Wednesday's plan to walk around the old part of Srinagar....alone, was a bit of a failure. We obtained a local guy who knew all the back streets and the bizaar area like the back of his hand. Only problem was that he walked so fast, and wasn't eager to let us stop to meet people, and take shots.
After 30 minutes we returned by rickshaw to Nageen Lake, both feeling very frustrated.
So what happened to ruin the plan? The old part of town (referred to as Down Town) is full old delapidated wooden houses, a labarynth of narrow streets, and a number of steepled mosques, and our presence as westerners was not appreciated by the militants, and religious fanatics. Not a surprise!
In our very limited tour you felt that you were being observed, but many people wanted to make contact, but were basically afraid to do so; pyrinig eyes ever present. We were later told that the back streets we had attempted to enter were dangerous to westerners, and a situation could easily arrive from nowhere hence for the guide. We are close to Pakistan; an this fragile area is where the terrorists are eager to cause problems.
However, if you respect the people; don't push camera lenses in veiled womens faces, and be polite, then you feel safer. Of course near the mosques it is better to keep your distance when groups form to watch fanatical religious videos on large erected screens. The site of a young man without uniform, shouting and waving an AK47 outside Jamya Masjid mosque, is a clear indication; a) to get the hell out of there, and b) stay well in the open.
We will try again tomorrow, without a guide, and I'm sure we will be more successful in ' breaking the ice' with the people, religious fanatics or not.
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