Srinagar is where most Kashmir journeys begin and end — a city built around water. Dal Lake and Nigeen Lake carry a floating world of houseboats and shikaras, while the Mughal gardens (Shalimar Bagh, Nishat Bagh) terrace down toward the water in the same layout they’ve held for four centuries. The old city’s wooden mosques and the spice-and-copper lanes of Zaina Kadal reward slow walking, and a sunset shikara ride past the floating vegetable market is, for most visitors, the single image they remember Kashmir by.