Jammu: Paradise Lost

It was perhaps the longest distance I traveled since 2 years. The occasion was my cousin sister's marriage in the city of temples Jammu. I was accompanied by my mom from Kota and we reached there at about 4PM on 21st November. It was a good journey as I saw many natural beauties and also was excited to see Tanks being used for pulling large objects.

Tanks Used for Pulling Large Objects

One interesting thing happened on the way. Our train was near the Samba Town in Jammu and suddenly I saw Heavily Armed Commandos ( I saw one carrying a Rocket Launcher) on both sides seemingly guarding something. I asked a fellow Uncleji and he quipped "They are guarding you my boy, they guard the train and the track day & night." I was shocked & thrilled on hearing this. He explained that Samba is very close to the Indo-Pak border. Kudos to the Indian Army because of whom the Kashmiris can roam around from their houses sans fear and India can be proud of their sacrifices.

Food of Jammu & Kashmir

Jammu has a very rich tradition of royal and grand food habits. What I saw there was an amazing opulent meal called Shahi Wazwan and Dartarkhaan. I cant describe it as I am a vegetarian but to tell you it was looking great and contained meat in all sorts of Kashmiri Gravies. It is served in a large room where there are 10-12 people and this meal has to be ordered 1 day in advance so that you get the best taste. The style of eating is traditional common plate system and you have to share your food with everyone in the room.

Delicacies of Jammu

One Wazwan costs 4500 bucks!

Good Hotels in Jammu: Hotel Asia, Hotel K.C. Residency, Hotel Jehlum Resort, Hotel Ritz Manor etc. Food is primarily available in all of these and is equally delicious.

You also find Domino's and local Pizzas in the City Centre Mall there. A good fast food joint is Fiesta in the Jehlum Resort.

Life of Jammu

Life of jammu revolves around the tourism industry and local business of food items trading and of course the Mata Vaishno Devi Temple. The temple is located on the top of a mountain in the Himalayas and can be reached by a 5-6 hour walk on foot from Katra which is 50 Km from Jammu. People mostly speak Punjabi and Dogri and are a fine mix of Hindu,Muslim & Sikhs.

The roads are good and the taxi services are also good. You can easily hire taxis to visit the town on a rate of 100 per hour for an Indica and 150 per hour for Quails or Tata Sumo.  Nearest Airport is Jammu and also Srinagar is around 200 Kms. It is also very well connected by roads and rail tracks.

Places to visit in Jammu Town:

Raghunath Mandir, Kali Mata Mandir, Maharaja Hari Singh Museum, Chotta Haridwar, Main Market near Raghunath Temple. Also worth seeing are some other castles of old kings.

I just had 3 days in hand and that too in the middle of the marriage ceremony so couldn't visit many places and explore more of this valley kingdom.

The Golden Throne in Maharaja Hari Singh Museum

I couldn't find snow this time as I didn't go to Kashmir so will plan another such vacation and find out how it looks after the age old clashes for the Paradise on Earth.