Each weekday morning, as mist lifts off Dal Lake, a quiet movement begins. Wooden boats set out from houseboats and island homes carrying children dressed in school uniforms, their backpacks tucked between oars and lunch pails. Some row themselves, others are ferried by family. In this part of Kashmir, the school day begins not with a bell, but with the rhythm of water and paddles. Their destination: Kashmir’s floating schools — classrooms anchored on the lake in this Himalayan region of the Indian subcontinent that has been claimed by both India and Pakistan, and scarred by decades of conflict. What started as a modest local effort is now inspiring more lakes and more lives, offering a hopeful lesson for other places where education is hard to reach. The post The Whimsical Floating Schools of Kashmir appeared first on Reasons to be Cheerful.