“गर फिरदौस बर रूये ज़मी अस्त/ हमी अस्तो हमी अस्तो हमी अस्त” ~This Farsi couplet by famed Urdu poet Amir Khusrau best describes the beauty of Kashmir and roughly translated means
“If there is a paradise on Earth, It is this, it is this, it is this”.
The beautiful landscape with a stunning backdrop of mountains
I have been to many places in the world, but when it comes to Kashmir, even I feel speechless by the raw beauty of the place. This is no Switzerland, with the place being affected by so many factors and being far less developed than many places in India. And that is the beauty, that inspite of all this, the place is a stunning Kaleidoscope of colours, of beauty which is at some places green, some places blue and then even grey and then all of a sudden, there is a burst of red or yellow somewhere in between.
Mustard fields, Kashmir
I went to Kashmir, first in 2014 and then in 2016 and these are some of the pictures which portray the beauty of Kashmir in a way words cannot. You can read my post on Kashmir here. Some of the places which I covered in my trip are Pahalgam, Avantipura ruins, Gulmarg, Sonmarg and Srinagar.
Mustard fields on our way to Pahalgam
And a burst of colours
PAHALGAM
En route to Betaab Valley, Pahalgam
Betaab Valley, Pahalgam (where the Bollywood movie Betaab was shot)
Snowfall in Pahalgam
Aru Valley, Pahalgam
Snow clad Pahalgam
The ruins of Avantipura
Gulmarg
Gulmarg covered with snow, Kashmir
Beautiful Gulmarg
Sonmarg
Blue sky and white snow at Sonmarg
En route from Sonmarg to Srinagar
Srinagar
Tulips in full bloom, Tulip Garden, Kashmir
Tulip Garden, Srinagar
Flowers at Tulip Garden, Srinagar
Flowers at Tulip Garden, Srinagar
Beautiful Srinagar, Kashmir
House Boats at Dal Lake, Srinagar
Evening at Dal Lake, Srinagar, Kashmir
A man selling his wares at Dal Lake, Srinagar, Kashmir