Its been a long time since the last post and this time I have outdone myself in procrastination. 'Need to be in the right frame of mind' can be a plausible excuse for not updating this blog regularly. By the way, all the pics in this blog have been captured by us and not 'dhaapo-fied' from the net !!
The last post was on Sonamarg. We came back to Srinagar by evening. Near Nishat Baug, on the banks of Dal lake, there many shops which sell dryfruits, saffron and other specialties of this region. We bought some saffron packed in tiny cases here. Nishat baug was built by Mughal rulers as recreational area for their Begums. This is a place frequented by the the youth of Kashmir - and by that I also mean a lot of children. There are stepped terraces which are laden with beautiful flowers of different varieties interlaced with lush grass. The place exudes grandeur by the fact that it overlooks the Dal lake with the mountain range turning cobalt blue in the evening light.
One can't really claim to have seen a place until you have eaten the local fare of that place. The dinner had been planned at a restaurant in the city and Irfan was more than happy to take us there in his auto. We hadn't done our research here and it was up to our friendly host-cum-autowallah Irfan to guide us on this culinary ride. He strongly persuaded to us try the 'Wazwan.' We had little idea how it would be apart from a little what we gathered from the waiter. It was supposed to be meat gravy with rice. We decided to give it a try nonetheless. And some delight it was!! It had the most succulent pieces of finely minced meat in a delectable dark red gravy I've had anywhere. Accompanied with the steaming basmati rice, it was food fit for royalty. Thankfully for us, Irfan later told us that we were having but a few dishes of what is supposed to be a seven course meal. With generous servings of the gravy - Rista as it is called, and the rice, it took some doing on our part to finish it. A lesson learnt for today - do a basic research before placing the order. On our way back, we found the city had shut shop for the day and there was hardly a soul to be seen on the road. The quite roads gave an unnerving feeling - a feeling of being watched !!
Back to the supposed safety of the hotel, it was time to plan ahead. Puneet, Sumeet and me worked on the the plans for the next few days, while Prathamesh checked his Outlook Inbox for mails on his laptop while uploading the pics of the day. A suggestion to budget travelers visting this place. Make sure your rooms get heated water even at wash basin. Washing hands in icy cold water can be a 'chilling' experience - not to mention the various other parts of the body.
Next morning, it was time to leave this place and head to Dalhousie in Himachal Pradesh. Before hopping into the van, we had a last look at the place and took in the atmosphere. The morning chill and shining sun giving it a magical touch. The feeling that we may never come back to this place again weighed on us. We started on our way to the Udhampur station. A new land awaited us !!
