travelling to kashmir
Published: 2021-09-01 20:03:17

Me and my 2 friends, Ratih and Jeny went to Kashmir. Join the Kemilau Indonesia photography tour. Why join a photography tour? Because ordinary tours rarely have a destination to Kashmir because it is not a popular tourist destination for tourists. For photographers, Kashmir has indeed become a hunting location for landscape photos. The question is why Kashmir, not other places? Because Kashmir is known as one of the most spectacularly beautiful places in the world.

Kashmir is an Indian state in the north. This valley in the Himalayan range is usually known as Jammu and Kashmir with Srinagar as its capital. Regionally, Jammu Kashmir consists of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh (remember the Indian film Three Idiots... one of the characters returns to his hometown and opens a school in Ladakh).

This fertile and beautiful Kashmir region is contested by 3 countries, namely India, Pakistan and China. The dominant one is India (that's why to use an Indian visa to Kashmir). But in fact the Kashmiri people themselves want independence, so the Kashmir region is often in turmoil. When I was there, there were many military, soldiers, snipers complete with long-barreled weapons everywhere on the roadside, in the market, on the edge of the lake, in the market, tourist attractions, etc. (not the police, huh...). Many student demonstrations, almost every day in fact ... just like in Indonesia, there are those who fund these demos. If there is a demonstration, the Internet is banned by the Indian government, so tourists cannot update their IG, FB, WA status he he he ...

The inspection by the Indian government when we want to enter and leave Kashmir is also very strict, not only through X-rays but documents and baggage are carefully checked, until all our luggage, cameras, lenses, are opened and our bodies are groped. There is a special room for body checks by female soldiers (for women).

It is said that the Indian government doesn't really like us to go to Kashmir because it's considered unsafe for foreign tourists... so when we enter Delhi, don't say we're going to Kashmir, he he he...

By the way, we are not allowed to take pictures of Indian soldiers in Kashmir who are on duty directly. If you want to take a photo, you have to get permission first, after all, I don't really want to take a selfie with the army, ha ha ha, that's scary... if Korean actors or idols are okay... xoxoxoxo...

Unlike India, where the majority of the population is Hindu, the majority of Kashmiris are Muslim.

Kashmir is fertile land, producing vegetables, fruits, spices and flowers. There are tulips, canolla, and the most famous is Saffron, which is the herbaceous spice of dried Crocus Sativus flower pistils. Saffron has a distinctive aroma and color for food, and the price is masya allah expensive .... Saffron from Kashmir is very famous in the world. Canolla is a yellow-yellow flower (see photo below) which is extracted from the oil and can be made into mustard too. In addition, pistachio nuts are also widely grown here, roasted and become a snack like peanut shells. The pistachios here are given curry spices, I guess because they have different flavors.

Wool from Kashmir is also famous. Made into rugs and scarves. We know the term Pashmina as a scarf. Actually pashmina is a type of wool from sheep in Kashmir. So if we want to buy pashmina, we will be given sheep instead of a scarf. Pure Pashmina means 100% wool pashmina. The pashmina is thin but warm, the pashmina scarf is so thin it can slip into the hole in our ring....that's how to test it. If it's not 100% pashmina, it can't be pulled straight through the hole in our ring. Kashmir is also a producer of silk for carpets and saris.

if you want to review about hotels in kashmir, please visit the following link https://besthotelreviewlist.blogspot.com/