Destination: Pakistan

The Heritage of Pakistan

Mon, 12 Nov 2012 | By aaftab | Views [588]

Rohtas Fort  is a garrison fort built by king Farid Khan. This fort is about 4 km in circumference and the first example of the successful amalgamation of Pashtun and Hindu architecture in the Indian Subcontinent. Qila Rohtas is ... Read more >

Tags: fort, heritage, pakistan, rohtas

37 - The Pakistan-India border "performance"!

Sun, 7 Oct 2012 | By piglet | Views [1029]

Wagha is currently the only road crossing from Pakistan into India.  It is well-known for its daily flag-lowering ceremony and parade which takes place in the late afternoon on both the Pakistan and Indian sides of the border.... Read more >

36 - Lahore - faded glory

Sun, 7 Oct 2012 | By piglet | Views [908]

Aside from the Karakoram Highway, Lahore was another big reason for visiting Pakistan.  It has a reputation for a confluence of Mughal architecture, British history and Islamic tradition and I was very much looking forward to it.  Driving into ... Read more >

35 - Living together peacefully - ruminations in Taxila

Fri, 5 Oct 2012 | By piglet | Views [970]

I wonder when human beings lost the ability to live together peacefully and tolerate each other's different beliefs.  When did we all start getting so dogmatic especially about religion?  I visited the Taxila ruins today at the outskirts of ... Read more >

34 - Abbottabad - yep that place

Thu, 4 Oct 2012 | By piglet | Views [903]

Never did I think that I would have the chance to visit Abbottabad.  Yep, that's the place where OBL apparently hid for years and was finally (apparently) killed by covert US action.  Abbottabad lies directly on the highway to Islamabad ... Read more >

33 - In the middle of nowhere

Thu, 4 Oct 2012 | By piglet | Views [900]

Day 7 in Pakistan - we need to go from Gilgit to Islamabad and it was 13 interminable hours on the road starting at 7:30am.  In the morning, we pass by the spot where the Gilgit and Indus Rivers merge and where the Himalayas, Hindu Kush and ... Read more >

32 - Headscarf on!

Tue, 2 Oct 2012 | By piglet | Views [829]

Drove southwards from Karimabad for around three hours today and now at the historically significant town of Gilgit.  It is a "town" indeed and we're no longer in a picturesque rural mountain village.  Gilgit has many small shops and markets ... Read more >

31 - A little hidden gem - Ganish

Sun, 30 Sep 2012 | By piglet | Views [1537]

Because of the change in itinerary (riots and landslides ahead), we stayed an extra day in the Hunza Valley today which turned out to be an unexpected boon.  The Ganish settlement near Karimibad is definitely a must-see in this part ... Read more >

30 - At the Eagle's Nest

Sat, 29 Sep 2012 | By piglet | Views [1822] | Comments [1]

Just so as to prove that I am really in Pakistan and that there are in fact both sectarian and anti-American troubles here as well as natural disasters, the forward itinerary is now up in the air.  First - the good news: ... Read more >

29 - Hunza Valley cuisine

Fri, 28 Sep 2012 | By piglet | Views [1048]

Pakistan does not immediately strike one as a foodie country, but nonetheless, there has been a couple of interesting finds.  The typical cuisine of the Hunza Valley (north/central part of Pakistan along the Hunza River) comprises largely soup, ... Read more >

28 - How do you know when you've reached Pakistan?

Fri, 28 Sep 2012 | By piglet | Views [839]

Simple - the road stops but the smiles begin!  But more about this shortly. On 26 September, 2012, I finally fulfulled a longheld dream to cross the border from China into Pakistan via the Karakoram Highway (fondly known by the locals as the ... Read more >

Photos: Nanga Parbat Base Camp

Mon, 30 Jul 2012 | By journeythroughtheism | Photo Gallery

Photos: My photography

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 | By rabeeyajamil | Photo Gallery

Photos: Kunjerab Pass to the Hunza Valley

Sun, 27 Nov 2011 | By hintonnn | Photo Gallery

Photos: My Photo scholarship 2011 entry

Tue, 8 Nov 2011 | By marium | Photo Gallery | Scholarship Entry