Kashmir: Where the Sky Comes Close Enough to Touch

“^{If there is a paradise on earth, it is here, it is here, it is here.
The words aren’t mine — but having been to Kashmir, I hear them in a way I never have before.}“

I did not intend spiritual awakening. I only wanted peace.
What I discovered was something more profound — a valley that breathes beauty, a country that holds you softly, and people who remind you what warmth really means.

Srinagar: Floating Through Stillness
I arrived in Srinagar with tired eyes and a full heart.
Within half an hour, I was in a shikara, gliding over Dal Lake, with floating markets everywhere and snow-covered mountains. The boatman was not talking. He did not need to.

The lake was reflecting the sky, clouds, mountains, and me.
Spent the night sleeping on a houseboat. Had steaming kahwa as the stars accumulated overhead. That was enough. And in some weird way, it was all.

Gulmarg: Strolling Through White Wonder
In Gulmarg, the snow blankets the ground as if protecting something valuable. I took the gondola ride up to the clouds, with pine trees and the silence only mountains can offer.

Children frolicked in the snow. Couples smiled. I walked on.
No agenda. No schedule. Just fresh air and that feeling that maybe, at last, you’re in the right place.

Pahalgam: Letting Go By the River
Pahalgam greeted me with green meadows and a river that sang its own song.
I took off my shoes, sat on a rock, and had the Lidder River run past my feet. Time ceased to be.

A shepherd passed. We exchanged smiles. A stranger offered me warm bread.
Here, generosity flows as freely as the water.

Kashmir Isn’t a Place — It’s an Experience

I met people who welcomed me into their homes and hearts without reservation.
I witnessed craftsmen creating beauty with their hands and with their beliefs.
I was greeted more than with a welcome. I was seen.

Kashmir does not instruct you to love it. It only tells you who it is — and lets you fall for it, of course. I Went Away, but Kashmir Accompanied Me As I took flight from Srinagar, I glanced back once more. I did not withdraw from a position. I left behind a part of myself — quieter, lighter, more alive. And that version? She sits there, outside, in the mountains, sipping kahwa on a wooden veranda, expecting me to come back.