Pearl Continental Hotel Muzaffarabad

Not much of an update. Decided to relax in the house today. Had a quick chat to Catherine who was about to leave. They couldn't get a flight yesterday. Laundry still isn't here... Ashraf hasn't been the same since I declined going on any of the treks he tried to sell... whereas Sohail is still cool with me.<br>Apparently there's riots and a strike going on about the Indian forces coming in to the State ...

... sledge over the short distance that was covered.<br>It was pretty hard going over the rocks and quite scary but definitely worth the effort.<br>Towards the top I heard a general announcement in Hindi from a loudspeaker to start heading back to the cable cars but I continued until I reached the top.<br>I seemed to be the only one there and enjoyed some amazing views of the adjacent mountain ranges. Looking back over Gulmarg there was a clear differentiation in the ...

... with the youngsters about general things. They were fascinated that I understood them (they were speaking Urdu/Hindi) and could say a few things back. For some reason the schools in Kashmir don't teach Kashmiri so the kids do not know it very well and converse in Urdu/Hindi and also know English.<br>Zahn seemed to be the ever talking bratty younger brother to his sister and cousins. His sister, who I didn't catch the name of ...

... Srinagar or day trips. It seems I had covered most of Srinagar so my best bet was a day (or 2/3 days) trip to Gulmarg or Pahalgam. The prices for a jeep to take me there and back were reasonable so I said I would return to the taxi office when I was ready to go as there was no need to pre-book. Great!<br>I dodged another couple of touts and went to visit the Hanuman temple before heading home. On the way I tried to take out money from 3 different ATM's but couldn't. Sh*t, doesn ...

... yet and I'm eye level with soaring eagles. I do darshan and spend a while taking in the panoramic views.<br>I feel happy to be here. It's the best place I've been to In Srinagar so far. The temple is pretty small compared to the majority of others I had been to. The sanctum at the top was a smallish square room containing one large Shivling.<br>I headed down, met Bashir and we made our way to this museum. On the way we passed a horse that was ...

... s shop but I was taken to a flat. We went and sat on the floor in the living room and were joined by a few people who were preparing for a wedding of the daughter in the house.<br>It was nice to be in a wedding atmosphere. Everyone seemed in a good mood. Two elder ladies were preparing spices, the younger guys were writing wedding invites, the girls were busy with something or other after they had given us tea and the men were chatting.<br>We stayed for ...

... working through their programs. We stayed overnight in a very nice hotel that was 4 times the price of what I have been used to, and it was a treat to have a hot shower in a clean bathroom! The next day we met up with more of his friends and went up to the highest point in the area with beautiful views over Kashmir. Here there was still snow on the ground too. After a lovely day, and another lovely meal at his friend's house, I left that evening to get the bus to Lahore.

Riiiiiiiiight! Back in the saddle... (so to speak) It's been a while, and memories shift and fade, but I shall try to begin at the beginning and work from there. Once back on the KKH, I had to face the dreaded Indus Kohistan. This region, basically everything between Islamabad and Gilgit, has a reputation among travelers in general and cyclists in particular, for hostile locals. Children throwing rocks and other projectiles is an inconvenience not limited to ...

... reason thought the press might be less open - or perhaps that only those outside the country were capable of identifying the challenges this country faces (JK). WRONG - they know the problems and the press (at least) does a good job of presenting the contending perspectives on how to move forward. Pakistan has such diversity in terms of environment. In just an hour we were away from the heat of the city and in the ...

... Nathiagali is a small (also touristic) town but less crowded and with easier access to nice walks on the cypress covered mountains. It was on my way to Nathiagali that I saw the native monkeys for the first time; they were sitting on the side of the road waiting to be feed some roasted corn, which was being sold on the spot.