Gulmarg – The Meadow of Flowers in Kashmir
Gulmarg is a portmanteau of two Persian words, gul and marg.
Gul means flowers and marg means meadow. Gulmarg, the meadow of flowers, is a bowl-like valley situated at a height of approximately 8,825 feet with lush green undulating slopes, parts of which have been converted into a golf course. On a small hillock in Gulmarg is the temple where the video for the old popular song ‘Jai Jai Shiv Shankar’ from the movie ‘Aap Ki Kasam’ was shot. In fact, Gulmarg and other places in the Kashmir Valley were favourite destinations for shooting films till the late 1980s.
Lost in the Paradise of Kashmir
I roamed around Gulmarg, mesmerized by the natural beauty around me. One could only stand and stare at the Almighty’s creation and appreciate Amir Khusro’s couplet, ‘Agar firdaus baroo-e jameen ast, hameen ast-o-hameenast’, which translated into English reads, ‘If there is a paradise on earth, it is here, it is here, it is here’.
The Bus Ride to Srinagar
The next day, my buddy and I walked to the bus stand where a local coolie, looking at my rucksack and my pair of shorts and t-shirt, mistook me for a foreigner and rushed to take my rucksack and put it on the roof of the bus. Later, when I spoke to him in Hindi, he realized that my attire had tricked him!
The bus ride to Srinagar, two hours long, was a gradual descent to Srinagar, located at 5,300 feet above sea level. As we reached the floor of the valley, I noticed the road was lined on both sides with poplar trees, which reminded me of the old popular song ‘Pukarta Chala Hun Main’ from the movie ‘Mere Sanam’. The poplar trees were much healthier than those I had seen in the plains of north India and after making some inquiries I was told that they were brought from Russia about four hundred years ago.
Experiencing Srinagar’s Warm Hospitality
At Srinagar, I hit the Army Transit Camp located on the banks of the Jhelum River, got myself a room, and then set out to explore Srinagar. At the Dal Lake I met a local Kashmiri and we got chatting. In a matter of minutes, we became friends and he offered me a place in his house. On hearing that I had already booked a room at the Transit Camp, he insisted on taking me to his place to meet his parents. It was a small two-story house with wooden flooring that was covered with rugs. We sat on the floor and he got me to taste nun chai (salted tea) with freshly baked bread called tsot. His parents, old and fit, were very welcoming and appeared quite down-to-earth.
Visiting the Famous Mughal Gardens of Srinagar
The next day, he became my local guide and took me around the three famous Mughal gardens: Shalimar, Nishat, and Chasme Shahi.
I was told that the quality of the water of the Chashme Shahi spring was so good that the Kashmiri royals would drink only that water. The gardens were very impressive; I saw for the first time Chinar trees, which left a deep impression on my mind. Most of them were huge, in both girth and height, and had a beautiful lush growth of leaves. I was quick to relate it to the Maple tree, native to Canada, but was told that the Chinar, though similar, was different from the Maple tree.
Kashmiri Picnic Culture: A Valley Full of Families
Another thing that struck me was the large number of people in all the gardens. It was a public holiday and it appeared that the whole of Srinagar was out with lunch baskets and ground spreads. My guide/friend explained that Kashmiris loved to picnic with family and friends and thus the gardens were full on Sundays and holidays.
Choosing to Trek Back to Poonch
All this while, I was also thinking about my return journey, and my mind was almost made up to take the army convoy bus to Jammu; it was two days to Jammu and another two days from Jammu to Poonch. However, at the last moment, I changed my mind and decided to trek back to Poonch from Gulmarg, as that route would take me two days, against four by bus.
Trekking Through the Pir Panjal Range
Early the next morning we left Srinagar and our trek up to the Pir Panjal range started around 10 a.m. I had decided to take a different
route this time to experience something new; it was closer to the Line of Control and went close by some army posts. Before dark, I had reached my destination for the night and I was received by a Major sahab who was a kind man and indulged the upstart young Captain happily. We had dinner together, though there was no liquor on offer because of local orders, and I was off to bed in good time.
The next morning was bright and clear and we climbed up to the Neelkanth post on the Pir Panjal range, from where it was downhill to Saujiyan. After a full day of trekking, we reached Saujiyan around 4 p.m. and were back at our battalion in time for dinner.
Returning to Neelkanth Post Decades Later
Little did I know then that about 32 years later, I would land at Neelkanth post in a helicopter and again walk down to Saujiyan, but this time as the General Officer Commanding of the 25th Infantry Division!
Written by Maj General Chaturvedi (Retired)
