Places to Visit Near Rangdum

The everlasting charm of the houseboats in Srinagar, the freshness of the mornings around Dal Lake and the awe-inspiring Pir Panjal ranges at the distant horizon bring a tangible paradise just so close to your field of vision that it's overwhelming. When I travelled there a year ago, the local opened up the doors to their hearts and homes so readily that Srinagar has become a city that I love to return to.And if the city of Srinagar is on your bucketlist as well, then so must be a stay at the dreamy houseboats docked on Dal Lake, Jhelum and Nageen Lake. For travellers planning a visit to this unique city, here is a complete guide to the Srinagar houseboat experience that can be your introduction to this paradise state.

Anyways we spent time in Srinagar market bought some dry fruits especially akrods and took restAnd next day my journey ends! Left for Mumbai by aeroplane!

It was still pitch dark and raining heavily in entire Srinagar when we reached Dal Lake. The dawn was just around the corner and we were asked to wait till the first light for a Shikara (small designed boats as called in local language) to be available to escort us to our houseboat. A long and patient wait it was. And then it was light, our first sunlight of Srinagar. Though it was very cloudy and the light was dim, it didn’t take long to get struck by the beauty of Dal Lake. It was huge and picturesque with snow clad mountain peaks in the background trying hard to come out of rain clouds. The houseboats were all lined up one after another waiting eagerly to welcome their guests. Shikaras were parked besides them, with no one available to take it for a ride at this hour. A sense of peace prevailed all over, and the pleasure of witnessing the beauty of a calm and crowd free Dal lake was all mine.As the wait became longer, life started to open up in Dal lake for the day. Locals sailed on their boats and started heading towards a common direction, few of them had some fully covered stuffs laden on them. Finally the Shikara was here and we boarded it. Sensing an opportunity I opened up my camera to capture some early morning snaps, and got few decent ones as well. Then after reaching the boat we just slept slept and slept, god knows for how many hours. After waking up, it was a different story altogether. The early mornings calm and peaceful Dal lake had transformed itself into a busy colony. It somewhat reminded me of Thailand’s floating market and the scene from the Hindi movie Kashmir Ki Kali, where Shammi Kapoor was seen romancing Sharlima Tagore in the song “Ye chand sa roshan chehera”. Simply because, of the vendors floating all over the lake trying to sell various stuffs to the guests of the houseboats. Flowers, jewellery, Kashmiri dresses, shawls, locally produced fruits and vegetables,etc all were available with them. Our houseboat was a small one and the owner of the boat was a humble man who was in his early fifty’s I guess. We called him Khan Chacha. He served us tea which had the flavors of some local spices and felt very different. He opened up with me and shared some of his experiences of his life in Sringar. It doesn’t take time to realize how hard their life is in this troublesome region of Kashmir. Tourists provide their daily bread but the ongoing unrest sometimes create survival challenges for these hard working localities. Impressed by his kind gestures and hospitality for us, I decided to capture some glimpse of this beautiful lake the the life of the locals around it. It was partly sunny and the lake was full of tourists and was at its colorful best. So I decided to get into action as the amateur photographer in me made me eager to explore and discover the secrets. Have a look at some of my captures during our short stay in this ever magnificent Dal Lake :

One of the perfect places to visit in May in India, Gulmarg is adorned with meadows of flowers in full bloom in the summers. Located in Jammu and Kashmir, this hill station is at a height of 2730 meters above mean sea level surrounded by the mighty Himalayas on all sides. The place has a rich cultural heritage, and has been a popular summer destination since as early as the Mughal era and some Colonial interference during the British Raj. Draped in virgin coniferous forests with rich fauna, glorious lakes and the greenest of pastures with also the world’s second highest golf course, Gulmarg has the most challenging yet the best trekking routes still very much undiscovered.How to get there: The best way to reach Gulmarg is by road. The nearest airport is Srinagar and the nearest railway station is Jammu.

2000 hrs: Reach local taxi stand and book cab for Jammu 300km INR 5000. Buy local saffron and dry fruits while riding to Jammu.

1130 hrs: Reach Gondola Cable Car ride and buy tickets @ INR 700 each

0800 hrs: Book cab for Gulmarg, Dal Lake, Mughal Garden, @ INR 5000 ( Mahindra Xylo)

2000 hrs: Reach Srinagar, book two rooms @600 each near Dal Lake

You can explore the snow covered peaks, the natural beauty, open fields and above all the beautiful tulip gardens of Srinagar.

Jammu and Kashmir is home to Asia's largest tulip garden and you will now get to see it in full bloom at a 15-day long Tulip Festival in April. The festival is part of the government's efforts to revive tourism in the state. The Tulip Garden, home to more than 20 lakh tulips of 46 varieties, has been praised by people all over the world and is often compared to the beautiful tulip gardens in Netherlands. Visitors will be able to see these dainty flowers in contrasting colours, spread across a vast green landscape overlooking the pristine Dal Lake.