When we arrived it was hotter than any weather we'd seen in weeks, the hotel owners and tuk tuk drivers were however still very much on our heels, and it took a great many "no's" and "not gunna happens" to get a moments reprieve from their constant pestering. At the onset we could tell we were back in the bustling and hustling parts of India, for unlike Leh, Srinigar was a much more lively and industrial city, full of opportunity and ripe with the kind of mental attitude that breeds hatred and resentment, the whole aura of the city was tainted by the confrontation between the Muslims and the police force, all fueled by the rape and murder of the two Muslim women. Had we been in Srinigar at any other time our stay would have likely been of a different flavor, or so I was led to believe by both the local people and Vinay's portrayal of it all prior to our arrival.The girls went to stay with a friend of theirs and we hired a few tuk tuks and got ourselves a hotel on the lake. It wasn't until we were paddled into the many canals of the lake that were surrounded by boat houses on all sides that I truly grasped the scale and proportions of this "city on the lake", 20 minutes after leaving shore we pulled into what would be our hotel for the night. As we docked chickens could be seen fluttering about on a small slip of land that bridged a column of boats and ducks swam in rows beneath scaffolding constructed upon the land and between the boats. The water was murky and quite dirty, not at all pleasant to look at up close, but as with most things viewed from a distance the sight as a whole is what we may define as beautiful.We dropped our bags and headed back out into the city, the owner of our house boat told us the situation going in around the city and that it was highly advisable to travel in the direction away from the police station, so as we landed back on solid ground we made a left and sought to circumnavigate the entire lake before it got dark, nine kilometers later we gave up and took a tuk tuk back to the main part of the city but on the way we saw a cars window bashed out by rocks and a man bleeding in the back seat and the riot police out in force blocking the way of what we could only assume were the rioters by the sound of their chanting and banging of sticks and twisted metal against street posts and other cars. Vinay was in no hurry to meet that situation head on, Blake was all gung ho and I was more hungry and tired of walking than interested in joining a scuffle with the police and rioters.We had dinner in a much too expensive restaurant and regretted it even before we left, at least I did, my food was terrible and I didn't feel any better for it after. Just as we were leaving the power went out across the city and darkness blanketed the lake for an instant. Moments later little lights spread out evenly around the city and soon after that it began to rain. A light breeze swept the City on the lake and we watched from our little skiff heading towards the house boat as massive bolts of lighting pierced the sky all around us.For the first time since we left home I woke up and immediately after regretted having to get out of bed, not because I was groggy or in need of better and a greater quantity of sleep but because I was well rested, comfortable and in need of more time to enjoy it all. We got sprites and kinleys (A kind of soda) waited for Nilma and Vashra to meet us at the bus station and prepared ourselves for yet another days journey across India. Vashra would be taking a plane home, so we said our farewells and see you laters then headed for Jammu, 11 hours later we reached Jammu had dinner then hoped a train to Amritzer where the Golden Temple Awaited us.