In
the 19th century, British started going to Gulmarg or the “meadow of flowers” to
escape hot and humid summers of India. Gul is actually a farsi word which means
Flower! Marg also probably taken from the word"Marghzar" which means
meadow!
Many
wildflowers such as daisies blooming here during summer which forms a colorful
carpet on the ground!
British who loved to play Golf,made at least three big golf courses in Gulmarg and one of them being at 2650 meters, is the world's highest
golf course and still remains!
In
1927, British established a ski club in Gulmarg and nowadays,Gulmarg has transformed to a world class Ski resort and a paradise for skiers!
Gulmarg
is just 56 km from Srinagar and I think it took us around 2 or 3 hours to get there because of their roads!
There
was some checkpoints on our way to reassure the security of the area for the
tourists which made me get shocked.
The war with Pakistan had ended long before in 1949,I don't know
what could be the reason
behind to have all those checkpoints there.
It
was almost June when I went to Kashmir and While my blood was boiling in New
Delhi,Gulmarg was covered by fresh snow! And I was happy that I had bought that
beautiful Kashmiri fur jacket to keep me warm!
The
main attraction in Gulmarg is the Cable car or Gondola. It runs up to 3995
meters or even more, and is one of the highest "ski lift"
in the world and give you great view of Himalayan mountains!
In
Iran we also have cable cars going through the forests but you
could see high mountains like Nanga
Parbat which is higher than 8000 meters located in Pakistani Kashmir from the Gondolas!
It
took us around 10 minutes to reach the first stage point ,called
Kongdori.When we were taking the cable car from Gulmarg, up to the Afarwat
Mountains, I could see the shepherd huts on the slopes of the Afarwat Mountains
and my guide told me that they were actually temporary shelters for the nomadic shepherds of this region.
Gulmarg
has some of most amazing places in the world and the main activity for a tourist in
Gulmarg is skiing,snowboarding
,trekking ,Golfing, Sledging, Mountain biking,horse and pony riding.
Skiing
season starts from December till April or even March.
Snow
Conditions are fantastic and is generally deep and powdery!
Meals
in the small local stalls named Dhabas around Gulmarg , are very tasty and cheap.The
first time I bought a cup of masala tea from them while the old man had
the least facilities, but it turned out to be my best Masala tea ever!
Original Kashmiri tea is green tea, with cardamoms, saffron and cinnamon
which tastes awesome! Don't ever miss it!
I
heard that Hashish was more available for people there than alcoholic drink
though I never saw it by my eyes!
There
are two main religious attractions in Gulmarg as follows:
1)St.
Mary's Church: The 110-year-old St Mary’s Church in Gulmarg was built during
the British colonial rule .
2)Shiva
Temple: The Shiva temple was actually the royal temple of Dogra kings of Jammu
and Kashmir, situated on a small hill in the centre of Gulmarg. This temple can
be seen from all the corners of Gulmarg. When the last Dogra king was
spending his time in Gulmarg in his royal palace, his queen used to come and stay there to worship Lord
Shiva (Hindu god of destruction) in this temple. Aarti ceremony is performed
twice a day for followers.
I've
heard an annual three day Winter Festival is held in March and many
Indian artists showcase their arts here
in this great festival but I didn't get a chance to take part in that.If you have a chance,just don't miss it!!!
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| Going to Gulmarg |
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| From the window of Grand Momtaz Hotel in Gulmarg |
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| From the window of Grand Momtaz Hotel in Gulmarg |
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| Having lunch in Grand momtaz hotel |
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| Eating freni in cold weather of Gulmarg |
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| Amazingly tasty cookies which you can find in Grand Mumtaz Hotel in Gulmarg |
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| I was so excited to ride the Gondolas! |
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| Gulmarg from above |
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| Other Gondolas! |
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| Beautiful scenery of Gulmarg from above |
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| At lower heights ,it was raining |
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| Other Gondolas in rainy weather |
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| Amazing ! |
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| Shiva temple! |
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| The Shepperd's shelters |
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| The Shepperd's shelters from above |
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| It started to snow! |
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| Mr.Azizi(my former boss) and me, were amazed ! |
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| Just snow now! |
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| Feels cold! |
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| Never was so satisfied in life! |
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| people were happy too! |
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| Velvet white everywhere |
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| The stunning Himalayas from above! |
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| they have one of the best safran of the world !I met some other happy tourists there! |
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| Going back to Srinagar! Gosh I couldn't believe my eyes! |
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| Lost in my dreams! Is it a paradise? |
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