The Gentleman of The Dal Lake

The Day We Met Him (Part I)

I woke up resembling a zombie. My stomach empty yet queasy, I just wanted to never get up from the bed. I begged my parents to leave me and go to Kashmir without me as if it were a honeymoon. But do they ever listen to me?

I was dragged into the airport and wheeled around in the luggage trolley as if I were a toddler since I refused to walk. I was nearly about to faint, okay?

Somehow I ended up in my plane seat. At last.

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We reached Srinagar. Our cab took us to the very famous Dal Lake, our first destination. Despite my tummy problem, I was excited.

If you're planning for a holiday in Kashmir, the one thing you should never ever miss is the Shikara ride in the Dal Lake.

Shikaras are long, light, Gondola type rowing boats found exclusively on the lakes of Kashmir. They are very popular among the tourists. They are used for riding back and forth from the houseboats in the lake where the tourists usually stay for a night or two. And also for longer tours around the lake.

We got into our shikara, and as the two boatmen rowed and we started to move on the water, I felt myself overtook by a wave of pleasure and satisfaction. It was the start of the most relaxing boat ride that I've ever got to experience.

I can say hands down that riding on the shikara on the serene and soothing waters of the beautiful Dal Lake was my best experience in Kashmir. I was already feeling so much better. The light movement of the shikara, the beautiful morning sky, the gentle breeze accompanied by the visual delight of water birds all seemed to take away my bad mood and gratified me. I laid down between my parents. This was worth all the nausea and diarrhea. So worth it.

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The houseboat was in sight. There was a man waiting for us. As we reached near the houseboat, he helped us out of the shikara. He greeted us in English and helped us with our luggage. He looked around thirtyish- tall, lean, gruff yet gentle looking, clad in jeans, a full sleeved shirt and a huge sweater. He was also cute, not gonna deny that, alright!

But seriously, we couldn't help but like him. He was always smiling and welcoming. The way he talked was gentle and soothing. You might think, that's how hosts are like to guests, 'cause money! But it mattered that he didn't seem pretentious. He was genuine and it showed. It was refreshing.

He showed us how to operate the taps in the bathroom and as he was about to leave, I, like the cheeky yet a little shy 14 year old that I was, wanted to thank him.

"Thanks, uncle!"

He just smiled the same cheery smile, bowed a little and went on his way.