One of the biggest complaints I hear from foreigners who travel to India is that the crowds and noise can be distressing. This can be even more overwhelming if you’re an introvert, like me. People and noise drain my energy and tire me out very quickly. But India is not all crowds, noise and beggars. […]
Category: Kashmir
Pahalgam: Kashmir’s Picture-Perfect Paradise Town
Growing up in India, Pahalgam represented all that was charming about Kashmir – a Paradise where many a Bollywood movie was filmed in the 1970s.
Kashmir’s Martand Sun Temple: Intriguing Ruins Of A Lost Dynasty
In early November 2011, I was fortunate to go on a 10-day trip to Kashmir, a state at the very north of India, that has since been overrun by terrorism and violence. During our sightseeing tour of Kashmir, our guide, Parvaiz bhai, took us way off the usual tourist route to see some gems of […]
Verinag Springs, Kashmir: Origin Of The Jhelum
The kids squealed. As they threw dough balls into the spring waters, the carp sprang up to snap it up. The spring waters were a Maldivian turquoise and clear as crystal. Our visit to Verinag Springs in Kashmir in November 2011 was quite a thrill. It was a great place for the kids to witness how […]
Kokernag Botanical Gardens, Kashmir: Straight Out Of A Monet Painting
I remember walking into the gate of the Kokernag Botanical Garden in Kashmir and being astounded at the beauty that lay before me. It was autumn, and the leaves were a multi-hued bouquet of red, gold and green. Wooded glens, lawns and streams created a tranquil and dream-like mood. A gurgling spring ran over the […]
How My Kashmir Trip Went from Disastrous to Delightful
My trip to Kashmir in October 2011 was poorly planned and began rather disastrously until a stranger’s kindness took it from disastrous to delightful. It feels strange to write about a place I visited almost 7 years ago – especially because, a while after my visit, there were devastating floods and an upsurge in terrorism […]