An early morning bus from Amritsar brought me to the Jammu, the starting point of my road trip to Leh. It was pretty much as simple as the guide book says, step off the bus in Jammu and start asking questions.
"Anyone know how I get to Srinagar?"
$15 CAD dollars later and I'm sitting in a luxury SUV with 6 others. I paid the extra 2 bucks for the front seat, money well spent. After about 3 hours we hit the Jammu Valley, from that point on I just gazed out my window in awe.
"What do you think of Kerala now my friend?" I heard from the back seat.
The only English speaking fellow of the bunch -a proud Kashmiri- sat behind me. We chatted earlier about India and I was asked what my favourite part was. The easy answer for me being Kerala of course.
About 6 hours into the trip and you enter the Jawahar Tunnel -the heavily guarded gateway to the Kashmir Valley. The suspense couldn't be built up any better, especially when 6 proud Kashmiris are sitting behind you telling you how beautiful it's going to be on the other side. True to their word they were right.
"Welcome to the Kashmir Valley" A sign read once exiting.
I got goose bumps immediately. Pure, rugged, raw beauty. No wonder 2 countries have been fighting for this land for so long.
Driving anywhere in India for a few hours can make it seem like you've crossed borders, everything changes constantly. The colour of people's eyes, the fabric of their clothing, the texture of their hair, even right down to the way they speak English -a different accent with a hint of something you can't put your finger on. It all changes right before you as you gaze out that bus window and this is the main reason I love India so much, there is just so much to see and experience all within one border.
July 1st can't come slow enough.
Next stop Leh!
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