They are in varying states of repair, but many striking examples of distinctive “traditional”/“vernacular” architecture still stand in Kashmir’s capital.
Such buildings typically employ both timber and bricks in their construction, and they have proved remarkably capable of withstanding earthquakes.
The overwhelming majority of Srinagar’s inhabitants are Muslims, but both “secular” and “sacred” buildings often look decidedly unlike those found in most other “Islamic” cities.
As you’ll see in a future, multiple-image post, it’d be very easy for a first-time Western visitor to fail to recognise – initially, at least – that one particularly spectacular mosque is a mosque.
Bakeries, butchers and boutiques abound, but Srinagar’s do not much resemble their Australian counterparts.
The same is true of many doors, gates and windows.
(photo is ©️ Doug Spencer, taken at 10.45 am on 06 May 2024. The pictured building overlooks the Jhelum River, which runs through the middle of Srinagar)