Hotpots,salutes and one armed hugs!

Having learned from my Delhi experience I had arranged to be picked up and made plans to stay in a guesthouse for one week.My rides name was Arafat who was extremely excited to see me offering hugs and chai right off the bus. Kashmir felt at first like a town right out of the old west.Tea stalls,fancy cloth house's and Kashmirian handicraft stores opened up onto the road.Auto-rickshaws zoomed by,on the other side of the street there was a heavy military presence waiting to be attacked by rebels waiting in the hills.This town had a pulse and I was happy to be here.The mode of dress in Kashmir is one hotpot,these really great flannel plaid pants and a shawl.The winters here can be very cold and there is no heat unless you count baseboard heaters that rarely work and catch fire from time to time.You put the shawl over your head with one arm tucked in to hold your hotpot and with the other you can eat,wave,give one armed hugs and even salute the soldiers if you wish.At the moment I needed a nap,tomorrow I meet the honey lady!