Seizure wrong time

It was in July starting that we(45 people) went to Kashmir for Amarnath Yatra. Me and my brother were given 2 days to pack our bags. We were not allowed to carry our cellphones. I was not aware of Kashmir. Not aware about the situation, not aware about the natural beauty there. I was 17 then and being not aware about Kashmir is a shame really. I was excited as ours was a big group, even though I did not know many people of it. Ps if I now go anywhere I will surely do some research about it.

Anyhow from Srinagar airport to Baltal i.e. the base from where you begin the yatra I was sleeping all along. The route was through Srinagar Ganderbal Chiner Gund Sonamarg and finally Baltal. The drive was picturesque. Mesmerizing. I missed it. We stayed the night on the base camp and started the yatra next day at 6 am. I remember before yatra we had to bath and there was no hot water and we had to have a bath in cold water, fresh glacier water and it is cold there. I could not breathe for a few seconds after I put a mug. The yatra is long and challenging. We came back the same day and left from Baltal to Srinagar the next day. This time I did not sleep and am still awestruck. The next day we had taken a city tour bus and traveled Srinagar. Saw all the famous gardens like chashme shahi, shalimar and other destinations.

It was 7 July 2016 then. The day Burhan wani is killed. We were not aware that a militant had been killed. We were in the market near our hotel. As the news spread among the locals, they started to close their shops and some of them started paying tribute to that militant. Somehow we managed to get to the hotel. The situation was not good. Our return flight was next day. We asked the hotel staff as to what should we do now? They told us to leave for the airport before 6 am Namaz. We did not sleep the night before. Not because of fear.  We reached the airport at 05:30. Our flight was at 2 pm. Every tourist was at the airport then. When we were in the queues for boarding, I fainted, because i had not slept and not eaten anything. The airport doctor declared me unfit to board the flight. Curfew had been imposed in Srinagar due to violence after killing of the terrorist. Amidst the curfew my father and his friends arranged a van from airport to general hospital, Srinagar. The flight was missed by the time we got back. We took the next flight to Delhi and then home in Panchkula. 😊. I got another chance to visit in 2019, starting of July. this time it was smooth and a trip to remember for a lifetime.

Gar firdaus bar-rue zamin ast, hami asto, hami asto, hami ast

Tell about your stories if you’ve been to Kashmir.

Check out the next page for another great story 🙂