KASHMIR: THROUGH THE EYES OF AN ORDINARY TOURIST
When I stepped foot on this much acclaimed, much famed, infamous land; I was laden heavy with expectations like any other tourist. And I write this with much delight that I was not disappointed. I visited the land at the onset of spring. The cold icy winter was still clinging on to this enchanting land often rightly called ‘Jannat’ or ‘Heaven’on earth. Rain and snow did attempt to play spoil sport on our trip, but they rather brought out different shades of the rich landscape and the rural backdrop. The capital city Srinagar took us by surprise. It took us back in time, with only traces of a modernistic society. The old-world charm of the Jamia Masjid, Shankaracharya temple and the Hari Parbat are sure to enthral. The serene magnanimity of the Dal and Nigeen Lake explored on a lazy Shikara ride was an unforgettable experience altogether. The budding first flowers of the year in the Tulip and the Mughal Gardens seemed to echo the very spirit of the city. You could feel the hope and resilience in the eyes of the locals as they constantly attempted to reiterate, “Kashmir and Kashmiris are not what you see in the news. You are welcome here.”
As we moved from the city to the rural areas of Baramulla and Uri, the changing landscape stood testimony to the blessed land with its diverse vegetation and forest cover. The grandeur of the deodar, the eeriness of the willow, the splendor of the chinar and the humility of the apple tree took my breath away. The men clad in pherans and women in hijabset against a surreal humming of the Azaan made me feel as if I was dropped straight into an Arabian night tale. The ancient relics of the Shankaragaurishvara and the Martand Sun Temple spoke a disparate story. And last but not the least, one cannot but avoid the glaring presence of the military. Though much against the popular narrative, we realized that they too were woven in the fabric of the place. As we spoke to the locals throughout our journey, one thing was definite. The minds of the common man are much alike the people of any other place. All they want is a happy peaceful home filled with the cheer of children. The most prominent and endearing sight I saw on my journey to Kashmir was – Hope. Hope in the eyes of every individual, hope of an unscathed Kashmir.
