Marriage was no priority for me.It has been my firm belief that a girl must be educated ,join a profession ,be economically independent and lead an independent life for sometime to know the self as well as life before getting married and I followed what I believed.I knew the need and importance of marriage but I was very clear that I would marry a person of my choice only ,one who shares the same philosophy n marries me for what I am; I was also determined to marry without any dowry. Economic or social status,material possessions,caste ,creed,religion had no importance,what I looked for was love ,peace,understanding ,happiness and harmony in relationship which I generally found missing .
Our dream came true,we found each other , got married in 1972 to set out on a journey which ,we knew ,was going to be very challenging.Whatever little savings I had ,were just adequate to equip our sweet home to start with. .There was no back up,no support and yet we just wanted a break and vanish into the paradise ,away from all the worries n conflicts of life. This break was essential to energise us to face the challenges which were waiting to test our strength. There was enough of adventurous spirit and courage of conviction in both of us.I received some amount of money as shaguns -sending off gifts from my relatives which was enough to fulfill our wish.
So we set out on a journey to Kashmir valley .They say if there is heaven on earth ,it is here,it is here..You had to be there to believe it.I do not know the state of affairs now ,ever since it has turned into a valley of terror but I really feel so happy that we were a part of this paradise for ten days which was truly a heavenly experience .
We stayed at a hotel along the Dal Lake which itself was a great experience as we could enjoy the beauty of the grand view of the nerve- soothing peaceful vast expanse of water n listen to the embalming music of the waves day n night.Srinagar has vast, beautiful lakes and river Jhelum which lend a heavenly charm to this place .The Kashmir Valley is a lacustrine plain surrounded by snow-clad high mountain ranges presenting a charming view all around -a treat to the Eyes.There used to be palatial House boats having all the royal facilities the rich .And there were lovely small beautifully decorated boats called Shikaras in which two loving souls could relax silently and experience the beauty of the river of life if it is allowed to flow its own way uninterrupted by our unnecessary fears ,anxieties and plans. Out of the ten days, we spent four days boating on the wonderful Dal And the Beautiful Nagin lakes hiring the shikaras for full days.The Kashmiri Kahva offered by simple Shikara wallahs would upllift our spirits and their simple tales from the area touch our heart..Shalimar Bagh,Nishat Bagh n Char Chinar represented man's effort to add beauty to the place . The other fascinating tourist spots in the neighbourhood were the beautiful temperate meadows-The Yus merg,the Gulmerg and the Sona merg.Sona merg had a beautiful glacier nearby which was another marvel of nature.
We would board Deluxe buses of the state tourism early in the morning at around 6.00 a m. n come back at around 10.00pm.So the major problem we faced was that of food.Early morning ,while going n after ten p.m.we would not find any food near our hotel.Somehow at that time ,even at the well known tourist places we did not find good eating places but feast that beautiful nature offered to the soul was more than a compensation.An interesting experience we had was at Khilanmerg where we went by ponies from Gulmerg.This place is at a ht. of 14000ft. and there we found a small dhaba run by a Sardarji who was making the famous punjabi aloo-Parantha whas being offered with curd n butter .We still remember the taste of that heavenly food .Pahalgam was the only place which was developed and had good eating places.Achhabal n ,Kukarnaag,were other lovely spots which still fresh on the screen.The Saffron fields at Sopore in all their beauty n historical remains of Avantipur still haunt us.
Where is paradise -within us or outside?
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