Day 7 Aru to Srinagar:
Hiking was the order of the morning and I wanted to walk around. I did infact, climb the mountains and get down the valleys to the rivers. This is the best place I have visited in Kashmir valley and I will definitely go again for a longer duration next time. The people need a special mention here. They are very friendly and helpful, which makes the stay even more pleasurable.
Cuteness of the kids can’t be described in words.
There was a gang of kids who pestered me for money, had to shoo them off at the end as they were getting a bit too touchy.
Reached Srinagar in the evening and after the hotel owner promised to allow me to check out at 2 PM, the next day, I paid up and headed to the Dal lake. I did not like the lake, its like more of a floating market and less of a lake. The water was black and there was garbage everywhere.
Day 8 Srinagar to Gulmarg to Ganderbal:
My plan was to keep the luggage in the hotel, visit Gulmarg and come pick up the luggage and head out to Sonmarg. However, the owner refused to let me check out at 2 and asked me to pay for 2 days if I wanted to do so! So I had to pack up stuff and headed out to Gulmarg.
Boy, this place is so true to its name. There are flowers everywhere and every place. I rode around happily, but missed the gondola ride due to the stupid hotel owner in Srinagar.
Headed out towards Sonamarg, completely unaware of the things in store for me. Met these friendly chaps at a place where I stopped for tea. Learnt a few Kashmiri cuss words and gave gaali to lots of people in Kashmiri. Had lots of fun and I bid adieu to them.
The first sign of trouble was when a policeman stopped me asked me to go back to Srinagar as the situation was not good ahead. I quickly cooked up a story that my friends are in Kangan and asked them to let me through. Shortly after 10Kms, I was stopped by army who were wielding machine guns and asked to park.
Next up, A night run to save ourselves
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