DATE:4^TH JUNE 2007

NO OF WORDS: 980

Kashmir

The Land Of Magic

Mountains And Mystery

...

Where beauty knows no bounds, where heart knowsno worries, Kashmir, the name says it all. The land where every step makes you feel closer to heaven. The smell of pure air enticing the spirit, gives you a panacian effect. The snow filled mountains, the splendid dal lake, the apple orchids, the sweet smell of saffron, the hospitality of the civilians, every experience is a moment to cherish.

The bus journey from jammu to srinagar, is literally a roller coaster ride. At every turn you sense the dangerous turns of the valley, gushing the adrenalin, making the journey all the more exciting. The breathtaking view of the deodar trees dotting the snow filled valley signals the entry into the gates of heaven. Every turn, brings in new joy, exposing you to the magic of nature. The awesome scenery makes an indelible memory camouflaging the fatigue of journey.

We reached Srinagar after a 10 hr journey from Jammu. The tourism guesthouse where we resided, located at the center of the city is a convenient and safe place to stay. There are also numerous hotels, of different classes giving you a homely feel. You can even stay in one of the luxurious houseboats giving you a 5 star feeling.

The city of srinagar, sitting in the laps of the Himalayas presents a picturesque view. A walk on the snow filled road fills the mind with pride reminding you of the selfless jawans. The Dal lake, a fresh water lake located near the guesthouse, is a place not to be missed. During peak winter the lake is superficially frozen presenting an awesome view. Rent yourself a shikara (a small travel boat) for a trip- on the splendid Dal lake. The shikara ride takes you through the lanes and by lanes on water, the rajas palace, the floating gardens, and the Mughal gardens.

The Mughal gardens, developed during the Mughal period, is a must see. The floating garden a floating vegetable farm of the local farmers is. It is a surprise to see vegetables being grown on water. Dont get surprised if you come across hawkers moving on boats selling saffron, winter wears, flowers and many more shopping utilities. There is also a large shopping alley, all built on water. There are unlimited shopping opportunities here. A visit to one of the apple orchards is a lifetime experience as you rarely get a chance to see one.

We also visited one of the many saffron fields located in the outskirts of the city. As a matter of fact saffron is grown only in two places in the world and Kashmir is one of them.

A vacation at Kashmir is incomplete if you fail to visit Gulmarg, the land of white carpet. Gulmarg is a world-famous skiing spot. We were lucky enough to witness the national skiing competition.

The next day we went to Pahalgam. Pahalgam is a jewel hill station. Its natural splendour with snow clad mountains on all sides, a white water river traversing the bottom, added to trekking and pony riding makes the recipe for a world class vacation. . Pahalgam presents the most enchanting view of the snow capped Himalayas. The Jhelum river flows through this place. The water of the Jhelum river flowing from the Himalayas is so pure that it is the main source of water of the people living there.

Pahalgam is considered to be the starting point of the holy Amarnath Yatra. From here you can either go on foot or hire yourself a pony to reach the caves. The Amarnath caves is historically considered to be the holy abode of the lord shiva. During peak winters an ice linga is formed at the entrance to the caves giving it a divine look. However the caves are worth visiting only during the yatra time.

From there on we started our journey towards some of the coldest inhabited places on earth, Ladhak, Drass and Suru valley. These places provide lot of opportunity for trekking, mountaineering and water rafting making it a hotspot for adventure lovers.On the way to Drass we stopped at Kargil to have our dinner. Kargil, the battlefield of the famous Kargil war is the second largest town in ladhak. The famous apricot tastes quite good. The suru valley a distance of 2 hrs from Kargil, presents a spectacle of breathtaking features. The awesome glaciers, undulating alpine slopes, the snow capped peaks makes an unforgettable memory. After a night stay at kargil we resumed our journey at around 4 am heading towards Drass.

The zoijila pass falling enroute to Drass is the Himalayan gateway to Ladhak. The heavy snow fall in late autumn blocks the whole pass making it unnavigable.

Early next morning we reached Drass, the second coldest inhabited place on earth. The extreme cold was unbearable. It is said that only in Ladhak can a man sitting in the sun with his feet in the shade suffer from sunstroke and frostbite at the same time. Next day wehired a gypsy to the famous ghompa of the lord Buddha. Ladhak is full of Buddhist monasteries called ghompas. The huge statue of the lord Buddha enchanted us. The ghompas are also the places of study of the local children. The ghompa authorities were very hospitable. They served us a delicious soup, may be a Ladhak special.

We also went to Leh, the deserted beauty. It feels proud to go on the worlds highest navigable road, Leh. We were lucky enough to witness the Ladhak festival and it made a good climax to our trip. A trip I would never dare to forget. We took a flight from Ladhak to Jammu taking with us the memory of a sweet and memorable vacation. However somewhere in my mind I had the grief of leaving such a scenic beauty.

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How to get there:AIR: Srinagar and Ladhak have frequent air connectivity from Jammu.

RAIL: There is no railway line from Jammu to Srinagar.

ROAD: Though tiring it is the best way to enjoy a trip. There are lot of buses operating from Jammu to Srinagar and also from Srinagar to Ladhak.

Places to eat and stay: Srinagar being a major tourist center consists of innumerable hotels providing boarding and lodging. Food is no problem at all. There are lots of restaurants.

Best time to visit: November-December are the best months to visit as snow fall begins in this season. In peak winters road blocks due to snow might cause inconvenience.

titles of photos in gallery

THE ENTRANCE TO THE HOLY AMARNATH CAVES

THE AWESOME GLACIER AT GULMARG

A DEVOTEE OF LORD BUDDHA AT LADHAK

THE SHIKARA AND HOUSEBOAT ON DALLAKE

THE SENIC BEAUTY AT SRINAGAR

THE DAL LAKE AT SRINAGAR