Srinagar-Ladakh-Delhi Trip: Day 2: Pahalgam

The next day, on the advice of the guest house guy (cant remember his name!), we decided to go to Pahalgam, a neighboring town and hill station. 

The journey took us about 2-3 hours, which was fast due to the bandh. The roads were very beautiful, and since I was sitting on the front seat of the car, I could enjoy the scenic beauty without much effort, though I had to work at tuning out the driver's non-stop commentary on random stuff!

A lovely stretch of road with tall trees on both sides.

On the way to Pahalgam

A beautiful river with blue-green water. The Lidder river I think.

 

We reached Pahalgam and once we got out we got the news that the only way to see anything here was on horse-back! Aunt & Uncle had already gone horse riding when they'd gone to Manali, so the three of us were the only ones who were hesitant to try it out; I, cause I'd vowed never to voluntarily go for any animal ride since a disastrous camel ride last year!

After much discussion & persuasion by the locals (it is their main source of income), Pa decided to go for a trial ride. He didn't like it, but didn't really hate it either, and so it was up-to me whether we'd go or not, since Ma is always ready for anything new! After vehemently refusing the first hundred times, I finally decided to give it a go, thinking it couldn't possible be worse than a camel ride. And I was right. It wasnt all that bad, thought the first few minutes are terrifying on my horse, who was aptly named Awara (He did not like to follow the other horses and would choose his own path!).

 

Anyway, now that everyone was on board we selected the Baisaran package, which cost us Rs. 700 per person. And so with great trepidation, we set out on our horse ride.

The stony path we went by.

The whole journey till the top was terrifying, especially because the horses seemed to be finding the narrowest and steepest paths to walk on! We stopped at certain points along the way for more photos, since we'd taken the services of the professional photographer who accompanied us on foot.

It was a package deal, the photos on the horses and then photos in traditional Kashmiri costume at the top, with the Himalayan backdrop.

When we reached the place called "mini Switzerland", the view was breadth-taking! I've never been to Switzerland, but I'm sure the Alps are just as beautiful. The sprawling natural lawns, the tall pine trees, and finally the majestic snow-capped mountains! Wow!

Mini Switzerland!

Zorbing: we didnt try it.

Descending was a bit trickier, I kept thinking that I'm gonna fall and tumble the rest of the way down; it would've been painful, but quick! But we somehow managed, and reached the base point safely.

After paying them, we went to a nearby dhaba owner by a Punjabi gentleman, and had some tasty food, the paneer was as soft and delicious as before.

 

Gujrati Thali

Punjabi Thali

After lunch, and another quick photo session, we started on our was back to Srinagar. Stopped on the way at some places designated (by our driver) as standard tourist spots for photography, and some apple orchards.

 

Apple Orchards

We stopped on the way to have tea in one of the villages and saw the locals having a yellow colored drink. Its a kind of tea only, but with dry fruits like almonds.

A tea with dry fruits

As we were nearing Srinagar, movement got very very slow due to the traffic. At a certain point in time, when we were stuck at a traffic signal, there was a loud sound, like an explosion just behind us, and a small cloud of dust rose in the air.
First thought: Terrorists!!!
Within seconds of hearing the sound, all the pedestrians lowered their heads and started running helter-skelter! There was a young mother with her daughter right outside our car, who we were observing just before the sound, they disappeared in the time it took us to look behind and back!
Anyway, it was over before we had time to react, apparently a car's tyre had burst, causing the loud explosion-like sound.
I guess this reaction kind of explains the presence of the defense personnel all over the busy streets of Srinagar.

They were present at intervals of a a few meters all all the roads.

As we reached home, it started getting darker, and as soon as we got out of the car at the guest house, it started raining. I was already under the balcony cover, when I realized that the rain was making loud noises as it fell, and on looking closer found that it was hail!! My first hail storm!!

Hail!!

 A good end to an adventurous day!

Srinagar-Ladakh-Delhi Trip: Day 1: Srinagar City

Its been a week that since I've been back from my holiday, and I'm still feeling the withdrawal symptoms! It was the best holiday of my adult life, and I just didn't want to come back to my  mundane Pune life!
Anyway, its over and I'm gonna have to survive on these memories till the next holiday, so just sharing a few here.

Before leaving, we had to weigh all the bags, since we couldn't cross 15kg per person, and we had a lot of stuff!

In the air finally, after months of planning!!

We left at 7.10 am and reached Srinagar at around 1pm, after hour long halts at Mumbai & Delhi!

There was a 2-day bandh in  Srinagar, to protest the Zubin Mehta concert taking place here, and these two days just happened to be the first two days of our holiday! Though it turned out to be a good thing for us, since the roads were practically empty, and we didn't have to face any crazy traffic.

The deserted streets of Srinagar

After checking in at the guest house (courtesy of my aunt, who has contacts!!), we went out for a quick lunch at a dhaba, and had the best, most awesome paneer ever! It was so soft and just melted in my mouth; now I know how my North Indian friends feel when they have the paneer here! The dhaba was just opposite the famous Dal lake, and so after eating, we went to have a look at the Shikaras there.

The area was empty of tourists, and only the shikara/houseboat owners were sitting, and looking around for tourists. As soon as they spotted us, we were surrounded by them with various offers of shikara rides and houseboat stays also. One old guy got hold of us a little early and convinced us to have a look at his houseboat, after which we could decide whether to spend the night there or not. I wanted to, since it would be a totally new experience, but I don't think and of the others were that enthusiastic, other than my uncle.

Anyway, we hired a shikara (400 INR for an hour-long ride), and decided to have a look. Getting into it was a very complicated feat, and required us to properly balance ourselves, since the boat would just sway in either direction and look like it was about to capsize with us in it. All of us got on safely, not without a few scares though, and left the shores.

 

Shikaras

The water was filled with some weeds of some sort, so I think even if we fell into the water, we might not have sunk too deep. There were some people fishing as well. When we asked about the type offish and if crocodiles were there in the lake, the guide seriously replied: "Crocodiles are not allowed in the lake!" I instantly had a picture in my mind of a crocodile being denied entry and having to go back sad!

Apparently, they had experimented some years back by putting a crocodile in the lake, but it caused a lot of disturbances, overturning the shikaras and all. And so was removed from the lake, and since then crocodile are not allowed in the Dal lake!

 

Houseboats

There were a wide range of houseboats to suit nearly every type of tourist, domestic, foreign, rich, not-so-rich. The one we were taken to was very old, and dusty and moth-ridden! Yes, we got one of the sad ones. Anyway, I didn't even go inside since we were asked to take off our shoes before entering. The others went and had a look and didn't like it at all, so we carried on with the shikara ride.

Below is one of the older houseboats in which people still live. It was the biggest one we saw.

The lake was filled with lotus plants, whose roots I think are used by the locals in cooking.

Half an hour was already spent and we had another half remaining, so decided to go to the market area, which was also practically deserted due to the bandh. A few shops were open, mostly of clothes/shawls and dry fruits. We stopped at one one of the dry fruits stores and got on to dry land. We left after considerably lightening the load in our wallets, and went back to shore.

 

The Shankaracharya temple at the top of the hill.

 

A shikara selling stuff like cold drinks and chips!

 

Lost of birds around

After the shikara ride, we wanted to go shopping in Srinagar city, but due to the bandh everything was closed and so we couldn't go anywhere. Our taxi driver Tahir, suggested going to the Jama masjid, and being without many options, we agreed. The area around the masjid had a lot of shops selling burqas and such. Tahir took us around the mosque for a tour to see it from all sides. Its supposed to be one of the oldest mosques here, with a capacity to seat around 30,000 people! Anyway, as we were walking, we noticed some young boys playing cricket within the compound, and when they saw us, they suddenly started saying slogans(?) out loud, like: "Go back India! Go back!" We were shocked! I mean, this was India, so where were we supposed to go?? Makes me think that they were in the wrong country!
Anyway, that worryingly summed up the attitude of the locals here. Apart from those profiteering from the tourists being here, the people (mostly men) around looked very unfriendly and downright hostile!

As we took a full a circle, we met two adorable kids who were out for a walk. The people here are really very good looking. All fair and light-eyed, with sharp features!

 

Later on we went looking for a place to have dinner, which was proving to be difficult since most places were closed.Tahir finally found us one restaurant that was open. Decided to try some of the Kashmiri specialties, like Gushtaba (a mutton dish). The food wasn't that great, but thankfully it was jut this one restaurant that was a problem, the coming days brought us yummy, tasty food!!!

 

Stepped into a neighbouring bakery and had a look around. The bakeries here are supposed to really good with breads not found elsewhere. 

 

We went back to the guest house and to our beds, and thus ended the first day!

Shopaholic & Sister, Shopaholic & Baby, Mini-Shopaholic!!!

The 4th book in the shopaholic series. A quick and entertaining read. In this book, Becky discovers that she has a long-lost sister, something she'd always wanted. Alas, the sister is the exact opposite of Becky with a strong aversion to consumerism! She tries to get Becky to be more frugal, but off course that leads to tension between them. However all is logically, yet magically fixed and everyone's happy in the end.

***

At the end of the previous book, we get to know that Becky is pregnant! And this book brings to light a whole new category of shopping: Baby stuff! And so, as expected, we have her going crazy getting the best for the baby from clothes to doctors! This leads to many confrontations and awkward situations and such with Luke, her husband and others. Eventually everything goes well and the little girl is born.

***

 

Becky's back, and with a 2-year old in tow! 

The final (?) book in the series is about the Shopaholic's life 2 years after baby Mini. They've sold the old, kid-unfriendly house and have temporarily moved in with Becky's parents

This whole series was very light, witty and entertaining. And Sophie Kinsella moves to the top of my chick flick authors list!

The Making of a Royal Romance by Katie Nicholl

I have a secret, , long-standing secret that I've never told anyone, but if you know me well, this wont be news to you! Its not that I'm ashamed of it, I'm just very sensitive to criticism, especially from people I don't particularly know or care about! Story of my life!! But this blog is my space and if I cant be true to myself here, then where else? So without further ado, presenting to you `le secrète`:

.

I'm fascinated by the lives of CELEBRITIES. Yes, its true!All of the glamor, drama & all things related enthrall me. In fact, People is among the first websites I open every morning!!!

And IMHO,  looking beyond the regular celebs like movie stars, musicians & such are the Royals, the ultimate celebrities, you know, like actual royalty!

 

So, this book was an obvious pick for me (The Diana Chronicles has been on my wishlist for a long long time). It was not that great, though not as much drama as I expected.

Most of the book is focused on both the princes as boys and their years in school.
I found the book to be too sympathetic to the royal family. Like the poor children had no privacy, divorced parents, etc. I agree these are valid issues, but when you look at the bigger picture, all these things look so silly. Like how much does privacy matter when you don't have a house to call your own! I know it sounds harsh, but I'm just sharing some of the thoughts I had while reading the book.

However I was happy to learn about all the charities being supported by them.

There's not much of a love story here, which was the main reason I picked up the book. So all in all, a disappointment, though I shouldn't have expected much in the first place!

Nose Piercing

Nose Piercing.
"khabriaye mat!! yeh sirf ek naatak hai"

Dram-E-Baaz present the hilariously bitter play-
"Nose Piercing "
a Hindi Play in Nautanki(folk).
The play in a satirical form takes a dig at the women's plight in our society.

There are some stories that are common, so common that we forget about them.
But some stories are so painfully true that they pierce through you.

We invite you all to be a part of the play.
In case the need arises hit our actors only with onions.
No Tomatoes Please!!

dekhiye humein PYAR se ,
maariye toh sirf PYAAZ se.

***

Ok, so we've got a new flatmate, who among many things, also happens to be an aspiring actress! And Nose Piercing was her second stage play. We got to see a whole new side of her. Usually she's quiet and soft spoken, but on stage, she turned into the Goddess Kali (I think) and single-handedly fought & defeated the five men who had assaulted her!! So, never judge anyone at face value!!! Now that I've imparted some wisdom, moving on to the play.

Hilariously bitter are the right words to describe this play. There's no real story as such, its more of a mix-bag of many small women-centric stories, and touches on many of the current issues in society like rape, female infanticide, dowry & eve-teasing. I wouldn't say it showed anything new, but a good effort nevertheless. The jokes were really funny and I hadn't heard most of them before. There is this one scene where one guy becomes the bike, and others ride on him. Hilarious!!
Superb acting by all and good light & sound effects too. This was the first play I'd seen in a really long time, and I was not disappointed!! 

What I didn't really get was the name of the play. Why nose piercing, I wonder...