SRINAGAR: A shikara ride on the Dal Lake, snow painting the hills a picture postcard white and a “snow bath” while enjoying a bonfire. UAE-based social media influencer Kahlid Al Ameri admits that he has been bowled over by the snowy paradise that is Kashmir.

The 42-year-old Stanford graduate, who boasts of nearly 18 million followers across social media platforms, says that he travelled around four hours from Dubai and is mesmerised by the serene views of the Valley draped in snow.

Many parts of Kashmir, especially the tourist hotspots of Gulmarg and Pahalgam, have been blanketed by snow at the fag-end of ‘Chilla-i-Kalan’, a 40-day period of extreme cold during which night temperatures often drop several degrees below the freezing point, and the chances of snowfall are the highest.