A brief cherry saga

On our way to Kargil, we came across multiple Kashmiri sellers selling small and vibrantly red, cherries. It piqued my interest- I love cherries! The good kind is sweet and savoury, it makes you relish every bite, yet you finish it all in no time. My dad asked the sellers for the price, and they were selling an entire box of it for no less than 300. That definitely raised my eyebrow, but it makes sense since people get cherries from Kashmir, only to sell it at higher prices in other fruit markets in Delhi. Yet, there is an unwritten rule while shopping from a new place- you never buy something the moment you see it. Perhaps, you'll come across it multiple times during your visit, and perhaps, you'll come across the sellers decreasing the price multiple times during your visit. Hence, I remained patient, and got some shut eye.

In Kargil and the other places we visited afterwards, there was no trace of Kashmiri sellers selling cherries at the roadside. This, naturally, made me quite upset, as the theory had not quite worked. Yet, the majestic landscapes more than made up for it.

During our visit to Turtuk, India's last village, was when I started wanting to have cherries again. For those who aren't aware, Turtuk is a village which is primarily inhabited by Muslims, is the last northernmost village in India. It was recaptured from Pakistan in 1971 by the wonderful dexterity of the Indian Army. 

Unripe cherries growing on a roadside cherry tree

The main tourist spots are the Balti palace and museum. Due to us having time constraints, we were only able to explore the narrow alleyways where lavender grows in abundance, and the local dry fruit shops selling organic apricot juice and various kinds of apricots. There were only a handful of cafes, and all of them had a small white board just outside their vicinity, informing us of the specials that day. In one of these boards, I saw a roughly scribbled section of beverages right under Baltimese food. "Cherry juice with mint leaves" it said, right below the popular choice of Kahwa and apricot juice. I widened my eyes, as it was least likely that I got cherries here. I mean, I hadn't come across any fruit sellers selling cherries, why should I expect one here? Yet, right beside the board, was a scrawny tree growing tiny, sparkling red cherries. Going back to my theory, I would probably come across the same item better and cheaper as I go deeper into the alleys. To my surprise, I was in luck. A beautiful open restaurant welcomed us. It had private cabana-like seating arrangements, and all around it, were plants such as potato, lettuce, kale, parsley, onion, etc. A tree similar to the cherry tree was right beside our cabana. Instead of red, all the fruits were white. The staff witnessed us trying to figure out the fruit, and they interrupted our train of thought by plucking a few and offering them to us, saying "These are called white cherries, and they're ripe".

Ripe white cherries

I put one inside my mouth. I was expecting a wave of sour juice, yet it caught me off guard. It was tangy, yet it was sweeter than expected. Actually, it was sweeter than tangy; not as tangy as the red cherries, and not as sweet as the black ones- they were just right. 

The specials for that day were, among many other things, white cherry juice with walnuts. I think by now, you can guess what I ordered to drink. As I mentioned earlier, this restaurant grew their own vegetables and fruits, due to which they took a good amount of time preparing our order. After a long while of clicking pictures of their fields and walking around, my cherry juice was the first one to arrive. A tall, cool glass with a steel spoon contained white cherry juice and on top of it, floating walnuts. This may seem erratic, but the taste of walnuts compliments the taste of cherries. My mom later mentioned that someone pitted these cherries by hand. I peered into the tall glass and stirred it, only to see fresh pieces of cherry pulp were floating among the juice and walnuts. I was quite shocked, as not only was this done by hand, but also maintained the best quality when it comes to the kind of white cherries and walnuts used, along with the preparation method. 

White cherry juice with walnuts

Looking back, I am beyond overjoyed to have proscribed myself of giving into tourist traps and buying cherries, just so I can get to enjoy the savoury flavour of white cherries in a small, hidden restaurant in Turtuk. 

A few days later, after returning to Delhi, my dad came home one day to present me a box full of big, black cherries. "The seller says that they are from Kashmir," says my dad. I grin ear to ear, as after all, I did get my fill of sweet cherries from Kashmir.