Mountains reflecting off the serene Dal Lake in Srinagar, Kashmir, appear to engulf two fishermen. Srinagar is said to have been founded by the Buddhist Emperor Ashoka during the third century B.C. Water is Srinagar's signature—Dal Lake, the Jhelum River, and a looping canal that joins the two effectively make an island of the city's busiest section.
(Text adapted from and photograph shot on assignment for, but not published in, "Kashmir: Trapped in Conflict," September 1999, National Geographic magazine)