We are in the belly of winter. The coldest part, 40 day “Chilai Kalan” started on the 21st December, 2023. The season however stays on for 70 days till the beginning of March, when spring makes its appearance. The word winter is recorded in Old English and is related to the words wet and water. We call it “Wandae” in Kashmiri. Although it is unpleasantly cold, the Kashmiri winter also has its own charm. The valley is dressed in white all over, no dirt is visible. It is all glistening white. The streets, shops, bazaars, fields, gardens, and roofs are all covered with snow. Birds, beasts, cattle and other creatures are unwilling to roam around. Even the stray dogs forget their barking and crows their cawing. The hustle and bustle of business declines. The schools and colleges remain closed. The well-known Dal Lake sometimes freezes and solidifies.

Traditionally in our old-style houses, still seen all over the rural Kashmir and parts of the old city, living place becomes the ground floor with kitchen and the adjoining Hamam. It typically is a room adjoining the kitchen with a hollow base for burning firewood which provides the soothing heat through a supply of hot water from an attached copper tank (called Khazana in Kashmiri). The modern urban........

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