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Published: September 7th 2005
On reflection
At peace on the lakeWe had tickets for a 'sleeper' bus - super deluxe air conditioned. In reality it was a coach with intermittent air conditioning and oversized luggage racks - which was where we spent the whole journey. 28 hours, one puncture, five bananas and one pack of hobnobs later we arrived in Srinigar - along with 3 quarters of the Indian army. As their trucks had priority (the big guns kinda gave them that privilege) the tourist busses had a long wait. The only thing to punctuate the trip, on a very regular basis, was the numerous passport controls. It was only for the western tourists which on reflection is curious as we haven't been blowing stuff up in Kashmir!
We were met by Shafi (Mr. Bob) who is the owner of the boat (and Niaz' uncle) who had kindly waited 6 hours for our overdue bus to arrive, and were taken to 'young lalarukh' houseboat. After our first proper meal in two days and a change of clothes the world seemed a nicer place.
To give a little history; the Dal lake houseboats were built by the British (by Indians under British direction most likely) before we outstayed our welcome.
On the road
Mountain road to Srinigar The designs are lavish, with a definate European style (bogs you sit on, not crouch over). The woodwork is hand carved with beautiful panelling and layout. Furnished with carved wooden tables, chairs, writing bureau and the like - we were treated to a 'Raj' like experience with 3 meals a day, hot water, everything we needed floated past on Shikara (water taxi) and our very own man servant Hanif. With hindsight, starting the trip in such luxury may have been overkill, but it made up for Delhi.
Dal lake is lovely and the surrounding Himalaya frames the scene beautifully. For culture we visited Moghul Gardens (restored by the British and in constant repair by the Kashmiri), a very old Hindu temple with a lovely view of an astounding 18 hole golf course (built by - guess who), and the floating lake Dal gardens. These gardens are a fine work of agricultural innovation, with vegetables sprouting from piles of mud lined up in the middle of the lake!
On a conservational note - the lake is beautiful but without constant vigilance it may be lost. Unfortunately there is a certain tourist element (apparently not European) who have been less
than eco friendly, and assume the lake will 'absorb' anything thrown into it! The Kashmiri's are well aware of the value of their lake and are making great efforts towards its preservation but Shafi explained it will take more to save the lake for the future.
On a political note, the foreign office is still advising against visiting Kashmir. Although this may be sound advice, and we're not qualified to comment, we had no problems with any form of military or non-military trouble. There is an element of the Kashmiri who make every effort to relieve you of your cash, but on the whole these people are lovely and simply hoping for the return of western tourism to this beautiful area.
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Sapphire
non-member comment
Hi. nice to read bout ur views on kashmir. being a native, feels quite enlightening to look at things from the outside. A tip for those visiting the place:: always prefer to 'fly in' instead of the bus. road travel into the valley can be quite exhausting... n yeah, air travel aint too expensive either.(jus booked my delhi-srinagar ticket for a little over $10!!...)