Great Lakes Trek (Kashmir - 3rd to 5th July)
Fever swept me on 23rd of June to dump me on my bed for 5 days. When I got out of my bed, Kolkata started crying in buckets. I needed to do the last minute shopping before I started for the trek but the rain water had drowned the streets by then. Being waterlocked, I started hunting for stuff at home. The treasure I found was a pair of track pants my brother had left, an old thermal shirt my father wears on the chilly nights in the winter. Still not content with my packing, I called up Sharat Kolke, Naveen, Megha and Shilpa to share notes. However, I ended up eating away their packing time.
The rain in Kolkata continued till I started on my Kashmir Great Lakes Romantic trek on 3rd of July. The driver came to drive me to the airport inspite of the inclement weather. My 77-kilo body boarded the flight on time to reach my beloved city Delhi. Bad weather led to cancelling of Leh flights. All Srinagar carriers were delayed. Luckily my flight was on time but at Srinagar, the visibility issue prevented the plane from landing on time. After a 45 minutes air show, the plane descended. I took out my phone only to realize that my pre-paid phone numbers are clueless in Srinagar for security reasons. There was no booth around. An agent came up to tap my confusion and I landed up in an expensive houseboat.
Through the gloomy roads, the pre-paid taxi driver drove me to the romantic abode, dal lake. I was warmly welcomed there with a hot cup of "gawha" (a kind of tea). Next, I borrowed the SIM from the houseboat bearer and started calling up whoever I could. Poornima got stuck before the comp to rescue me from the disconnect I suffered due to the useless pre-paid cards. At one point, I remembered, I had forgotten medicines and the disclaimer form. So, I called up Sharat to bring some anti-diarrhoeal medicines for me. Then, I requested Megha to get me the disclaimer form.
Next day, I got to do a Modiwalk. The roads were empty as Modi was in the city. I wandered around alone till evening, until Sameer turned up to take me around the city. He dropped me safely to drive back to office and then home, 60 km away from Srinagar.
After two days of luxury at the houseboat, I started for the trek without a phone, but I felt helpless. From the Tourist Reception Centre, I made a call to the Bangalore office to find out whom I should contact to reach the Sonemarg base camp.
When I contacted the person concerned, he advised me to board the red car opposite to the J&K Bank. I insisted the person to give me the vehicle number but he stuck to his point "the red tavera". When I reached near the J&K Bank, I found several red taveras and I lost my temper. Under the pressure of my own rucksack, day pack and my handbag I was in an angry mood. As I sweated in the heat, a young charming guy came up to ask me if I were Shewli, to which I poured my anger on him. He said, "I am not the driver". I was taken aback for a second, but I followed him to the car.
Holly and Aidan joined us with their heavy bags. Packed in the Tavera, Aidan, Holly, Kunal, Tejas, Vinitha, Dima and I started for our exciting journey. On reaching Sonemarg, my excitement dropped as it started raining. Through the misty rain a tall, slender, green-eyed man emerged. He had a tanned face and wore spectacles. His movements were fast and smooth and I took him for a corporate trainer. On reaching the camp, we were welcomed by a charming man called Viral. His eyes twinkled and his cheeks dimpled as he smiled. Assuming him to be a fashion institute's pass out, I kept staring at the locket round his neck, till he introduced himself as a trek leader. His smile melted not only our hearts but also mother Earth's. She also wept in joy.
I had gotten into the tent with water dripping from my raincoat. The residue from my tea cup had fallen on the mat to the irritation of the social ethics' practitioners from Dubai. I wiped out the mat with my old newspaper. After enjoying the rain, the practitioners came in and muddied the mat to my relief. I shifted to Nithya, the regular trekker's tent.
By nightfall, we all Indiahikers were assembled inside the tent and given basic instructions. We introduced each other and got to know Aditi, the teenager in our group. Unlike other Indiahikers, I was not carrying my plate and glass. Everyone looked pityingly at me but the dimpled boy, Viral took out his plate to save me. The handsome photographer, Harshal, delighted me by lending me a spare glass. With regard to drinking water, Viral suggested the water from a nearby rickety muddy stream. I had my last bottle of Aquafina with me and started sipping from it. After the dinner, we dispersed to our tents.
Next day we woke up to a gleeful morning. The clear blue sky had perfectly hidden last night's clouds with its bright dazzling smile. I crawled out of the tent and then rose to my feet. I tried to spot a rock to relieve myself. After climbing 5 minutes the yellow tents of Indiahikes disappeared. I sat down under the open sky. As I lifted my eyes, they fell spot on blue tents. Oh! no. Though the yellow tents were out of my view, the blue tents stared at me. I consoled myself thinking they were all sleeping. In a minute a horseman came to the stream and it was obvious he had spotted me. But I put up a brave face, ignored everything and left the spot.
When I reached the tent, I found a long queue before the toilet tents.
Fever swept me on 23rd of June to dump me on my bed for 5 days. When I got out of my bed, Kolkata started crying in buckets. I needed to do the last minute shopping before I started for the trek but the rain water had drowned the streets by then. Being waterlocked, I started hunting for stuff at home. The treasure I found was a pair of track pants my brother had left, an old thermal shirt my father wears on the chilly nights in the winter. Still not content with my packing, I called up Sharat Kolke, Naveen, Megha and Shilpa to share notes. However, I ended up eating away their packing time.
The rain in Kolkata continued till I started on my Kashmir Great Lakes Romantic trek on 3rd of July. The driver came to drive me to the airport inspite of the inclement weather. My 77-kilo body boarded the flight on time to reach my beloved city Delhi. Bad weather led to cancelling of Leh flights. All Srinagar carriers were delayed. Luckily my flight was on time but at Srinagar, the visibility issue prevented the plane from landing on time. After a 45 minutes air show, the plane descended. I took out my phone only to realize that my pre-paid phone numbers are clueless in Srinagar for security reasons. There was no booth around. An agent came up to tap my confusion and I landed up in an expensive houseboat.
Through the gloomy roads, the pre-paid taxi driver drove me to the romantic abode, dal lake. I was warmly welcomed there with a hot cup of "gawha" (a kind of tea). Next, I borrowed the SIM from the houseboat bearer and started calling up whoever I could. Poornima got stuck before the comp to rescue me from the disconnect I suffered due to the useless pre-paid cards. At one point, I remembered, I had forgotten medicines and the disclaimer form. So, I called up Sharat to bring some anti-diarrhoeal medicines for me. Then, I requested Megha to get me the disclaimer form.
Next day, I got to do a Modiwalk. The roads were empty as Modi was in the city. I wandered around alone till evening, until Sameer turned up to take me around the city. He dropped me safely to drive back to office and then home, 60 km away from Srinagar.
After two days of luxury at the houseboat, I started for the trek without a phone, but I felt helpless. From the Tourist Reception Centre, I made a call to the Bangalore office to find out whom I should contact to reach the Sonemarg base camp.
When I contacted the person concerned, he advised me to board the red car opposite to the J&K Bank. I insisted the person to give me the vehicle number but he stuck to his point "the red tavera". When I reached near the J&K Bank, I found several red taveras and I lost my temper. Under the pressure of my own rucksack, day pack and my handbag I was in an angry mood. As I sweated in the heat, a young charming guy came up to ask me if I were Shewli, to which I poured my anger on him. He said, "I am not the driver". I was taken aback for a second, but I followed him to the car.
Holly and Aidan joined us with their heavy bags. Packed in the Tavera, Aidan, Holly, Kunal, Tejas, Vinitha, Dima and I started for our exciting journey. On reaching Sonemarg, my excitement dropped as it started raining. Through the misty rain a tall, slender, green-eyed man emerged. He had a tanned face and wore spectacles. His movements were fast and smooth and I took him for a corporate trainer. On reaching the camp, we were welcomed by a charming man called Viral. His eyes twinkled and his cheeks dimpled as he smiled. Assuming him to be a fashion institute's pass out, I kept staring at the locket round his neck, till he introduced himself as a trek leader. His smile melted not only our hearts but also mother Earth's. She also wept in joy.
I had gotten into the tent with water dripping from my raincoat. The residue from my tea cup had fallen on the mat to the irritation of the social ethics' practitioners from Dubai. I wiped out the mat with my old newspaper. After enjoying the rain, the practitioners came in and muddied the mat to my relief. I shifted to Nithya, the regular trekker's tent.
By nightfall, we all Indiahikers were assembled inside the tent and given basic instructions. We introduced each other and got to know Aditi, the teenager in our group. Unlike other Indiahikers, I was not carrying my plate and glass. Everyone looked pityingly at me but the dimpled boy, Viral took out his plate to save me. The handsome photographer, Harshal, delighted me by lending me a spare glass. With regard to drinking water, Viral suggested the water from a nearby rickety muddy stream. I had my last bottle of Aquafina with me and started sipping from it. After the dinner, we dispersed to our tents.
Next day we woke up to a gleeful morning. The clear blue sky had perfectly hidden last night's clouds with its bright dazzling smile. I crawled out of the tent and then rose to my feet. I tried to spot a rock to relieve myself. After climbing 5 minutes the yellow tents of Indiahikes disappeared. I sat down under the open sky. As I lifted my eyes, they fell spot on blue tents. Oh! no. Though the yellow tents were out of my view, the blue tents stared at me. I consoled myself thinking they were all sleeping. In a minute a horseman came to the stream and it was obvious he had spotted me. But I put up a brave face, ignored everything and left the spot.
When I reached the tent, I found a long queue before the toilet tents.
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