Our next stop was Srinagar. Which was not that far from Patni Top. So we started late, just to maintain our reputation. As we descended down from the Patni-Top we encountered the very famous Pine Nest.
PINE NEST PATNITOP WAITING YOUR KIND STOP
A Dam in between, where we met some surprised and amazed family and crowd...First because of our strange look and second cause was the news of our crazy trip "All the way from Mumbai to LEH"
Anyway this was not the first time we got the strange looks-expression.
A closer look to the dam by 18-55
Another stop to capture some beauties
Just before Jawahar Tunnel
Then we crossed Jawahar tunnel ( Named by first prime minister,also known as banihal tunnel).Operational since Dec 1956 and 2.5 Kms long.
Titanic View point.
We reached Srinagar in the afternoon and the hunt for the hotel started. Checked-in in a hotel name Hotel Dawn for 400 INR nearby Dal Lake.
Dumped all luggage and went for Srinagar darshan
Our Hotel
People recommended going Mughal Garden and Shikara ride in Dal Lake.
With an nominal entry fee of 10 bucks...we entered Mughal garden.
Place was full of newly married couples. And every now and then they were asking us to capture the photos.
As the name suggests "Mughal Garden'...It was built in Mughal Rule.There were beautifully decorated flowerbeds, Beautiful cascading fountains and marvellous lawns.
Another masterpiece of Mughal style.
Mountains in the back
After spending an hour in the garden, roaming and clicking we had very famous Kashmiri Faluda out there. It was simply amazing.
Went back to the hotel and took a walk till Dal Lake. It was time for the Shikara ride.
Dal Lake is surrounded by tall-widespread mountains and plenty of gardens from three sides. The lake is majestic, grandiose and gigantic, five miles long and two and a half miles wide.
But one thing I disliked is the numerous houseboats, which have degraded the beauty of Dal Lake.
For Shikara ride,govt has standardized the price for the ride.300 For an hour and 200 for half an hour as far as I remember.But don't fall onto that,go ahead and show your indian attitude.Bargain as much as you can.
Enjoyed the Shikara ride, you can also find mobile shikara shops. Selling anything you want.
Later on me and Shadow went for some shopping. We had heard that, this place is famous for KESAR..We tried a lot but didn't found good quality stuff. Shadow purchased some Kashmiri Shawls and I bought some warm clothes.
Before the day ends, there was one more thing in my to do list. To stockpile the Rum for the further journey, as few fellow friends and wise mens advised me that..You will not find your stuff at all the places, so carry it with you.
In Srinagar there are very few wine shops, in the dal lake area there is only two. Both of them is in some hotel (don’t remember the name) compound.
Purchased the stock, went back to the hotel and called it - EOD.
Cheers
Biru
Ah this was srinagar before the violence. We were there when it was good times in 2008 coming back from our Leh ride. It was an amazing place. Sad to hear about the violence which happened there some days back.
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