Paradise on Earth - II

Read Part I yet? Do it please. I'm compulsive about order and suchlike :P Now, onwards.

We stayed on a quaint houseboat on Nigeen (Diamond) Lake which was surprisingly opulent with full-length carpets and woodworked ceilings. A day-trip around Dal Lake and the local attractions made us happy to have chosen this non-crowded quiet lake with its well spaced out houseboats. It felt like mini-National Geographic to check out the birds hunting for their fish every day... I suspect on Dal you'd see boys hunting for fransip instead.

While I'm happy checking out a garden or two just to marvel at how the Mughals managed to construct them years ago, seeing one garden is like seeing any other, and so we decided to check out a couple of the dargahs instead of doing five gardens in a row. Again - lovely experience with everyone going out of their way to make us feel at home. The cutest was two kids who accompanied us around the mosque, telling us solemnly 'Hindu-Muslim bhai bhai.' And the dargah itself - the interiors are incredibly detailed and so very very rich, it's breathtaking. 

That's the awesome thing really - Kashmir's a very poor state, in that the chief occupations of people are agriculture and (maaaaybe) tourism. And yet, everyone has succulent meat & dishes to eat because they cultivate both animals and cash crops; and it's a lovely self-contained system.

We also spent a couple of very satisfying days telling the locals that we wouldn't ride their horses and their sleds because that'd be cruel, and that we could really do 5-6kms in the hills on foot, no problem. While the local 'salesmen' are everywhere thrusting their wares on you via shikhara, horse, and on foot, it must be admitted that they charge very cheap rates, and if you're the kind that doesn't enjoy treking it, you'd still have an easy time of it. 

But us being us - we kept making it our mission to go where no one else was around, which meant we got to see some really cool views (respect to the cows for making it up all the way there, I was huffing and puffing but they looked totally cozy), including a spectacular End-of-the-World horizon at Gulmarg. And 9000 feet up at Sonamarg*, where it was still twenty six degrees celsius out, we finally found snow. That's right - Srinagar in September still sees weather touching thirty one degrees or so on average. What can I say, it happens only in India :)

*I just have to say this - we were nine. thousand. feet. high. And the husband still looked around before putting his hand around me. And we're married. Another thing that happens only in India.