It's a New Year! Adventures in Jammu & Kashmir

Sunrise in Srinagar

Happy New Year!  I suppose I should have at least one New Year's Resolution....to update my blog!  Here's the first update, with a few more to follow, including travel to Sri Lanka, Mumbai and Goa over Christmas.


In October I had the great privilege of traveling to India's northernmost state, Jammu & Kashmir (J&K).  It was an amazing trip, and I had over 800 pictures when I got home!  I visited Srinagar in the Kashmir valley, Jammu, and Leh - each place representing one of the three diverse regions of J&K.  I'll try to (briefly) summarize the visit.

Srinagar 

In Srinagar, I was part of a small contingent of international officers, and we were put up quite nicely at BB Cantonment.  Our visits to forward bases were via Mi-17 helicopters.  I love flying in helicopters, so that was extra fun for me.  While we flew around, we got great views of the Kashmir valley - lots of greenery, agriculture, and distinct architectural styles.

We headed towards the mountains and got our first glimpses of snow.  It was beautiful! The most memorable forward base we visited was at Uri, which has seen a lot of action over the years.  The base is in a small valley surrounded on three sides by big mountains which happen to cross the Line of Control into Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK).  They took us by historic NH-1A to a smaller base called Kaman Aman Setu, where cross-border visits and trade take place every week.  It was fascinating and very helpful to understand the Indian perspective.  We had a memorable time at a few other forward posts, shopping in the cantonment for Kashmiri goods, and visiting the post's museum.

Museum at Hari Niwas Palace

Sunset in Jammu

After a few short days, we headed off to Jammu city, where we stayed at the historic Hari Niwas Palace hotel - still maintained by the descendants of Maharaja Hari Niwas, the last king of Jammu & Kashmir.  It is a beautiful hotel overlooking the Tawi River and we enjoyed a brief stay there wandering the grounds, meeting up with the other officers on our trip, and touring the museum next door which had a pretty interesting art collection.

Ladakhi lady

The next morning, we flew to Leh, Ladakh for our final stop in the tour.  Because the city is located at high altitude, we had to spend a day getting acclimated.  The first thing that happened when we arrived at our hotel was that we were given a medical exam - blood pressure and pulse - to check if we were suffering from high altitude sickness.  The rest of the day, we were directed to stay at the hotel and rest.  I'll be honest, I may have pushed it a bit.  About five of us international officers decided to go for a little tour of the city instead.  Walking very slowly, we wandered around the various Tibetan markets and Ladakhi shops, which was a lot of fun!  Unfortunately, I don't think it was the wisest decision for me as I later experienced some minor symptoms of high altitude sickness...

Fortunately the next day, I was back to my (almost) normal self, and was able to fully participate in our travel agenda.  We spent that day at a couple of monasteries and a palace, and visited an Army unit headquarters.  Ladakh is beautiful, and very different from any place I've ever been.  It was difficult not to take a billion pictures - thank God for digital cameras!!

The next day, we went to Khardungla Pass, the highest motorable road in the world.  By the time we reached the top, it was snowing and windy, and VERY COLD!  I was thankful for the winter gear I'd brought with me!  One of the most memorable parts of that visit was hanging out in the cafeteria (world's highest) drinking tea with my friends, all of whom were desperate to get out of the cold!

A couple days later, some of us had the opportunity to do some river rafting in gorgeous green-blue water.

So far, it ranks number 1 trip in India I've had this year, and I would love to return to explore some more.

I hope this finds you well, and I wish you the best in the New Year.  

Better Late than Never Travel Post

A flower mat during the Onam festival in Kerala 

I can't believe it's October! The pace of this year is really picking up, especially as my travel opportunities increase.  I've had a few very memorable trips in the past month, so I thought it was  time for another update, starting with my trip to Kochi (formerly known as Cochin).  I spent a day in Kochi and a day and a half in Allepey on the backwaters houseboat cruise.   I've been to both places before, but it's been about ten years, so it was interesting to see what had changed and what had not.  Fort Cochin was virtually unchanged, and it was fun to walk around the narrow streets of Jew Town (the home of one of India's only Jewish synagogues to support its tiny and shrinking Jewish population), see the Chinese fishing nets, and visit the crumbling Dutch and Portuguese churches and palaces.  We had the opportunity to take an evening boat cruise from Willingdon Island around the Cochin bay, and had some really pretty views of the sunset and the buildings lining the coast. See for yourself.

Chinese fishing nets at sunset

me with some of my course mates sporting the
obligatory orange life vests for our cruise

Baby Chacko, our cap'n

Here are some pictures from our houseboat cruise in Allepey.  The tourist industry has really developed since I did this about 10 years ago. Tons of boats, all well-equipped with AC, kitchens, 1-2 bedrooms (or even more), and real furniture.  We even saw a "conference" houseboat that had a room on the roof for meetings.  I guess you would have a captive audience! 

Late afternoon on the houseboat

Despite the inital clogged canals, the boats eventually spread out and we had the sense of being out in the middle of nowhere, floating along.  Despite the increased tourist traffic, it appeared that traditional life goes on as it has for centuries - rice paddies going for miles, women washing their clothes and dishes in the river ways, lots of farm animals.  We had a really relaxing time on the houseboat - and ate some great food: fresh prawns, banana fritters delicious fish served on banana leaves, yum! 

I also recently had the rare opportunity to visit the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, just West of Thailand in the Bay of Bengal.  It was an interesting trip - although we got a lot of rain, it was a beautiful place, and wonderful to be near the ocean again.  Havelock Island has been well developed as a tourist destination with resorts, diving spots, and unusual experiences like diving with an elephant on the menu.  I'd love to go back when it's not raining! :) We did get to visit a couple beaches and go swimming!

Hotel room at Port Blair

Radhanagar Beach, Havelock Island

On a Floating Dock

Having fun on the Helipad

Rajiv Gandhi statue, Port Blair

Treehouse! 

Havelock Island

Mysore and Tea

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to spend a few days in Mysore, a great small town of South India with a beautiful and well preserved palace.  Mysore is famous for silk, too, and I went to a silk factory which was a really fascinating experience.  The process is amazingly intricate, going from mulberry silk pods to finished silk saris and other silk products.  Unfortunately, they don't allow cameras inside the factory, but I did get a pic in their sari show room. 

On the way down to Mysore, we passed through two wildlife reserves, and saw elephants, deer, boar, and monkeys. The elephants were being guided by reserve workers (they offer safari tours on the elephants), and they got REALLY close to the car. 

The highlight of the trip was the Mysore Palace.  Built in the early 1900s to replace the original palace after it burned down, it was designed by a British architect and incorporates design elements from Victorian, Mughal, and Hindu architecture, making for a really interesting and beautiful building.  In the evenings, they light it up with thousands of light, a visual treat! 

yummmmmmangoes

Ganesh doll

Worshippers could
purchase an offering for the
priest to bless

Huh? on a t-shirt

The promise on this "Nike" t-shirt
seems a bit overt, even for Nike

juxtaposition of old and new

We also visited Chamundi Hill and its temple. Similar to the technique used to manage long lines at an amusement park, at the temple you could pay Rs. 20 and go into the 2.5 hour line, or pay Rs. 100 and  get in the fast lane, which took about 20 min.  Either way, once the two lines merged at the temple entrance, it was the

quintessential press of the mass of 

bodies, each vying to get closer to 

the priest and receive a blessing.  The temple architecture was beautiful, and the streets outside were lined with shops selling everything from t-shirts with bad English to religious artifacts.  Here are a few more of my pictures.

last king of Mysore

Beautiful fields of sunflowers on the drive home from Mysore

Recently, we also had our first field exercise.  Conducted in a much more civilized manner than I've ever experienced, the "field" in the Army includes tea break, and involves sitting in a semi-circle on our camp chairs discussing the terrain around us.  This time, we were seated in the middle of a tea plantation, so it made for some great pictures!

My friend Ghiyas from Maldives is ready to go!