Kashmir Valley
It was called Kaspeiria by the ancient Greeks. In classical literature Herodotus calls it Kaspatyrol. Xuanzang, the Chinese monk who visited Kashmir in 631 AD called it Kia-shi-mi-lo.  Tibetans called it Khachal, meaning "snowy mountain".  It is and has been a land of rivers, lakes and wildflowers. The Jhelum River runs the entire length of the valley. The valley is isolated by snow-capped mountains on all sides. Lakes such as Dal Lake and nearby Nagin Lake have hundreds of houseboats. This is from the British Raj era when foreigners were not allowed to buy land here. So they constructed large wooden houseboats to spend the summers in. This, in turn, has led to houseboat hotels. Many are decorated with wood carvings and Victorian era  furniture.