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| sitting in a houseboat in Srinagar |
Two weeks of planning and with help on hand, I was off on my journey to Kashmir from Chandigarh to Hoshipur on 20th April. I had a comfortable night at my relatives house in Hoshipur and then caught a bus to Jullunder where I had not so comfortable night with a large family with screaming kids and the following day I caught another bus to the border town of Jammu where I had a sleepless night in a shared bedroom with the daughter of a family who they claimed was possessed by the devil!!! Well all that life experience with families saved me money and quickly forgotten as I caught the final bus to Srinagar, the capital of Kashmir. I arrived in Srinagar, late evening and unable to find my connection I pleaded to the owner of the rest house nearby, ( which the rickshawalla had recommended ) to give me a bed for the night!! On the night of 23rd April, I shared a dormitory with lots of teenager girls who made sure I had very little sleep; they spent most of the night on the tiles, chasing boys in the next dormitory to mine!!!
The greatest attraction Srinagar offers, is Dal Lake houseboats, which were introduced by the British and had English flavour in the making of the boats. I spent my birthday in one of these houseboat and I was in my heaven on my birthday!!!
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The city of Srinagar had a feel of occupied city with army patrolling the streets. It was a crowded city with beautiful looking people( mostly Muslim) who looked different from the rest of Indian population. I only spent two days in Srinagar, (including a day in the boat house on my birthday) and moved on to a small town called Pahalagam, a bus ride away.
Pahalagam was to be my home for two months. The town has a river running through the centre and it is surrounded by snow capped mountains. The town's name derives from the everyday event which the shepherds preform by driving their flocks of sheep along the paths all around the town.
My home was on the first floor of the shop which was run by few young men as a photographic studio. I spent most days out and about looking for some handsome movie star who might just take fancy to me ( not such luck there). I was also equipped with my water colour paints and brushes to keep myself busy by the river side, I read books and I also made time to talk to the world passing by in this idyllic setting. I even found that I could joke with a beggar on the street who had a smile for me!! People in the town looked happy. Small groups of European wearing orange robes ( belonging to Lord Krishna sect) would walk through the town centre and I longed to talk to them in English,( tell them I am one of them really) and at times I plucked up courage to exchange few words which made me longing for England.
I made a day trip to the town of Gulmarg ( name given because its valley is full of flowers in spring) where I could not take my eyes away from the green valley of flowers which was surrounded by some more snow capped mountains. I made another day trip to a town called Sonamarg ( named for its ice capped mountains which glitters like gold in the sun). Here I found a beautiful Kashmiri lady with a water can, walking towards a blue water fall on a frozen river. I followed her to get away from the crowd of tourists, only to be told off by an army man with a gun slung around his neck. As far he was concerned I was on a dangerous territory, the frozen river, and ordered me to return to a safer area where all the tourists were!!! I obeyed.
Sadly my stay in this idyllic place came to a short and abrupt end. I only lasted four weeks out of eight. I found myself driven out of the town by the local people who I thought were my friends. They could not accept me, single, living alone and having fun with those I met, mostly tourists.
Confused and hurt, I returned to my base camp in Delhi to point my life in a different direction, the south of India?
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