Srinigar

Dal Lake

goat and sheep jam

Hazerbal Mosque

Nishat Gardens

Well the trusty backpack is finally fully unpacked. Since the tourist session is very busy this year the process of rooms for rent has gone through the roof. However I have been very fortunate to have good friends here. You have all made me feel so welcome, relaxed and at

 home.  The weather goes back and forth from blazing hot sunshine to thunderstorms and wind that feel like winter. As you may guess today is a thunderstorm so I can catch up with this. It is also nice to be back in Srinigar just soaking up the holiday atmosphere and going back to some of my old haunts, restaurants and the walks around the Jelum river. Even though the barbed wire and bunkers with armed police are still very much present it is defiantly a happier atmoshpere  around the lake than last time I was here.
The lake is beautiful and roses are blooming in all the parks in some parts of town it is easy to forget the problems here just for a wee while and I just pray that no troubles arise this year.

A funny thing just now in town is that the sheep and goat shepards. along with their herds are coming down from the mountains to sell the animals. Next month is Ramadan and families finish their month long fasting with a feast of mutton. So the poor wee beesties are only in this realm for 2 more month. Om Mani Padme Hung. Every day there is a sheep and goat jam in the roads of Srinigar somewhere and the poor animals just get so scared when tuck tucks, trucks and car drives insist on honking there horns.