Friday, September 11, 2015

Srinagar - City Things

Wednesday, 2 September 2015

The "phool-wala" (flower vendor) came to our houseboat in the early morning. His boat reads, "Hello! How are you? I'm Mr. Marvelous your flower man. OK."

Today we had two excursions into town -- this time in Toyota Innovas (the official tourist vehicle in India).

Srinagar is about 95% Muslim, mostly Sufi. The local mosques have a unique style and are made of wood and brick, not stone. Instead of domes, there are pagoda-like steeples reflecting a strong Buddhist influence. The minarets are similarly topped.

The courtyard of the Jama Masjid.
The interior prayer hall of the Jama Masjid. The columns and ceiling are of deodar cedar and are centuries old.
A close-up view of a tower on the Jama Masjid. These towers remind me of Norway's stavkirkes.
Shah Hamdan Masjid
The elaborately paper maché entrance to the Shah Hamdan Masjid. Paper maché is a traditional Kashmiri craft. 
Craftsmen at work on the street:

Zinc plating copper ware.
Dyeing a dupatta.
Walking through Srinagar:

Kashmiri embroidery uses a lot of brightly colored thread.
Brightly colored clothes drying on a balcony.
Red chilies, baskets, and more.
A shop for fabrics and batting.
A collection of old doors and windows. (Although nothing like the quantity we saw in Ahmedabad!)
Sue at the Badam Wari garden. Srinagar's fort, now in ruins, is in the background.
On our evening walk through the Nishat Bagh, a garden built by the Mughals, all the schoolgirls wanted to have a picture with the Americans.


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