Kashmir

I'm now in Srinagar, the capital of Kashmir

this is an interesting place...in a bit of a sad way
you can clearly see that in the past the city must be a pretty upscale resort for tourists, the setting & architecture have strong European influences, the lakes have hundreds of houseboats as relaxing accommodations. The streets are cleaner and greener (in the touristy centers) than other Indian cities.

But since the partition of India, the hostility between India & Pakistan and the political unrest in the decades that followed have pretty much screwed the tourism industry here

Nowadays, while staying on the houseboats remained a tranquil & relaxing experience, in downtown Srinagar, you'll see fully armed Indian soldiers standing guard on every corner of the street. The political situation between India and Pakistan is a lot better these days, but there still aren't that many foreign tourists, and I noticed that there're probably more Indian tourists.

Kashmir used to be dubbed as "paradise on earth" because of it's natural beauty, it's interesting in a sad way to see how human conflicts affect the so-called "paradise".