This was on our third day in Kashmir. We had been to the mandatory sights in Pahalgam and had just come out of Verinag. The plan was to head to kokernag. Our guide was the local family friend we were staying with. Someone informed him that we could get fresh snow on Sinthan Top. Now, that’s a name that was relatively foreign even to him. So, we asked around for directions and ventured towards the the pass. It wasn’t a peak, it was a pass…Continue Reading “Sinthan Top – The hidden gem of Kashmir”
In recent past, this is the second time that we have got lucky. After two very good homestays in Chail, one of which I written exhaustively about, we got even a better turn of events in Kashmir. However, luck favours the brave. And, in this case, we had stood our ground. From the moment we booked the ticket, everything seemed to go wrong. The flight was rescheduled from an early morning one (8.15 a.m.) to 10 o’clock departure. It, eventually, took off at twelve o’clock,…Continue Reading “Travelling to Kashmir – Living like a local”
Don’t look out of the window and think what a mad man will go visiting a park in this weather. We made the trip months back, I am just getting to write about it now. There are quite a few things that make Mehrauli one of the best tourist spots in Delhi. It has the most magnificent and one of the oldest structures in close proximity and given that it is not on every tourist’s list yet, it is still possible to have a leisurely,…Continue Reading “Rajon Ki Baoli, Mehrauli Archaeological Park”
After I wrote about the Purana Qila walk with Sohail Hashmi sahab, we have done three more. I have been planning to write about them but the walks are long, filled with interesting tidbits and writing is painstaking. Anyway, this needs to be done and here is a brief narration of the awesome fun that we had and the stories we heard on the walk of Mehrauli Archaeological park. At quarter past eight on a cold January morning, we gathered around the entrance of Qutub…Continue Reading “Adham Khan Tomb & Gandhak Ki Baoli with Sohail Hashmi”
Old cities are like celebrities. You form a thousand preconceived notions about them even before meeting them. Sometimes, they are flattering, most of the times, not. For instance, I am a reluctant explorer when it comes to these relic towns. Though I have taken a thousand walks in Old Delhi, I love sitting around Connaught Place more. In spite of being amazed by the crowds and the 24/7 life of Cuttack, I have always preferred the orderliness of Bhubaneswar better. So, I was not exactly…Continue Reading “Hazratganj, Lucknow (I)”