BETAAB VALLEY《PAHALGAM》

Betaab valley is situated at a distance of 15 kilometers from Pahalgam in Anantnag district in India’s northernmost state of Jammu and Kashmir. The valley got its name from the Sunny Deol-Amrita Singh hit debut film Betaab.[1] The Valley is towards northeast of Pahalgam and falls between Pahalgam and Chandanwadi and is en route Amarnath Temple Yatra. The valley surrounded by lush green meadows, snow clad mountains and covered with dense vegetation.

Earlier known as Hagan Valley or Hagoon, Betaab Valley got its present name after the blockbuster Bollywood movie ‘Betaab’ was shot there in 1983. A combination of picturesque surroundings, the valley falls on the way to Amarnath Temple Yatra and is one of the three angelic valleys of Pahalgam; the other two being Aru and Chandanwadi.

Encircled by mountains featuring deodar and pine forests, Betaab Valley is a perfect gateway to enjoy the heavenly pleasure of Mother Nature. The sights of colouring beds of flowers amid the lush walnut and willow vistas make the entire panorama quite stunning casting a spell of magic on this land of eternal beauty. The experience is even more heightened by the musical whispers of several birds. Being a precious jewel of Jammu and Kashmir tourism, Betaab Valley is among a handful of Pahalgam tourist places to visit that should not be missed. Situated at a walking distance from the main center of Pahalgam, the valley is also an excellent camping site for trekkers and explorers

CHAR CHINAR《DAL LAKE》

Char Chinar, also sometimes rendered Char Chinari, Ropa Lank, or Rupa Lank^{,is an island in} Dal Lake, Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India. Dal Lake includes 3 islands, 2 of which are marked with beautiful Chinar trees. The island located on the Bod Dal is known as Rupa Lank (Silver Island), it is marked with the presence of majestic Chinar trees at the four corners, thus known as Char-Chinari (Four Chinars).

Murad Baksh, brother of the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, constructed the Rupa Lank. The second Chinar Island, known as Sona Lanka (Gold Island), is located on the Lokut Dal, and over looks the holy shrine of Hazratbal.

• Chinar trees characteristically grow in Eastern Himalayas. They have been an important part of Kashmiri tradition, in that, a Chinar tree is found in almost every village in Kashmir. These trees have survived for ages, because Chinar is basically a long-living tree. It spreads wide across a region of cool climate with sufficient water. The tree has several properties – leaves and bark are used as medicine, the wood, known as lace wood has been used for delicate furniture and the twigs and roots are used for making dyes.

SHALIMAR GARDEN

Shalimar Bagh is a Mughal garden in Srinagar, linked through a channel to the northeast of Dal Lake, on its right bank located on the outskirts of Srinagar city in Jammu and Kashmir, India. Its other names are Shalimar Garden, Shalimar Bagh, Farah Baksh and Faiz Baksh, and the other famous shore line garden in the vicinity is Nishat Bagh. The Bagh was built by Mughal Emperor Jahangir for his wife Noor Jahan, in 1619. The Bagh is considered the high point of Mughal horticulture. It is now a public park. This time it’s also called as crown of Srinagar

While the recent history and development of the Mughal types of gardens is credited to Emperor Jahangir, the ancient history of the garden can be traced to the 2nd century when it was built during the reign of Pravarsena II.Praversena II founded the city of Srinagar and ruled in Kashmir from 79 AD to 139 AD. He had built a cottage for his stay at the northeastern corner of the Dal Lake and had named it Shalimar . The word “Shalimar ” in Sanskrit means abode of love. The king, on his visits to a local saint by the name Sukarma Swami at Harwan, used to stop at this cottage. Over the years, the cottage fell into ruins and later could not be located. However, the name of the place remained as Shalimar.

It is here that Emperor Jahangir built his celebrated Shalimar Bagh, his dream project to please his queen. He enlarged the ancient garden in 1619 into a royal garden and called it ‘Farah Baksh’ (‘the delightful’). He built it for his wife Nur Jahan (‘light of the world’). In 1630, under Emperor Shah Jahan’s orders, Zafar Khan the governor of Kashmir extended it. He named it ‘Faiz Baksh’ (‘the bountiful’). It then became a pleasure place for the Pathan and Sikh governors who followed Zafar Khan.

During the rule of Maharaja Ranjit Singh the marble pavilion was the guest house for European visitors. Electrification of the premises was done during Maharaja Hari Singh’s rule. Thus, over the years, the garden was extended and improved by many rulers and called by different names, but the most popular name ‘Shalimar Bagh’ continues to this day.

During the Mughal period in particular, Emperor Jahangir and his wife Nur Jahan were so enamoured of Kashmir that during summer they moved to Srinagar with their full court entourage from Delhi at least 13 times. Shalimar Bagh was their imperial summer residence and the Royal Court. They crossed the arduous snowy passes of the Pir Panjal mountain range on elephants to reach Srinagar.

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• #shalimar
• #mughalgardens
• #kashmir
• #peace
• #heaven
• #goldenvalley
• #wanderlust
• #kasheer
• #nature
• #chinar
• #dallake

NISHAT GARDEN

Nishat Bagh is a terraced Mughal garden built on the eastern side of the Dal Lake, close to Srinagar in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It is the second largest Mughal garden in the Kashmir Valley. The largest in size is the Shalimar Bagh, which is also located on the bank of the Dal Lake. ‘Nishat Bagh’ is Urdu, which means “Garden of Joy,” “Garden of Gladness” and “Garden of Delight.”

Located on the bank of the Dal Lake, with the Zabarwan Mountains as its backdrop, Nishat Bagh is a garden of bliss that commands a magnificent view of the lake beneath the snow-capped Pir Panjal mountain range that stands far away to the west of the valley. The Bagh was designed and built in 1633 by Asif Khan, elder brother of Nur Jehan.

An interesting anecdote of jealousy of the Emperor Shah Jahan on beholding such a delightful garden, which almost shutdown the garden for some time, is narrated. When Shah Jahan saw this garden, after its completion in 1633, he expressed great appreciation of its grandeur and beauty. He is believed to have articulated his appreciation three times to Asif Khan, his father-in- law, with the hope that he would gift it to him. As no such offer was made by Asif Khan, Shah Jahan was piqued and ordered closure of the water supply to the garden. Then, for some time, the garden was deserted. Asif Khan was desolate and heartbroken; he was uninterested in the sequence of events. When he was resting under the shade of a tree, in one of the terraces, his servant was bold enough to turn on the water supply source from the Shalimar Bagh. When Asif Khan heard the sound of water and the fountains in action he was startled and immediately order closure of water supply as he feared the worst reaction from the emperor for this wanton act of disobedience. Fortunately for the servant and Asif Khan, Shaha Jahan, who had heard about this incident at the garden, was not disturbed or annoyed by the disobedience of his orders. Instead, he appreciated the servant for loyal service to his master and then ordered full restoration rights for the supply of water to the garden to Asif Khan, his Prime Minister and father-in-law.Mughal Princess Zuhra Begum was buried in the garden she was the daughter of Mughal Emperor Alamgir II, and granddaughter of Emperor Jahandar Shah.

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• #nishatbagh
• #goldenvalley
• #mughalgardens
• #kashmir
• #heaven
• #peace
• #wanderlust
• #kasheer

GULMARG GANDOLA

Gulmarg Gondola in Gulmarg, Jammu and Kashmir is the world’s second highest operating cable car since the closure in 2008 of the Mérida cable car in Venezuela and the opening in 2008 of the Dagu Glacier Gondolain Sichuan, China which reaches 4843 m.

The two-stage gondola lift ferries about 600 people per hour to and from Kongdoori Mountain, a shoulder of nearby Apharwat Peak (4,200 m (13,780 ft)). The ropeway project is a joint venture of the Jammu and Kashmir government and French firm Pomagalski. The first stage transfers from the Gulmarg resort at 2,600 m (8,530 ft) to Kongdoori Station in the bowl-shaped Kongdori valley. The second stage of the ropeway, which has 36 cabins and 18 towers, takes skiers to a height of 3,747 m (12,293 ft) on Kongdoori Mountain, a shoulder of nearby Afarwat Peak (4,200 m (13,780 ft)). The second stage was completed in a record time of about two years at a cost of 180,000,000 Indian Rupees (i.e. some US$4.5 million) and opened on May 28, 2005. The French company had also built the first phase of the gondola project, connecting Gulmarg to Kongdoori, in 1998.The timing of the gondola is 10 AM (IST) to 5 PM (It’s highly dependent upon the weather at both stages). A gondola can carry six people at a time. The price is 700 Indian Rupees (11 US$) for the first stage and 900 Indian Rupees (15 US$) for the second stage. Also offered is Chair Cars for phase-II for 300/- INR. It takes approximately 9 minutes to reach the first stage and 12 minutes for second stage.An accident occurred on 15 June 2017 due to an enormous pine tree being uprooted by a gust of wind and breaking the perspex windows on one of the gondola cabins, causing it to swing violently and its seven occupants to fall 100 ft (30 m) to the ground.

#gandola

#gulmarg

#goldenvalley

#kasheer

#wanderlust

#heaven

#visitkashmir

#peace

FORESHORE ROAD

Foreshore Road is one of the prestigious roads in the city of Srinagar The notability of the road lies in the fact that the entire road lies on the banks of Dal Lake. The road starts from Hazratbal, Srinagar ends in Nishat. Major tourist spots including many Mughal Gardens like Shalimar Bagh, Nishat Bagh, Chashma Shahi, Pari Mahal, botanical garden are situated on the road. The economy of the people living here greatly depends on tourism. The road is also connected to the boulevard road. While driving across the road it provides glances of beauty of Dal Lake and in hot summers people rest on roadside and feel the cool breeze of Dal Lake and enjoy the charming sunset from the horizon. From April 13 every year, government officials open the Mughal Gardens for visitors around the world.Due to this fact outnumbered tourists can be seen on the way to visit these places. The boulevard foreshore road also hosts largest number of hotels for tourists in Srinagar and is thus strictly maintained by Government of Jammu and Kashmir regularly.

#boulevardroad #dallake #kasheer

PARI MAHAL

Pari Mahal or The Angels’ Abode is a seven terraced garden located at the top of Zabarwan mountain range over-looking city of Srinagar and south-west of Dal Lake. The architecture depicts an example of Islamic architecture and patronage of art during the reign of the then Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan. It is five-minute drive from Cheshmashahi, Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir,India.

The Pari Mahal was built by Mughal Prince Dara Shikoh in the mid-1600s. It served as a library and an abode for him. Dara Shikoh was said to have lived in this area in the years 1640, 1645, and 1654. It was further used as an observatory, useful for teaching astrologyand astronomy. The gardens have since become the property of the Jammu and Kashmir government.

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• #parimahal #srinagar #beauty #nature #wanderlust #kasheer

MANASBAL LAKE

Manasbal Lake (جهيل مانسبل) is located in Ganderbal District in the State of Jammu and Kashmir in India. The name Manasbal is said to be a derivative of the Lake Manasarovar.Lake is encircled by three villages viz., Jarokbal, Kondabal (also called Kiln place, is situated on the north-eastern side of the lake) and Ganderbal and is stated to be the deepest lake (at 13 m or 43 ft depth) in India. The large growth of lotus (Nelumbo nucifera) at the periphery of the lake (blooms during July and August) adds to the beauty of the clear waters of the lake. The Mughal garden, called the Jaroka, (meaning bay window) built by Nur Jahan overlooks the lake.

The lake is a good place for birdwatching as it is one of the largest natural stamping grounds of Aquatic birds in Kashmir and has the sobriquet of “supreme gem of all Kashmir Lakes”. The rootstocks of lotus plant which grows extensively in the lake are harvested and marketed, and also eaten by the local people.

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• #manasbal #deepestlake #lotus # freshwater #shikara #mountains #goldenvalley #wanderlust #nature #kasheer #paradise

HABBA KHATOON MOUNTAIN GUREZ

Habba khatoon mountain in Gurez is famous all over the world for its pyramid shape.

#pyramid #mountain #habbakhatoon #gurez #goldenvalley #wanderlust #nature #travel #kasheer

ARU VALLEY PAHALGAM

Aru valley is a tourist spot in the Anantnag Districtof Jammu & Kashmir, India. It is located around 12 km from Pahalgam, 11 km upstream from the Lidder River. Noted for its scenic meadows, lakes and mountains, it is a base camp for trekking to the Kolhoi Glacierand Tarsar Lake. The village lies of the left bank of the Aru river, which is a tributary of the Lidder river.

#aruvalley #pahalgam #nature #goldenvalley #kasheer #paradise #wanderlust