Day 184-2011 : Paradise on Earth - Final Part

I have finally reached the end of my boring travelogue on our trip to Kashmir.  Blogging is a time consuming hobby, so please bear with me.

The only agenda on the final day was for the whole group to fly back to their homes.  As we left the hotel everyone had mixed feelings.  On the one hand, the relief of going back to familiar environments was evident, but, on the other hand, people were surprised at how quickly the last 6 days passed.  We made new friends, which is a big plus for group tours, and everyone was promising everyone else that they would be staying in touch. 

There were worries that we could meet heavy traffic on our way to the airport as the J&K capital was being shifted that day from Jammu to Srinagar!  We were told that if we did meet those government convoys carrying the entire officialdom (people & paper), it could take hours to get out of the jams.  Thankfully, the drive from the hotel to the airport was a short one.

I have to however, mention an interesting fact, as it was a first for me.  As we approached the airport, our vehicle was stopped at a security gate about 1 KM from the airport.  The procedure was to screen all the baggage at this distance and then load it back into the vehicles to travel the rest of the distance to the airport.  In all, there were three rings of security layers by the time we reached the check-in counter. 

After going through all of that we finally boarded the flight.  We did not have to change flights this time and were back in Mumbai after 2 stops (Jammu & Delhi).  Tired and not looking forward to getting back to the daily routine.

All of us, especially the kids and me were now sporting a tan (see picture above)!  We also had cold rashes on our faces due to the extended exposure to the cold and dry weather.  They are all now gone, but it did take quite a few days for people to stop commenting on my 'looking like a red tomato' look!

While I have been writing this travelogue over the last few weeks, the global economy has again started showing signs of stalling.  Countries are being described as 'group of PIIGS'.  At least I have done my bit for the economy by burning a  huge hole in my pocket for this trip.  Is it however, going to be 2008 revisited?  Watch this space.

Take care!