EP 1 BTS Delhi to Srinagar to Gulmarg | Bota Pathri | Gulmarg Golf Course | Kashmir Tour Season 2
Hello Right now, at Terminal-3, Delhi... we're going to Kashmir In the last 7 years, This is the first time it's happening that.. When I'm revisiting the same destination.. again within a span of just 3 months. We went to Srinagar two & half months before It means we'd visited Kashmir And, now, we're again going there Kashmir Part-2 Last time, as I'd come here to catch the flight I didn't properly sign up for Digi Yatra So, this time, I signed up for Digi Yatra Therefore, our waiting queue got shorter.. ..and we came inside the Airport 7 years before when we started this work At that time, we didn't have anything with us Except for a mobile phone and..
a microphone that we'd keep in our pocket Just imagine, comparative to that time.. ..today we've a lot of gadgets Many things don't come in use but ..we carry them along because.. ..in case, this doesn't work then.. ..we'd have Plan B with us. Right Let's go to complete check-in formalities Then, we'll re-join you soon Usually, when one goes to Kashmir They tend to visit popular destinations first For example, Gulmarg, Pahalgam Sonamarg Of all, we'll only visit Gulmarg While the rest of the places in our.. ..itinerary are off-beat destinations. Right So, how are you feeling like? I'm excited Kashmir is basically a tourist destination ..for one and all whether he/she is from.. South, Central or North India It's one of their dream destinations Well, I'm pretty much excited Moreover, we're going off-beat from.. Pahalgam, Sonamarg Let me tell them what our plan is Our total tour is of 7-8 days Today, we'll go to Gulmarg We'll return from Gulmarg to Srinagar tomorrow Then, we'll go to Gurez Then, we'll go to Daksum & Sinthan Top This is our plan I really like this mike Initially, I'd bought it for around Rs. 16,000/-
..around 5 years back This one is called "Transmitter" The mike fixed on camera/mobile is "Receiver" Then, we used to have a one-to-one But, I've one mike 2nd Mike is with Abhilash Here, it is. Two people can communicate.. ..up to the distance of around 30 mtrs Though, company vouches for 100 meter distance ..but we've not tried it. Right Last time, you'd gone over there Tell me one thing Last time, we both were excited since.. ..we both were going to Kashmir ..for the first time.
Though, right now, we both are excited How much are you excited about visiting.. ..off-beat destinations in Kashmir? Sir, I've seen some videos on Sinthan Top That had snow even more than of Rohtang Pass There's a lot of snow over there It's a level-plus destination Day before yesterday, we'd seen the video And somebody told us that.. ..it was just a week-old video And, we'll get to see the snow in Sinthan Top in June Gate number 33 is in the front We'll have our boarding from there Everyone is sitting silent We'll also wait here for over half an hour Then, Spice Jet will call for..
.. the passengers flying to Kashmir Then, we'll catch that flight The name "Spice Jet" .. ..sounds like a low-budget airline. In contrary to that, its ticket is too expensive A little bit of fault is also from our end as we get our tickets booked at the last moment We got Kashmir Ticket at Rs. 11000/- each Ok, let's relax for half an hour and then..
..we'll board our flight. Sir, we're now going to Bangalore Where are you going, sir? We're going to Srinagar Ok, Srinagar During snacking time, especially at midnight, one feels hungry after watching your video. Oh, God.. So, nice So will you go to Bangalore and come back? We're going Delhi-Bangalore Then, Bangalore-Delhi Then again, Delhi-Bangalore Oh, I mistook it as Mangalore Bangalore Ok, fantastic Ok, sir So, nice to meet you We've got breakfast before take-off I've pre-booked veg-sandwich for myself It tastes nice --Airline Announcement-- We've reached Srinagar Airport Though, I'd told you last time also But, I'm telling you again If you neither have a cab facility ..nor do you want to hire a taxi. So, from here, after paying Rs. 80/- per passenger, you can go to TRC near Dal Lake.
TRC stands for Tourist Reception Centre From there, you can go wherever you want to They've written the departure time One Mini/Normal Bus leaves every hour Let's go outside Brother Shaukat, Yes, sir It's great to reach here It's better if you introduce yourself I was born in Kashmir Basically, I'm a native of Srinagar And, my name is Shaukat I've been driving taxi for the last 15 years Though, most of the drivers do commercially Our Kashmir has around 200 places I thought to do a bit different So, I shifted my focus to off-beat places As you've just told us everyone visits popular destinations Yes, almost everyone goes there And, you drive tourists to unexplored places Yes, especially off-beat destinations Well, that's a good thing, from here.. we're directly going to Gulmarg, On the way, we'll stop our car after travelling for around half an hour where there's some nice scenic view I've just noticed here that.. ..there's one prepaid counter Not prepaid, but rather, SIM counter Because many people don't know that.. only postpaid SIM works here. I've already had a postpaid SIM They're said to charge Rs. 600/-
So you can buy the SIM That gets activated within 1.3 hours This is what I've been told here Since it is June month, there must be a lot of tourists here Too many tourists have come here If we talk about the present situation, it's quite tough to get a hotel Transport isn't easily available since there're so many tourists In fact, yesterday, somebody told me.. Kashmir Tourism is at its peak right now Too much Let's have a look at our luggage once There's no extra space left This thing generally happens to us Car's boot is tightly stuffed with our luggage That's why I always try ..to hire either Innova or Crysta Innova has a good space overall Put down the boot lid Let's go now Yes, sir Come Now, our plan is.. our tonight's stay is in Gulmarg And, tomorrow night, we'll come back.. ...from Gulmarg to Srinagar. Ok, let's go now Tourism police remain too active here. Ain't they? yes, at every destination, you'll spot them At all the tourist destinations we have..
..especially I'm referring to commercial sites Be it, Gulmarg, Pahalgam, Sonamarg ..Yousmarg and their similar types There you'll get our tourism police You can take any kind of.. ..information from them as well We do have our counter at almost every place You'll get Tourism Police at all places Besides cooperating, they also take very.. ..good care of the tourists. I'd noticed it in my last visit Brother Shaukat, tell me one thing Like, there's always one personal favorite Which is your personal favorite destination keeping June month in your mind? Taking family into consideration, and commercial places, then.. Pahalgam is second to none It means that's your personal favorite Yes, if I talk about my family In June, best place to visit is Pahalgam Stay over there for 5 days There're lot of places to see there Which is your favorite off-beat place? My favorite off-beat place, especially..
..in the months of June-July is.. I mean, between June to October.. ..my favorite destinations are.. Number 1 is Gurez Then Lolab and Bangus These are those 3 off-beat destinations.. ..which are my personal favourite Oh, that's great! So, we're going to visit your favorite..
..destinations with you. Yes, sir Day after tomorrow, we'll visit Gurez Fantastic! In which standard do you study? 3rd class Oh, that's great! Are you enjoying in Gulmarg? How much are you enjoying? Too much --Hearty Laughter-- Where are you from? We've planned after watching your video How long is your tour? Around 6 nights 6 days are good enough Ok, we'll leave now Ok, thank you, bye bye Bota Pathri is an amazing place It's a beautiful place To tell honestly, Had I not come here, I'd have thought.. ..to miss a prominent tourist place. Thank God, we've come here The bottom line is.. As per my belief, whatever money you've spent so far, that's got recovered by visiting Bota Pathri There's only one regret That regret is..
One is supposed to leave the place by 5:00 PM So, tourists should reach here by 12:00 PM Then, you don't do anything for 2-3 hours Either sit under a tree or ..nestle comfortably against a rock Do whatever you want to do If you don't want to sit and rather.. ..want to walk around, then walk. Climb up and down the mountain You'd have a wonderful time Tell us one thing why is this place called Bota Pathri? Our ancestors used to say that.. ..this place was home to medicinal herbs That's why it's called Bota Pathri Bota Pathri Right Tourists aren't allowed to go ahead. Are they?
No, tourists aren't allowed to go ahead Brother, tell us one more thing Why there's a strictness here that... ..tourists need to touch Gulmarg by 5:00 PM? Because it's a border area We, the native residents, register our entry Our domesticated cattle remain here Our entry is registered in Gulmarg So, most of our belongings are here They know we live here But, tourists are moved out of here by 5:00 PM Do they allow entry after 10:00 AM? Yes, after 10:00 AM When there's 10 feet high snow.. .. here in winter then what you all do. At that time, we go back Where? Baramulla Ok, brother, now let us leave Now, we're going from here Thank you Brother, whether you tell or you. Before leaving, We want Kashmiri food for the dinner What will we get in the vegetarian option? Less non-veg I mean upon ordering 3 items, we get 2 veg and 1 non-veg item. Which restaurant/hotel can we go to? There's one Bakshi Restaurant here Where is it located? It is in the nearby market That's an excellent restaurant There's Hill Top restaurant, that's also good Is local food available there? Yes, sir Have you got the meaning of local? Yes, of course, we got it It shouldn't have Dal Makhni No, sir. We need to taste authentic local food Local Saag is very famous I've already had local saag last time I ate Haak Saag You can try Wazwan What're the veg items in wazwan? Is there something in veg? Yes, there're some veg items as well We're talking about veg items What you're enlisting are non-veg items In vegetarian, you'll get Rajma You'll get "Nadru" ..as well as Palak. Ok Will Bakshi Restaurant have it? Yes, of course.
Can we go there? Now, see... We've had a word with you that you'll bid us adieu after this Will you accompany us? Or will you bid us adieu? Sir, I've to go down No..no..I'm just kidding You do one thing Drop us at Bakshi Restaurant And, if you've spare time then you'd do dinner with us as well Thank you so much, sir You can easily return from Bakshi restaurant If you've time, let's do dinner with us Sir, my home is too far from here Ok, no tension But, do drop us at Bakshi restaurant Yes, of course, sir.
Ok, done From here, we'll go to Bakshi first We'll check out their menu If we don't get our favorites at Bakshi, then we'll visit another hotel. How far is JKTDC from there? Sir, it's just half a kilometer away ..from Bakshi restaurant Ok, it's best then By the way, where we're right now Golf Course It's been more than half an hour. In their vehicle, we went to Bota Pathri We've been talking to them for half an hour And, we're also trying to get insights into golf How long have you been playing golf? 38 years For 38 years, he's been teaching.. .. golf to people here. plus, he's also encouraging tourists..
..into learning Golf as a fun activity ..and enjoy the game. Very nice! We really had fun It's looking great. Isn't it? It's going to get dark within 5-10 minutes It's 6:10 PM. We shall leave now. Thank you Let's go with you You did the right thing ..by coming at this place straightaway I've personally found it to be a good idea First, visit this place Then, go to Srinagar on the last day This is what we're doing also The easy advantage is, in future, if you need to catch a flight, then.. there'll be no hassle Otherwise, you're rushing all the way.. from Pahalgam fearing missing the flight From here, we'll go to Sonamarg We'll stay in Srinagar for 1 day Then, we'll go to Sonamarg It's my 3rd tour in the last 3 months First, I came in March with my son After holidaying here, we went back Then we returned in April to shoot We saw Pahalgam, Gulmarg, and their types Now, we'll cover off-beat destinations However, Gulmarg isn't off-beat, but.. ..last time we missed Gulmarg as.. ..we couldn't get Gondola ticket. Tomorrow, we'll return to Srinagar ..and going Gurez the day after tomorrow Oh! Nice to meet you Pleasure is ours We never expected to bump into each other Very nice Let's click a picture While going to our dinner, look at these beautiful Lavender flowers ..blooming outside the Golf Course area They're beautiful. Aren't they?
This view isn't easy to find. So beautiful Lavenders are blooming all around. What a view! It's beautiful. Isn't it? How beautiful these flowers are! Let's go. Brother Mushtaq is waiting there.
Right now, the scene is.. Bakshi Restaurant's officials saying.. it'll take them 1 hour to heat up the Tandoor then, the food will get ready They've a lot of options in Mutton ..with limited options in veg items. As we're a team of 4 members, 3 persons are preferring veg By the way, I also prefer veg So it's better to visit some veg restaurant I've got to know that.. Dana Pani restaurant is within walking distance We'll have had our dinner over there Have a look at the surroundings The market is located on this side. While some eateries are in the front Looking at the ambiance here, it seems that Their Tandoor will start at 8:00 PM ..or say at around 7:30 PM. dinner is available here till 9:30 PM Looking at the ambiance, it seems that people staying around must be visiting this place at around 7:30 PM or maybe at 8:00 PM You guess by seeing the seating set-up In comparison to noon, the weather has got colder now Putting on a half-sleeve sweater will work fine Dana Pani is in the near distance Bakshi restaurant is on that side Dana Pani is on this side Veg and Jain foods Brother, suggest to us what we'd have in veg We're 4 people We're 4 people What will you suggest? Have a taste of our special Dum Aloo, waza paneer, dal fry, mix-veg The rest is on you Take rice also We serve Tawa Roti made of wheat Since Tawa Roti is available Get us Tawa Roti It's best How many Tawa Rotis? Get them ready as per 4 people Do you want to get it packed? No, we'll eat here Hot chapattis will be served to you Would you like roti with or without butter? Yes, simple roti Half butter rotis and half simple ones So, we'll sit outside Can you serve the order within 10-15 minutes? Yes Great! Have a good preparation We've come to you with a lot of expectation Do you eat spicy food? Yes, we can have spicy food Ok, sir Would you prepare it well? We'll take no charge if you don't like it Oh, wow! --Hearty laughter-- It's great; no charge taken if food isn't good Till the time the food gets ready, I thought to stand by the road And, enjoy hustle-bustle all around Standing here, I feel like..
On that side, it's not noticeable, But, standing at this side, it feels like.. there're around 6-8 restaurants here serving pure vegetarian food. Vegetarian or Vaishno dhaba is.. .. written before their names. Because, now, I'm feeling like.. shopkeepers here have..
..got a basic idea that domestic tourists.. visiting this place prefer pure-veg food Keeping that in mind, they're naming their restaurants "pure-veg" This is one aspect Last time, as I visited Srinagar My plan was that.. We'll come to Gulmarg and.. having ridden in Gondola, the same evening we'll return. I've asked many people about Gulmarg They suggested to us; go in the morning return in the evening as.. Gondola ride is the only attraction in Gulmarg Then I learnt about Bota Pathri As I've reached here so.. I'm realizing that..
If you visit Gulmarg for 1 day You come in the morning And, return to Srinagar in the evening Then you won't enjoy that much You'd stay here at night This is what I'm realizing post coming here See, we've spent almost 2 hours in Bota Pathri If I had 4.3 hours extra at hand, I'd have stopped there for another 2 hours ..to feel Mother Nature. The lake that we'd seen.. I was feeling like spending hours ..on the bank of that lake. I'm getting idea from that We've also seen the Golf Course So, all these local activities ..can be done in half a day and the rest.. half-day can be reserved for Gondola By this way, Gulmarg is surely 1-night destination So, this is Battery Rickshaw That I've seen in the noon as well It regularly plies on this route Not many but..
.. a few Battery Rickshaws are available here We've ordered 4 things for ourselves Dal. We'll have it later on. Let's taste Wazawan Paneer first Red Gravy Dear Himanshu, let's start having it Do you first fry potato in Dum Aloo? We first boil the potatoes Ok, after boiling, you fry them The gravy is tinged with sourness It tastes like normal tomato & onion gravy We've already told them.. to keep spices at medium-level. Accordingly, the spice level is mild This wazwan paneer is its name it looks like it has a little more oil in it Dum Aloo is tasty I've found Waza Paneer even tastier than that It's the sourness of the tomato besides.. despite a little more oil used in it ..it has an awesome taste How did you like this dish? Its taste is good Wazwan Paneer is nice Aloo & Mix-Veg are also tasty Overall, it's a simple preparation Most importantly, you get Tawa Chapatti to eat Then, the food tastes even better I only like having Tawa Chapatti Ok, it's a good thing Overall, it's good food Now, our plan is.. From here, after finishing our dinner...
we'll go to the hut of JKTDC Hut is half a kilometer away from here We'll reach in 15 minutes Our day will end on time It's 7:10 PM right now It's good then We'll reach our hut by 7:45 PM So, let's finish this episode here In the few upcoming days, I'll try Waza Paneer at other places too ..to gain deeper insight into its taste. Otherwise, I've liked its taste here Right now, we bid bye to all of you Soon we'll see you again Our tomorrow's journey includes.. Local Gulmarg Then, we'll reach Srinagar by the end of the day Thanks for your time!
2023-08-03 10:02
