By chance, we met a member of Nadia’s extended family in Mumbai who had just returned from a week in Kashmir with his family. “It is beautiful this time of year. And the region is stable. You should visit Kashmir because you never know how long the peace will last,” he reported. We excitedly decided to fly to Srinagar and spend several days on and around Lake Dal after our stay in Delhi. Little did we know, unfortunate events were in motion that would surface deep-seated tensions and threaten the peace in Kashmir.

May 26: “The forestland in the Sindh range north of Srinagar was first diverted to the [Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board] on May 26 for raising a prefabricated infrastructure including lavatories at a base-camp for the Amarnath pilgrims.” (Source: Khaleej Times) The Amarnath caves are dedicated to the god Shiva and are one of the most important Hindu sites in India, especially during the holy month of Shravan in July-August.

June 21: Nadia and I set out for Delhi and Agra with news from Kashmir seemingly peaceful.

June 23: “Violent protests broke out in Srinagar once again over the controversial allotment of forest land to Shri Amarnath Shrine Board by the state government. Protesters took to the streets as leaders of both factions of the separatist Hurriyat Conference in Jammu and Kashmir were placed under house arrest. Hurriyat leaders were supposed to be part of the protests.” (Source: Times of India)

June 24: We arrived to Srinagar and headed for our houseboat on Lake Dal. We were tired after three days of packed itineraries in Delhi and Agra so we decided to rest and take a leisurly tour of Lake Dal, backdropped by the majestic Himalayan Mountains.

June 25: We were intrigued by a popular tourist destination near the Pakistan border called Gulmarg. Gulmarg boasts Asia’s highest and longest cable car project, the Gulmarg Gondola, as well as the highest golf course in the world.

The day started early with breakfast at 7am. Tariq from the Chicago Group (our houseboat company on Lake Dal) accompanied us to shore. We had heard from other guests that he had accompanied them to Gulmarg earlier in the week in a company-owned car. Once ashore, he walked us to a taxi, put us inside and thrust his hand through the window to shake mine and wish us good luck. He hurried off before we could ask why we were going alone. Nadia and I exchanged confused looks, but shrugged it off as we drove into Srinagar.

The taxi driver looked unusually tense. As we approached the city center he commented that all of the shops were closed due to a protest. “What are they protesting?,” I asked. “They are protesting the sale of Kashmiri land to non-Kashmiris. This is against our law.” He answered his cell phone and suddenly he stopped the taxi in the middle of street, turned around and started driving in the opposite direction on the wrong side of the street. “Protesters have closed the road and are throwing rocks at cars,” he explained. “They are fighting with the police and two people have been shot.”

Our driver called the Chicago Group, who suggested he take us in the opposite direction to Pahalgam, a popular tourist spot for trekking in the Himalayas. Pahalgram is primarily used as a base camp for Hindu pilgrims visiting the Amarnath caves. By now we were peppering our driver with questions trying to catch up on current events in the region, struggling to understand how we were caught by surprise in the middle of something so serious.

Our driver turned the corner onto the road to Pahalgam and slammed on the brakes to avoid hitting the final car in a long line of cars trying to get out of Srinagar. The road seemed closed, but we weren’t sure who had closed it. As we sat there, we negotiated with our driver and the Chicago Group, who was worried about the money they had planned to charge us for the full day of tours, to take us to the removed Mogul Gardens on the south side of Lake Dal away from Srinagar and the roads leading out of town. We enjoyed a quiet afternoon in the hilltop gardens that were once the summer home of Mogul Emperors, overlooking Lake Dal and the surrounding valley. Our day concluded with the unavoidable stop at a carpet shop on the way home.

June 26: Having gained momentum and public attention, the protesters extended their reach to the lake. Houseboat owners rely almost exclusively on tourism for income and were less inclined to support the protesters. The protesters demanded a full strike on the lake and organized patrols of young shouting men to force participation. Parts of the lake were blockaded by strings of boats tied together.

As a result, we spent the day confined to our houseboat watching the eerily empty waters of the lake. Tourist areas were closed, including the gardens we had visited the day before. Tariq wasn’t able to buy meat that day, but defiantly rowed over to a nearby boat to procure fresh vegetables for dinner.

June 27: “With violence escalating on the fourth day of protests across the Valley against the transfer of forest land to Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB), hundreds of tourists fled Srinagar on Thursday, while others are waiting to follow suit.” (Source: Times of India)

A general curfew was announced starting June 27th. We had flights back to Delhi for the afternoon, but had to leave the houseboat around 6am after a sleepless night in order to clear military roadblocks. The Srinagar airport was chaotic and we were forced to become ‘Indian’ – we pushed our way through crowds and lines to make sure we got our seats! We passed through five security checks at: the airport grounds, airport terminal, entering the ticketed area, entering the boarding area and on the tarmac before boarding the plane. It sure felt good when the plane took off!

The Aftermath

The protesters succeeded in gaining a formal revocation of the land transfer on July 1st.

Unfortunately Kashmir remains unstable and unsafe for tourism. In response to the protests we witnessed in the largely Muslim valley over transferring land for use by Hindu pilgrims, protests have broken out in the majority Hindu area around the city of Jammu. Read more…

Tragically, Pakistani and Indian soldiers engaged in the first inter-nation gun battle in Kashmir since 2003 earlier this week. Read more…

Tagore compared the Taj Mahal to a teardrop that glistened “spotlessly bright on the cheek of time”.

We left Mumbai for the north on June 21. Nadia wanted to see a few things in Delhi she missed during her last visit and insisted that I couldn’t come to India and not see the Taj Mahal!

We stayed in the bustling bazaar/backpacker district of Paharanj in Delhi and spent the first day touring sites in the area, including the Red Fort and Jama Masjid – one of the largest mosques in India commissioned by the Mogul emperor Shah Jahan. We were initially caught off guard by the aggressive tactics of touts and con artists in Delhi. It took us over 30 minutes to navigate through the web of stories and people trying to distract us from visiting the official tourist office at the New Delhi train station.

By the second day in Delhi, we were becoming pros at avoiding scams. We took prepaid taxis to the newer neighborhoods of Delhi to see the India gate (or war memorial depending on who you ask), spent several hours in the fantastic National Museum, which houses an amazing collection of historical artifacts from the Indus region and, of course, spent some time shopping in Connaught Place – the second largest financial and commercial center in India (after Mumbai).

On the 23rd, we took a train to Agra and hired a local taxi for the day. We started with a trip to Fatehpur Sikri about 40km outside of Agra. Fatehpur Sikri is a wonderfully preserved fortress city built by the Mogul Emperor Akbar to serve as his capital. Lack of water in the area limited the stay of the Moguls to less than 15 years, but the intricately designed city provides a great glimpse into the Mogul era in India.

We spent so much time at Fatehpur Sikri, we decided to head straight for the Taj Mahal to make sure we had enough time to visit before our return train to Delhi. The Taj Mahal was built by Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife Mumtaz Mahal. The mausoleum is architecturally famous for its perfectly symmetrical design and white marble facade.

Visitors from all cultures, countries and religions come to marvel at the aesthetically beautiful and deeply moving gesture of love and devotion. It seemed fitting to spend the afternoon admiring this tribute to love on our honeymoon.

We arrived to Mumbai on June 14 and were welcomed by Nadia’s uncle Ashraf at the airport. We were a little nervous about visiting India during monsoon season, but the rains stopped a few hours before we arrived and didn’t return until the end of our three-week stay in India.

We spent a few weeks in Mumbai with Nadia’s grandparents – enjoying their very kind hospitality and delicious homemade Indian cuisine. Each day we ventured out to a new part of this bustling and VERY crowded city, usually with Ashraf and/or Nadia’s grandmother.

In addition to meeting Nadia’s family and the wonderful food, highlights included bargain shopping for clothes and souvenirs and a day trip to Elephanta Island in Mumbai Harbor. The island is home to a half dozen ancient Hindu caves, which house one of the country’s most spectacular stone carvings of the god Shiva. The island is also home to very tame (and slightly aggressive when food is around) monkeys.

It was so much fun learning about the history of Nadia’s family in Mumbai! We even got to visit Breach Candy Hospital where Nadia was born and the beautiful ballroom in the Taj Hotel where Nadia’s parents were married.

We arrived in Bahrain on June 6, and were surprised to be greeted at the airport by almost all of my aunts and uncles. My cousin Wahid even showed up in full Bedouin dress to impress Aaron.

We stayed with my Uncle Ismail, my Aunt Mary and cousin Sam in their huge house. Mary and Ismail couldn’t have been more hospitable, and Aunt Mary was sweet enough to drive us around and show us the sights of Bahrain during our week long stay.

I was surprised by how much Bahrain had grown in the two years since my last visit. There was construction everywhere and a lot more cars (and hence, traffic) on the road. It was apparent that the economy is booming. Everywhere we went appeared new and modern, with all the comforts of home. We were even able to find ingredients to make Mexican food in the local grocery store! Bahrain is a very cosmopolitan place, much like the U.S. or Europe in terms of standard of living. And, much like home, there are malls just about everywhere!

We were showered with affection and stuffed with food in Bahrain. We spent time playing video games with Sam and reading and relaxing. Aaron learned lots of new recipes from Alsabi, my aunt and uncle’s housekeeper. It was just what we needed after all our travels. It was too hot to spend much time outdoors but thankfully, everywhere we went had air conditioning.

We spent lots of time being driven around by Aunt Mary, who is a great tour guide. She is our unofficial family historian, and we enjoyed her stories. Aunt Mary drove us out to the desert, where many Bahrainis still camp out in the winter, sometimes for months at a time! Aunt Mary explained that many tents had satellite TV and all the luxuries of home. Not exactly roughing it! Camping season was over when we visited, but we hope to come back and experience it ourselves one day. We did see lots of oil rigs.

We visited Al-Areen Wildlife Park, which is a nature preserve for many of Arabia’s indigenous animals. The park had quite an array of deer and birds, some of which were very beautiful. Some of the birds were quite aggressive- Aunt Mary got attacked by one and had to defend herself with her handbag.

We saw ancient beehive graves dating from 4100 – 3700 BC. Bahrain was once known as Dilmun and has been inhabited since the Bronze Age. It was amazing to see remnants of Bahrain’s 7000 year old history scattered in between homes!

Another tourism highlight was our visit to Sheikh Issa’s house in Muharraq. My cousin Wahid took us here and showed us around. After seeing so much of Bahrain’s growth and modernity, we enjoyed this trip into old Bahrain. We walked through the souk to get here and found ourselves in a beautiful old complex that was once the Sheikh’s home. There was even a wind tower, which I remember my mom telling stories about from when she was young. The wind tower is an element of architecture in Persian and Bahraini homes that acts as an ancient form of air conditioning. My mom has childhood memories of hanging out in the wind tower in her parents’ home to escape the heat.

We enjoyed touring around Bahrain, but the absolute highlight of our stay was spending time with family. My mother’s four brothers and one of her sisters live in Bahrain, and much of the extended family. They couldn’t have been more warm and welcoming and we had such a great time with everyone.

My Uncle Ebrahim and Aunt Fatima hosted a delicious luncheon for us, and Aaron met most of the family there. I heard some great stories about my mom from my aunties.

Afterwards, my cousin Deena took us to the family business, fabric shops started by my great-grandfather and passed down to his sons. Uncle Ebrahim now owns the shops, and Deena manages them. The stores still bear my great-grandfather’s name.

We had the chance to spend lots of time with various cousins and aunts and uncles, and were taken out to dinner almost every night. One night, Deena and Wahid took us to a delicious fusion Asian restaurant. Another night, we celebrated Hisham’s 28th birthday with him, my cousins Safiya and Tariq and their friends. And yet another night, we were treated to a delicious dinner by my cousins Nasreen, Sohair, and Ali, Ali’s wife Julie, and Sohair’s son Yusef. Most of my memories of Bahrain revolve around eating, and now I understand why!

Our visit culminated in a wonderful family party that my Uncle Ismail and Aunt Mary hosted for us at their home. My cousin Mohamed happened to be visiting from Egypt and we were happy to see him again. It was great to see all the family together! The Khonjis are known for their love of singing and dancing, so it was appropriate that the evening ended with an impromptu concert by my four uncles.

We had such a wonderful time spending time with family in Bahrain and are excited for our next visit!

We caught an overnight train to Aswan in the south of Egypt on May 29th. Our first class train seats were comfortable and air conditioned, although the bathroom looked like the lower level of an outhouse. After 14 hours in the train, we arrived to Aswan the following afternoon and visited two of the five Egyptian dams along the Nile River.

The High Dam (newer of the two) was completed in 1971 and generates roughly half of the country’s electricity supply. On the flip side, constructing the dam led to the creation of Nassar Lake, the world’s largest artificial lake and the subsequent flooding and and relocation of Nubian villages and monuments in the area. The dam stops the annual flooding of the valley along the Nile River which has had mixed results on the land. From the High Dam it is possible to see northern Sudan on a clear day.

On the way back to Aswan we visited the Philae Temples. The oldest remaining part of the temple was built around 400 B.C. and rulers of Egypt successively added their mark to the complex until as recently as 300 AD in worship of the goddess Isis. Later in the day we took a felucca (sailboat) around Elephantine Island and explored Aswan Botanical Gardens.

Day Two on the Nile:

We stopped off at Kom Ombo, the temple erected in honor two gods: Sobek, the crocodile god and Haroeris. Kom Ombo was a major trading port and was even a regional capital during the Ptolemic times. The mummified crocodiles are thousands of years old!

Day Three on the Nile:

We awoke to find our cruise ship docked in the town of Edfu the next morning. Edfu is largely an agricultural center and its specialty is sugar cane. The main tourist attraction is the Temple of Horus (falcon god), which is one of the best preserved temples in Egypt because it was built on higher ground and avoided seasonal flooding of the Nile. Construction of the temple began in 287 BC and was completed about 200 years later. Modern day Edfu was built on top of the sand covered temple until it was rediscovered excavated in the 19th century.

From Edfu, we sailed to Luxor and passed another small dam, which creates a disparity in the water level. Our ship passed through a locking gate system similar to the system used at the Panama Canal in order to continue down the Nile at a lower water level.

Day Four on the Nile:

Luxor, once known as Thebes, has been inhabited for over 8000 years. The city became the capital of Egypt around 2000 BC when Montuhotep II conquered and united all of Egypt. Luxor is also affectionately known as the hassle capital of Egypt and we certainly experienced our share of locals following us around offering to help with everything from carriage rides to carpet sales.

We made a quick stop at the mostly destroyed Colossi of Memnon and spent the morning in the Valley of the Kings, which houses tombs of the Pharaohs. The tombs date back to about 1500 BC and so far archaeologists have found over 60 tombs, the most recent discovered a few years ago – and they are still digging! The entrance ticket includes three tombs; we visited Ramses I, III & IX. The tomb of Ramses IX was especially impressive with much of the colorful hieroglyphics still intact.

The Temple of Queen Hatshepsut, the most powerful and important female ruler in ancient Egypt, was equally impressive, although most of the coloring has faded.

After recovering in the air conditioning of the cruise ship, we set out again in the afternoon to visit the very large Karnak Temple and Luxor Temple. Karnak is one of the largest ancient Egyptian monuments, constructed and added to for over 1500 years. No one knows why this site was so important, but one and a half millennium of rulers felt compelled to add their personal touch to the site in form of a kiosk, obelisk, sanctuary, pylon or temple. It is fascinating to observe the changing architectural styles over the years.

Luxor Temple is home of the picturesque valley of the sphinxes. Modern day Luxor still covers most of the avenue of sphinxes which runs 3km to Karnak. The temple itself was once underground. There is still a mosque on top of main temple where the street level used to be before excavation.

We headed back to Cairo with a renewed interest and appreciation for Egyptian history and mythology and humbled by the tremendous achievements of a great ancient civilization. The next time we will be more careful in selecting our tour guides: The first day the guide didn’t really speak English; the second was more interested in Nadia’s bosom than the temple; the third kept trying to make us pay again for things that were already included in our package; the fourth was great, in spite of the inevitable detour to the alabaster pottery shop. Upper (southern) Egypt is a must see!