai simply jumped into a lake when there was snow all around even without a shirt. I was shocked to see the video. I got to know that Abrar Bhai was pursuing Ph.D. in Business at Malaysia.  

We reached Srinagar towards the evening. They dropped me at the guest house and left for the day. I felt like completing the shopping for the trip as I was left with only 2 more days. So, I went out by walking a certain distance and purchased a mini suitcase. As my friend wanted me to bring a jacket for him, I made a video call to him after visiting a local shop. But he did not like anything and was in a daze on his fitting. So, I visited ATM to withdraw cash, had some Dosa as dinner since I was not hungry and came back to the guest house.  

It was a tiring day, I followed up with Abrar Bhai to share the snaps and videos at Doodhpathri. I must admit that they really came out well. Soon, I fell asleep and started counting my remaining days in Kashmir. 

Day 6, I had the comfort to wake up little late as Absar Bhai told me we would start late again since Yusmarg is also near to Srinagar. I got ready and had Upma for breakfast in the morning. Although Absar Bhai said that he would arrive by 10 AM for the pickup, he did not come. I went up to the main road and started observing the people, vehicles and the busy junction at Dal gate. I could see there were many city buses passing by the road every 5 minutes although tourists rarely opt for them. But the buses were almost full of the locals themselves. I personally feel the public transport needs to be developed a lot in Srinagar just like other cities with which the tourists could also go for it and avoid the unnecessary looting of these so-called travel agencies and cab drivers. In fact, I read in a blog, except for Pahalgam, there were no RTC buses running to other tourist locations from Srinagar. I could also find so many autos picking up people on the road. Not sure to what extent I would succeed, but I felt like roaming in Srinagar only with public transport at least for a day, maybe during my next trip to Kashmir. 

Absar Bhai arrived in sometime around 10:30 AM saying that he was waiting for Abrar Bhai to join. We started from my location and Abrar Bhai joined us in between. Again, the brothers started their conversation in Kashmiri language sitting at the front. Abrar Bhai said ‘Yus’ means Jesus and Marg means meadows. So, a belief that Jesus Christ spent some of his 'lost' years in India, and passed through Yusmarg, earning it the name 'Meadow of Jesus' or Yusmarg. He even said that people used to visit this place before. But soon, they shifted to Gulmarg due to the development and more facilities with respect to tourism. He recalled his childhood days as well saying that they used to visit Yusmarg for a picnic along with their families. The path was like that of Doodhpathri which we visited on the previous day as both Doodhpathri and Yusmarg are in Budgam district of Jammu and Kashmir, India. But when we look at the mountains, Doodhpathri and Gulmarg are on the two sides of a mountain and Pahalgam and Sonamarg are also on the two sides of a mountain.  

On the way to Yusmarg, we had Samosa which was the same as in Hyderabad. I shared my childhood memories with Samosa like how I used to cry and crave for it and always loved it.  

Soon, we reached Yusmarg. This time Abrar Bhai said he would not be coming with me. They started talking in Kashmiri language for my pony ride again and concluded it for 4k. I must say it was the best ride out of all the pony rides that I experienced in Kashmir. The man who came along with the horse was also good. I felt there was a reason why Kashmiri people were known for their hospitality after the way that man treated me with utmost care and respect.  

As usual, at the beginning of the ride, there came another man who simply hold my hand and said he would be the helper. I rejected him immediately and said that I do not require a helper as I already got used to the pony rides and there was already a man who was controlling the horse. This man who was controlling the horse thanked me for opting the other man out since there could be payment issues within them if he had joined us. He sincerely followed my instructions while driving the pony as I wanted to get out of the mud. It was a sunny day with clouds here and there. The path to the forest was very beautiful, full of meadows and tall pine trees. There were slopes at times, but overall, it was not a horrible adventure like Pahalgam.  

Although he showed me 6 places in the forest saying some flower gardens and lakes, all I could remember was only 2 places which were the main attractions, the nilnaag lake view and Dudhganga River. In fact, the first point itself was the nilnaag lake view which we could see from the top of a mountain. I got down from the horse and was amazed to see the view. He took some snaps and promotional videos in which I was stating how beautiful Yusmarg is and asked me to upload such videos on Facebook so they could get some tourists to Yusmarg. At the same time, he cleared the mud on my shoes with the same stick that he was using to control the horse. I was impressed with the way he was treating his guest. I completely enjoyed the pony ride and conversed with the guy on so many things starting from the place where I arrived at the various types of animals that we could encounter in our journey. I told him that I was afraid of snakes and asked him if he was not. He said that I was dare enough to visit the place travelling more than 2000 kms all alone and he is being one of the locals to the place could not be afraid of anything. Moreover, he told we need to trust God for everything and move forward. In fact, according to him, my visit to a place from a far location like Hyderabad on that day and travelling with him on his horse was simply destiny. I felt nice hearing their simple life and the stories. At the same time, I was surprised to know that they would cross those mountainous paths daily just on foot. He mentioned his horse's name as Humsafar as it was keeping him company in his journey of life. Out of curiosity, I asked him about the impact on him after removal of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir. He simply gave a smile and said that it never impacted on him as his daily job has been always to serve the tourists like me.  

The path was so silent as if I went to another world. Yusmarg is one of those offbeat locations in Kashmir and hence, there was no crowd at all. There were no tourists at all during more than half of my journey. 

After some time, we reached a point where there were steps. He asked me if I would like to walk for a while as going on the pony through steps might make me feel uncomfortable. I got down and walked for a while to reach Dudhganga river. I crossed some rocks down the mountain and went close to the river. I sat on one of the rocks and simply stared at the river feeling very much close to nature. Although the sun was straight on top of my head, I could not feel the heat at all due to the cold air blowing between the mountains. The horse guy came towards me and took some snaps at me. He even helped me in reaching the top as there were rocks in between and there were high chances of me slipping somewhere as I never had the experience of climbing such paths. 

We moved some more distance and I felt hungry. So, I asked him to take me to the source point although he wanted to take me to some more points charging extra for them. I felt tired by that time and urged him to move back. During the return journey, he showed me his house. I even saw two children, a girl and a boy. I simply waved at them from my horse, and they waved back at me with a smile. They were so cute. These kinds of moments fill your heart in any type of journey. 

We returned to the source point and met the brothers, Abrar Bhai and Absar Bhai. I paid the horse guy 4k as agreed before. He asked me to give him a tip. When I gave him 50 Rupees, he denied it as he felt that was very less. I felt he was not a poor guy, that was the reason why he denied it and moved on although his owner came towards me asking for a tip. I simply told him that if I had to give some tip, I would give it to the guy who accompanied me throughout the journey, not to someone else. 

We started our journey back to Srinagar. On our way, we stopped at Charar-e-Sharief shrine, a Sufi Muslim shrine and mosque situated in the town of Charari Sharief in Budgam district of Jammu and Kashmir union territory, India. It is the place where Sheikh Noor-ud-din Noorani, famously called Alamdar-e-Kashmir, was said to be buried. He is the same saint whose so-called lived place I had seen in Doodhpathri. He is popular as he spread Islam in Kashmir. Abrar Bhai said that people have faith in the saint that he is the mediator who helps in taking their prayers and messages to Allah. But according to Abrar Bhai, there should not be any mediator between Allah, the God and a Muslim who believes in Allah. They must directly communicate with Allah and the belief of having someone as their messenger is false. Abrar Bhai took me inside the mosque describing its art and architecture that could not be found at all places. I was mesmerized by the place. He spoke about the wooden structure that was brought from the deodar and pine trees in Kashmir. At that time, we were crossing some steps inside the shrine, and I suddenly fell towards my back due to slippage of socks that I wore. It reminded me of the same way that I fell at Vijaya Stamb in Chittorgarh, Rajasthan, during my first solo trip. Although Abrar Bhai was asking me if I was ok or needed to visit a doctor, I seriously felt it to be so artificial. But end of the day, he was a businessman and how could I expect some help from him although he kept saying that I was his friend. So, I got myself up and said I was ok and simply moved on. I felt like tasting halwa at the local bazaar in the town of Charari Sharief. So, I bought it and even bought some biscuits for Abrar Bhai which he wanted to take for his mother. 

Just before we were about to get into the car, Abrar Bhai showed Indian Army at the shrine and started questioning me whether it was good to have Army men with their guns at such religious places. Before I could answer, we got into the car and a lot of discussion happened about the Indian Army and their treatment of locals in Kashmir. 

I could clearly understand from the conversation that Abrar Bhai does not like Indian Army. He has the view of Independent Kashmir, neither with India nor with Pakistan. He said so many negative things about Indian Army although I doubt their authenticity. He told how he saw Indian Army peeing in their pants many times when they hear about a war or terror attack from Pakistan. He even spoke about kunan poshpora mass rape by Indian Army and how the case has been still in the court even after 32 years. When I asked him about the news that I see in the media, he simply said it has been always a distorted version. He questioned me on how the Pakistani soldiers cross the Indian border or even vice versa. In fact, his viewpoint was that the Indian Army itself bribes the Pakistani soldiers to cross the border. I felt irritated listening to such fake things about Indian Army. He challenged me that he could let me meet a Kashmiri Pandit, an old man who could tell the real facts that happened in Kashmir during the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits in the valley. Out of curiosity, I said yes, I would like to meet him. But then, he said that it was not possible immediately and I could meet him next time I visit Kashmir. That itself was the proof that he was simply faking it. He even abused the director of the famous “The Kashmir Files” movie, Vivek Agnihotri for coming up with a fake story of Kashmir although there were clear reports and evidence from the media on everything that was shown in the movie. The moment he mentioned that people in Pakistan occupied Kashmir were happy staying with Pakistan, I understood his biased views on the Kashmir issue because I recently saw clear videos on how violence erupted in Pakistan occupied Kashmir, Muzaffarabad and Gilgit Baltistan and how people would like to join back India. In my opinion, the root cause of the issue was the so-called national leader Jawaharlal Nehru, who simply took the Kashmir issue to the United Nations and unnecessarily let India lose its territory. He should not have even provided the special status in the form of Article 370 to Jammu and Kashmir. When I raised these points during my discussion with Abrar Bhai, he was only saying that we need to talk about the future. According to him, the UN itself declared Kashmir as disputed territory and Maharaja Hari Singh signed the instrument of accession on the condition that Kashmir would be given the special status which is not there anymore. But I would say, it was only India under the leadership of the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru who took the Kashmir issue to the United Nations and only after that, the UN was able to declare it as disputed territory. As far as special status was concerned, it was only India that provided Kashmir, the special status and now it does not want to provide the same anymore. He asked me the core reason behind abrogation of Article 370 for which I replied saying that the intention was to unite Kashmir with the mainland India so all the Indians could buy properties in Kashmir. But then his next question was why no one is still buying the land in Kashmir. I told him that is because there is still instability in the Kashmir valley. He asked me about how the media could portray that there is a lot of peace prevailing in the Kashmir valley after the Article 370 abrogation. If that was true, then why are the Indian troops still all over the valley. He said that there are 8 lakh Indian Army soldiers present only in the central Kashmir valley. My response was that is simply because of Pakistan’s plots every now and then. In fact, Indian Army is there only to protect the Kashmiris. But he said that everything would appear in that way in cities like Srinagar. But the way people are being treated in the villages by the Indian Army is not good and he brought the Kunan poshpora incident in the discussion. Although I agree with the fact that something like that would have happened in the 90s once, I cannot agree that the same has been happening till today. I questioned him about Indian Army’s help during the 2014 floods that happened due to the cloud bursts in Kashmir. He replied saying that the army went only to the places that were easily accessible and that were easily shown to the media. In fact, he said that he himself rescued so many people without the knowledge of his parents. I found his statement on Indian Army’s help as false because I saw at least at 2 or 3 places wherein the Indian Army was helping the public. He said that all the people in the Indian Administered Kashmir would like to have an Independent Kashmir. I could not agree with him on that because people have different opinions, some would like to go with India, some would like to go with Pakistan, and some would want to remain Independent. I asked him even if Kashmir would become Independent, it is not possible due to its geographical reasons. He gave me the example of Afghanistan which is completely a landlocked country. Lastly, he said that Kashmiris are not living, but only surviving. I found a separatist and an anti-nationalist in him. He does not have any respect towards his country, India. But he has been enjoying all the benefits of an Indian national. He revealed that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi now, no one can speak anything. His cousin, Absar Bhai was simply echoing with him. I thought probably, they were induced by all these things through their ancestors. More than a discussion, at some point it was like a heated argument. But since I was with them in their place, I had to stay calm for a while. As a person, I liked Abrar Bhai. But as a fellow country man and a businessman, I did not like him. Same goes with Absar Bhai. 

We reached Srinagar and visited a Delhi restaurant. I had Pav Bhaji, and Abrar Bhai gave me company with tea and bread. He said that he does not like Kashmir especially in winters as they need to stay lazy and gloomy all day due to the snow fall. But he said he likes Malaysia as there is lot of infrastructure and development in that country. If I say Article 370 has been the major obstacle for the development in Kashmir, he will not agree with them. So, I kept quiet for a while. They dropped me at the guest house saying that I need to be ready by 7:30 AM on the next day for my trip to Gulmarg.  

I got refreshed in the hotel and went through the snaps for the day. Later, I went for a small walk in the street and had Idly with butter milk. It was good, I regretted not trying to have food in that hotel that was almost at the end of the street. I came back to the guest house and packed everything since I was told I would be moved to a houseboat after I return from Gulmarg on the next day. Slowly, I went into the sleep counting my last one day in Kashmir. 

Day 7, I woke up at 6:30 AM and got down to the guest house along with my baggage at 7:30 AM. In fact, I booked the hotel for that day night as well, but Faizan Bhai and Abrar Bhai wanted me to experience the stay at a houseboat on the last day. So, I handed over the keys to Tauseef. He verified with Mr. Bilal and let me go. He expected tip from me. But he gave it back when I gave him 50 Rs as he found it to be too small or he would have been rich. Absar Bhai helped me by carrying my luggage to the car and we started our journey to Gulmarg, the last destination on my trip. 

It was a cloudy morning. Google stated there would be an 80 percent chance of precipitation on that day. I wished it not to be another disastrous day like Pahalgam due to the rain. 

Abrar Bhai joined us on the way. We stopped at some hotel in Tangmarg. It was so cool as soon as I stepped out of the car. Gulmarg lies in Baramulla district that is near to the Pakistan occupied Kashmir. Abrar Bhai showed me the highway that takes its route towards the line of control border between India and Pakistan. I had Gobi Paratha for breakfast. It was good, but costly. I understood that wherever the cab drivers take the tourists, they could get something free food to eat at the respective hotels to bring them enough business again. That was the reason Absar Bhai always disappeared after sending me inside any hotel and he never had the food along with me. 

After breakfast, we started again on our journey and stopped at a taxi stand in Tangmarg. I was asked to rent a raincoat and long boots for my further journey to Gulmarg, leaving my shoes with them and paying 400 Rs for them. I got to know that the second phase for the Gondola ride was closed on that day owing to the bad weather conditions and rain. Abrar Bhai suggested me to put on hand gloves, muffler and even use the shawl that I bought on the other day in Srinagar since it would be very cool in Gulmarg. I was like a packed bag completely from top to bottom.  

The road to Gulmarg from Tangmarg was good as we were going up the hill. We stopped at some point and took some snaps. Soon, we reached Gulmarg. As expected, there were so many village people with their horses forcing tourists to take pony rides. I did not want to take the pony ride, at least on the last day. So, I resisted them and started moving towards the Gondola station.  

Gulmarg is a small place, and all the points would be visible easily as I read in one of the blogs. As we started walking towards the Gondola station, it started to rain. I had a shirt, on top of that my jacket, on top of that a rented raincoat and finally a shawl. Still, I felt the cold. We reached the station. Abrar Bhai said that I could take a pony ride after I complete the Gondola ride. I asked him if it was not possible to see Gulmarg without a pony ride. He replied saying that everything would appear near, but they are far if we take a walk. Since there were well developed roads, taking a car was another option. But I understood that it would be too costly especially for a solo traveler. So, I had to again opt for the pony ride. I took the contact number of one of the pony owners and stood in the queue for the Gondola ride. It was a long queue. Some people were getting confused as there were no clear instructions written anywhere about the ride and I could see the Indian Army helping them with the instructions.  

The administration verified my ticket and Aadhar card details and then allowed me into the Gondola cable car. It was an amazing experience. Watching the mountains and snow from the top of the cable car was one of its kind. Gulmarg Gondola is the Asia's largest and highest and world's second largest and second highest cable car project. Since phase 2 was closed on that day, I had to go only till phase 1, that is the Kungdoor station. There were some people along with their guide in the cable car that I got into. They were talking about the alternate way to reach the phase 1 point through the pony ride during the unavailability of the Gondola ticket.  

Quickly, we reached phase 1. Abrar Bhai advised me not to talk with anyone. So, I got down at the station and started taking snaps as I felt so close to the snowy and icy mountains. It was a very beautiful place with some kind of food and snacks available all the way. I started walking in the place and was thinking of doing some snow activities like skiing. But suddenly, it started raining. I got into a tent and sat in one of the chairs to have Maggi. It was another wonderful experience to have a hot Maggi in such a cold climate watching the rain and the hailstorm. The rain did not stop for a long time and the path was full of mud. I again saw Indian Army men helping an older woman to sit at a place. I had no other option but to only watch the rain and wait for it to slow down. There were numerous numbers of tourists at the location as the Gondola carries around 600 people per hour.  

After some time, the rain slowed down. So, I started moving back to the Gondola station for my return ride as the place was full of mud and not ideal to do any sort of activities due to the continuous rain. I again stood in the queue and took some snaps and videos. I reached the Gulmarg Gondola station and called the pony owner for the ride that cost me 2.5k. 

One good thing that happened during my return Gondola ride was that there were 2 Kashmiris sitting in the cable car along with me. One of them politely asked me if he could smoke at that point. I told him with a smile that I was not comfortable with it. He simply agreed. I again remembered on the hospitality and friendliness of Kashmiri people that I read in the blogs before as I practically experienced it on that day. 

I took the pony ride in the rain. Luckily, I was promised that the entire ride would be only on roads, not on grass and mud. I felt much better as I was always worried about the clothes becoming untidy due to the incessant rain. I was shown a children’s park, temple, church, Berries Garden, golf course and Maharaja palace. I declined to get down the horse at all the places except at Maharaja palace due to the nonstop rain. I could see Indian Army quarters for residence all over the place. In fact, the Army convoys were also moving everywhere. Although I wanted to visit the temple, I could not get down due to the mud, rain and severe cold as it was almost 5-degree temperature on that day. I could not believe even today how I was able to roam in the horse in that cold weather along with the rain.  

I got off the horse only at Maharaja Palace and started shivering due to the cold. The palace was beautiful and well maintained although I could not understand why there were air conditioners in all the rooms. I saw the old sofas, beds, guns and swords of the last king of Jammu and Kashmir, Maharaja Hari Singh. I took the videos and snaps inside the palace. It was tough in taking off and putting on the large boots. Still, I managed to do so and got out of the palace to have some Maggi in that cold weather. There was a bonfire at that spot which made me relax for a while. But soon, I had to take the pony and reach the initial taxi standpoint. I paid the horse owner 2.5k and called Abrar Bhai. Soon, we got into the car and started our return journey to Srinagar. 

I handed over the rented shoes and raincoat at Tangmarg and collected my shoes. Abrar Bhai asked me if I would like to buy Pheran as there were shops on the way. I declined it as I would not be using it afterwards. Moreover, my trip cost reached almost 1 lakh which was way beyond my imagination and expectation. Abrar Bhai said we could have lunch or something at Krishna Dhaba which is a very famous place in Srinagar. But before that he asked me about the remaining expenses for the cab and for the guide that I need to pay him along with the houseboat charges. I raised the point that due to the bad weather; I did not visit phase 2 of Gondola ride, yet I was charged more than the actual prize. So, I said that I would deduct the phase 2 amount of 950 from the total price. Initially, he was not ok with it as he was saying that he was unsure if he could get the amount back from the agent and even said he would transfer it to me once he got back from the agent. I am sure he would never do that. So, I convinced him to deduct those charges. Even for houseboat, he told 4k on the previous day, but ended up collecting 4.5 from me citing the last hour booking as the reason. The plan for Gondola ride and houseboat booking was there from the first day I arrived in Srinagar, and it was also communicated with him. But he booked it only on the last day and forced me to pay the extra charge which was another disappointing experience with them.  Although I tried paying him online, the transactions failed twice. So, I visited an ATM on the way which was also not working. I felt bad looking at the way they stopped the car thrice for the money as if I would escape. Moreover, I was hungry at that time since it was almost 5 PM and I did not have any proper food except Maggi in the afternoon. Finally, I tried transferring the amount via google pay again and it worked for the third time.  

We reached Srinagar and went to Nathu’s sweet shop. I had chole Batture which was yummy for the tummy. They dropped me at one of the Dal Lake Ghats and handed me over to a guy who would take me to a houseboat via a Shikara. It was so cold even in Srinagar with the wind blowing fast. The guy asked me to wait for a while as the Shikara may turn upside down if we travel in windy weather. I was surprised and asked if the weather remained the same throughout the night, what would be my situation whether to wait or if there were any other options because it was more than half an hour that I kept waiting along with my luggage at the ghat. He said they were going to bring an electric boat that works well irrespective of the wind conditions. They brought it after some time, and I got into it along with a Gujarati family that accompanied me. 

Now, this was yet another memorable moment of the trip, the night with an unknown Gujarati family. In every trip of mine, there was always a cherry on the cake moment and in this trip, my meet with the Gujarati family was that moment. 

We got into our houseboat around 7 PM. There was no power inside. It was not completely dark outside. The man in charge of the houseboat transferred my luggage to my room. I was worried about the two failed transactions of around 15k each as the money was debited from my account, but the transactions were unsuccessful. I called my bank customer care and raised a complaint. In the meantime, the power arrived. 

I was offered a large room with 2 beds and a large washroom. I loved the way the houseboat was maintained over the years with all the sofas, TV in the hall, dining table in the second room and three bedrooms. Two bedrooms were allotted for the Gujarati family of 7 members and another bedroom was for mine. It was very good with all the furniture in place along with the mirrors everywhere. The washroom was also a large one with a big tub to take the bath. I made a video call to my family and my friend to show them the houseboat. Later, I took a video of the same to keep it as a memory. 

I got refreshed after a while. The man in charge of the houseboat asked me if I had any objection having dinner with the Gujarati family. I said I had no issues, in fact, I would love to dine with them. 

It was a large dining table with chairs all round. 8 of us started having dinner. The family was so cooperative and helped me by offering the dishes during dinner. I got to know that they were from Rajkot. Quickly, I was able to mingle with them. We exchanged our experiences of our journey so far and I was shocked to know that I was completely looted in the name of pony rides everywhere. They came as a package of 7 members with some travel agency. I helped them in contacting Abrar Bhai for the Gondola tickets. I felt disappointed for a while as I missed visiting chandanwari and Aru valley in Pahalgam after listening to their experiences in those places. They were surprised to know that I came alone and visited so many places in Kashmir. Every one of them was so sweet in their own way. Even they are a vegetarian family. We loved the food since it was home made one. The chapati, dal, potato fry, rice, everything was good. I felt the dinner was incomplete without curd. Most of the Kashmiris doesn’t prefer having curd in their meals. But for most of the people in rest of India, curd forms a key element in their meal. So, I asked the man in charge of the houseboat. He said that he could not provide curd for that day and would try to arrange it for the next morning. The Gujarati family echoed with me and said they would be having butter milk daily as it would be too hot in Rajkot. I had a lovely experience having dinner with that unknown family. 

Abrar Bhai called me to verify if everything was fine at the houseboat. I felt good about the call. 

After dinner, I went into my room, listened to the songs and slept for the day. 

Day 8, it was my last day in Kashmir. After the journey full of ups and downs, highs and lows, the time arrived when I needed to say goodbye to the place and people over there. I had mixed emotions.  

I woke up and started getting ready. I was worried about the absence of hot water. I came at the entrance of the houseboat and called for the man in charge. He was not present. It was a sunny day with clear skies. A few Shikaras were riding their boats and offering me some food or tea to have in the morning. I resisted as I had not taken my bath yet. After some time, the hot water arrived, and I got ready. Absar Bhai called me saying that he was ready at one of the nearby ghats to drop me at the airport. But I needed a Shikara to reach the ghat. I spoke with the man in charge of the houseboat and updated on the timing to Abrar Bhai and Absar Bhai. The man arranged breakfast for me, Poha, bread and curd. It was also good. I waved to the Gujarati family and came out of the houseboat along with my baggage. The man himself drove me in a shikara and helped me in reaching the nearby ghat of the Dal Lake. I felt he was expecting something from me, but since I was already tight on my expenses, I simply thanked him and got into the car with Absar Bhai. 

On our way to the airport, Abrar Bhai called me and said I could give something specific to Absar Bhai. But I declined it saying that I already had enough expenses everywhere. Then he said he was not forcing me, but only asking me if I could as according to him, Absar Bhai did not get his proper due which was again a false statement. I felt Absar Bhai was good compared to Abrar Bhai and he helped me as the cab driver from the beginning of my trip. But my expenses reached almost 1 lakh which was far beyond my imagination and expectation. Moreover, they charged me more than the actual amount for Gondola and houseboat. Also, they did not take me to more than 3 places in a day in Srinagar. So, I thought there was no point in giving anything extra. Still, somewhere I would appreciate Absar Bhai rather than Abrar Bhai who was a silent killer.  

There was a huge check on our way to the airport. We were asked to stop at a place and scan all our luggage in a room along with our checking. It was there only at Srinagar airport in view of the terrorism prevailing in the Kashmir valley. Absar Bhai dropped me at the airport, arranged a trolley, gave me a warm hug and left the place. 

My flight got delayed for an hour. In the meantime, finally I met some guys from my state, in fact, from my native place, Kakinada. We spoke in our native language, Telugu. I even met a man from Bangladesh who came all way along to see Kashmir. I asked him about his experience and got to know that there are 64 districts in Bangladesh, which is a small country.  

I got onto the flight and started missing Kashmir. I would miss the friendly smile of Absar Bhai, the angry look of Mr. Bilal, the daily wave of Tauseef Bhai, the pleasant gesture of the old man in the guest house, Shankaracharya Temple, Dal Lake, Walnut Chutney, Mughal Gardens, Thajiwas Glacier at Sonamarg, all those never-ending rivers, mighty mountains, lush green meadows, tall deodar trees, Baisaran valley and Betaab valley in Pahalgam, Shri Pratap Singh Museum, Hazrat Bhal Shrine, Doodhpathri, Yusmarg, Gondola ride in Gulmarg and the sweet Gujarati family. But life should move on, and I too moved on from Kashmir to Jammu where there was a halt for an hour. 

I was surprised to see even Vistara flight was offering free food to the passengers as I was unaware of it. I had lunch on the flight and landed in Delhi from Jammu. 

After an hour of waiting at Delhi Airport where I had Bisi Bila Bath at Carnatic café, I got onto the flight to Hyderabad. Finally, I reached Hyderabad airport around 9 PM.  

All and All, I would say a trip to Kashmir is a once in a lifetime experience. I strongly feel everyone must visit the Kashmir valley at least once to enjoy the natural beauty. I was happy that my 4 years of obsession at last came to an end. Do you think it was the end of this obsession? No, after the trip, I felt like visiting the mountains again, in fact, once a year at least if time permits. Now, do I need to elaborate more about the beautiful place? It made a strong impact on me that I was still in its thoughts even after 2 months and finally able to complete this article exactly after 2 months 3 days.  

What’s your take on my trip? Let me know in the comments below.