Hello people. Welcome!
So sorry I am so irregular. Honestly speaking, the last few days haven’t been
really all that exciting so you really have not missed out on much. I’ll
probably give an account of those days in the future. I have a really important
article on handling the trip to the Mata VaishnoDevi Temple, so those keen on
going there in the future, please keep reminding me about the article till it
does not appear on this blog. Okay coming to today. Today was a transition day,
from Srinagar to Pahelgam, a town situated in the hills, about two and a half
hours from Srinagar. Similar to many of my previous trips, the travel itself
proved to be a major and better part of the entire trip, and this was no
different. Since this was especially eventful, let me discuss in detail.
The journey started commonly enough. Weaving through the
unusually open roads of Srinagar, till we touched the highway. In the outskirts of the city, about 12-15 km
away from it, we came across a small town by the name of Pampone (or at least
that is how our driver pronounced it). This is supposedly a very famous place
since it is primarily a wholesale saffron market. As if emphasizing on this,
there are acres and acres of saffron fields a little distance away. However,
there were no flowers in bloom at this time of the year. Nearby these fields
also were many shops who sold saffron at wholesale rates. Surprisingly these
shops were named in a variety of strange names (how does one connect Kohinoor
and Maharaja with saffron?). A little ahead, appeared a new kind of shops.
Something which I liked, for a change. Guesses? CRICKET BATS!! Oh yeah, the
famed Kashmiri Willow bats, exported to all major sport brands all over the
world, are made there! We came to a town called Sangam, which had proper
showrooms and manufacturing factories. We visited one that our driver knew of.
It was pretty cool. We saw the stacks of willow, the newly made handles and
other things like bat presses etc. Of course, with all these bats around, I
could not resist the temptation. I bought a new bat (a Kookaburra), freshly
made and designed in front of me (by design, I mean the sticking the stickers
part). Harsha Koneru and Ripun Bhai, if you are reading this, you guys will
really love it. After the eventful stop at the bat industry, we had a peaceful
journey ahead. There were a plethora of
dhabas on the roadside, most of them sadly advertising Punjabi food. Not that I
have anything against it, but I could have done with a little South Indian or
Fish dishes. Since we had had a heavy breakfast, we did not stop at any of
these dhabas and carried on. There was a heavy presence of both the Police and
the Para-military all along the roads. As usual, they did not fail to impress
me. Honestly speaking, it is a little reassuring too! There were also many
cheesy road signs along the way put up by the BRO like “If you are married,
then divorce speed” and stuff like that.
We entered Pahelgam against a backdrop of the high Himalayan
Mountains set against a cloudy sky. Pahelgam proved to be a beautiful and
scenic place. The river Lidder flows across the town and it is covered by
beautiful and well maintained parks (most of them having the rare Lavender
flowers). Our hotel was also wonderfully located, right on the riverside. Our
room, although on the first floor, is directly facing the river, and has a
wonderful view of the snow-capped peaks of beyond. After freshening up, me and
Dad had a wonderful head massage apiece and took some photographs, before
heading down to the restaurant for lunch. Directly after lunch, we set out for
the local pony stand for hiring them to take us to the nearby sightseeing
points. However Mom’s old I-am-falling-down-phobia came up again and she
refused to sit on a horse. On her insisting, I and Dad set out on our horses.
It proved the most wonderful journey ever! Again, words fail me. We mostly
climbed up a mountain on horseback. My horse’s name was Raja while Dad’s was
Lalu (LOL!) Because of the recent rains, the path was muddy and slushy. The
scenery we got during the trip was heavenly. Lush green meadows, ponies grazing
on them, tall snow-capped peaks and the river rushing along us all the time, it
was lovely! The sun kept playing hide-n-seek and kept peeking at us from time
to time. After negotiating a few steep slopes and turns we came to our
destination. Here I would like to really apologise to the readers, but I forgot
the name of this point. But it is also called mini-Switzerland. And though I
have never been to Switzerland, I hardly think the name is an exaggeration. It
was amazing! A great green plain with pine and fir trees bordering it, and the
snow capped peaks seemingly only a little distance away, I have never been in a
place more scenic. We took some photographs, had some hot Maggi and bought
stuff for Mom. The distant rumble of thunder was our cue for returning back. It
was after all, an almost two-hour ride on horseback. However, this time the
weather was not with us, and it started pouring in the middle of the journey.
Since the roads got really slippery, we descended with great apprehension. I
suggest anybody who comes here to get his/her woollens and rain-coats, since
the weather here is really unpredictable. After yet another hip-crumbling horse
ride, we finally reached our hotel where mom was anxiously waiting for us.
Not much after we came back. We had some hot soup (since we
were drenched), and then just sorted out pictures and stuff. Then we had a
sumptuous dinner and now: SLEEP!
Goodnight all!
P.S. If anybody does come to Kashmir I really suggest you to
spend at least 3-4 days here in Pahelgam, it is indeed a beautiful place.
Still waiting…
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