Just read Bhayee JohnD’s post on Karachi, well Kinda wonderig if there are any ISlamabadis and Pindilites or Pindians or we may also say Paindoos around here. Well I am one and proud to be one. I am from Satellite Town and went to BEacon house Margallah all my life. Anyone else around here from the twin Cities?
Dear AliBeta,
Yes Islamabad and Pindi are nice places, Pindi more so than Islamabad. Islamabad is kind of a little out of place in a setting that surrounds it. It is too modern, and if you go from Pindi to Islamabad, you feel like you are in a totally different country. Other than that, it is a nice place to live. Although it is small and does not offer the range of activities that Karachi or Lahore do, but it still is a nice place. I have had the opportunity to visit there many times.
Pindi is more interesting and more belonging to the setting. Its neighborhood and its people are more genuine (Islamabad attracts a lot of High Level “Crooks”) and more caring. I have visited Lal Kurti, Sadar, Chaklala, and many neighborhood along Muree Road. I think Dhok Khaba, something Singh? and the neighborhood where they have “BaRa Bazar” are very nice. The movie theatres on Muree Road are also nice and I love “Shakar Cola”, and also “Balti Gosht”.
I had a friend in Satellite Town, he was a manager of some car showroom. I have visited him in Satellite town.
Yes, Pindi is nice, and so is Islamabad.
yeah..azeem say azeem tarr in high level corruption :)
some american diplomat once commented about Islamabad that Islamabad is twice as big as Arlington and twice as dead too!! :)
Dear NYA,
Well to some extent you are right that there is not much in Islamabad. But yaar home is home. And plus after living for two year in the middle of no where Islamabad is like NYC to me. Plus yaar it is not that bad, I mean only an hour away we have murree. An hour away we have places like Taxila, wah. Abottabad is near by. In short everything is close, unlike Karachi, where you are kidnda stuck, no offense to Karachilites, I mean I am to some extent a Karachlite too but Islamabad is alot better place to live in. Everything is systemetic, the law and order situation is in hands. I mean forgot sake atleast we have electricity over there! Last time I was in Karachi there was no electricity for like 3 days in the month of June!
And by the way the singh place you were talking about Mukha Singh State.
Mr. Farudia,
Well Pakistan kaa kloyee bhee kona aisa nahi hay jahan corruption nahi hay. I am sure the politicians in others parts are as we may call "seedhay"
And KK bhayee,
Us American diplomat ko mere pass bhejna, I will show him the live parts in Islamabad. Plus what is the definition of a live City to Americans? Alcohol, And where there are nice clubs? Well if this is so, I'd rather live in a dead city.
[This message has been edited by AliBeta (edited February 03, 2000).]
[This message has been edited by AliBeta (edited February 03, 2000).]
[This message has been edited by AliBeta (edited February 03, 2000).]
Ali beta.. Islamabad is probably one of the best cities in pak after maybe lahore and Swat. hmm have'nt been there for 4 yrs.. When i was little we use to go there every yr. I remember going for hikes near ayub park, very relaxing reminded me of home. Unfortunately since i am a dork i have never been to karachi.. InshaAllah this summer i wanna go check that place out :)
Calling or naming something azeem does NOT make it azeeem...it has to be azeem if a bomb is drobed on karachi it will hurt pakistan/pakistani people and if bomb is droped on islamabad it will hurt pakistan/pakistani people...i mean think before you act...if you compare the 2 cities you will come up with same kinda problems and problem that you would with another big cities in the world or in pakistan...i am not from any of those cities karachi or islamabad...but i think all cities are BEST in thire own way and NOT one of them is better than the other...off course we call them our homes but its as same as other cities which OTHER people call home as well...YOU GET MY POINT? yyou better... no offence off course ;)
Jaawan
Till next time**Keep_It_Simple_Stupid**©
Well Swat is great! I love going to Kalaam during the summers. I love Miyan dam. But the only problem is bad road around there.
JAwaan bhayee!
no need to be sentimental yaar! I think you didnt read the post properly, I just wanted to how many people are out there from Islamabad. I have love every single corner of Pakistan. I was trying to just relate to the other post and saying lets see what do people know about Pakistan.
And being honest I didnt get that bomb dropping thing, itna maslaa bananay ki zaroorat nahi its just an informative post and thats pretty much it.
Ali
Islamabad is no doubt one of Pakistan’s most beautiful cities and like Lahore it has a lot to offer (well not as much as Lahore :)), from modern areas, clean ’interesting’ roads, shopping centers etc. to the qadeem bazars overfilled with Ppl and cute Afghan/Pathan kids selling handicrafts and other interesting stuff. I saw the weirdest beggars their too. Islamabad is also the main gate to world’s most beautiful valleys, never seen any of them, except on TV. With Shaker paRiyaaN, Damne Koh, world largest mosque and God knows what else it sure is a beautiful and interesting city.
Pakistan is a beautiful country :)
Hmmm...Islamabad. I remember at the time of the explosion (ammunition dump) in some part of Islamabad it was shown on the tv news in UK. A gora friend at the time commented "why the hell do Pakistanis come over here? That place lookes fantastic!".
Islamabad is indeed a beautiful city, although I have only been through it fleetingly. It is slightly artificial though. It's almost as if it has been created especially to be a showpiece. But at the end of the day you can't knock a place for being clean, modern and attractive.
I still prefer Rawalpindi though. Mainly because I've got relatives there and I like the hustle and bustle of some of these older places which have got some history about them. I like the mixture of different communities, some rich, some poor...a bit of everything which you also find in Lahore.
All in all though it is a great area in general. I agree with Alibeta that it is ideally situated...close to so many great areas like Murree and Taxila etc. Great climate too...cool and refreshing compared to some of the really hot places. Great views...it's on quite high ground. I think if you take both Rawalpind and Islamabad as complimentary to each other - as many people there do - they make a great combo. I know that my family that live there look on Islamabad as being almost an extension of Rawalpindi.
yar AliBeta bhai....i think, I'd take the side of that amerikan gora....Islamabad is really an artificial city with an artificial lifestyle....its a great place to visit just for a short while, but living there....humm....it can be a very severe punishment!!
Jameel Ud din A'li said that in Islamabad, when people meet, instead of salam dua, first they ask each other is about their current grade!!
If u r a diplomat kinda guy, or a hot shot grade 21 federal secretary........thats the definite place to live! :)
Beta Ji, I am not starting a debate or anything but I have spent some time in Pindi/Islamabad and Lahore. I can't imagine how you guys can compare Karachi with Islamabad. It's like comparing NYC with Rochester NY(I am sure NYA knows what I am talking about). Rochester is just like Islamabad except it gets 110" snow every year.
Let me get back to orignal topic, I am not degrading Islamabad or Lahore but The biggest different I saw between Karachi and other cities is that other cities go to sleep after 8-9 PM but Karachi stays up whole night. Still in todays conditions Karachi is more lively than any other city of Pakistan. I remember when I was In karachi in 1995, somebody murdered 3 MQM guys on street next to my street and MQM had bid funeral for them, but after the funeral next night the same street had a big wedding cermony and had a music party on till 2-3 am. But compare to that, when I was in Pindi in 1983-84, I decided to go out for a walk on Murree Road. It was close to 8pm and believe me Murree Road was empty. I asked somebody if there is something wrong and I was told that it was because of the terror of Hammer Group. I don't know if you remember or not That terror started in that time and because of that nobody was coming on the street after 8-9pm.
Even my rooms mates who were from Jehlum were agreed with me that the name came from PIND and Pindi is actually a BIG PIND not a city.
Again, whatever I saw is my observation, may be I am wrong. I am sure every city of Pakistan has it's own speciality and it is imposible to compare them but I still think
Karachi Karachi Aey!!!!!
[This message has been edited by johnd (edited February 04, 2000).]
I think each city in Pakistan (or any place else) is unique (except of course the best being NYC). But lets talk about Pindi and Islamabad. I agree with most here that Islamabad definitely does not have a cultural feel as Pindi does. There are lots of nice things about Pindi. One of my favorite places in Pindi is the Flashman’s Hotel (not because I used to get my holy water from there) but because it is a landmark and the service there is exceptional. Holiday Inn or other Hotels in Islamabad can only dream of providing such a service. The neighborhoods in Pindi have a very genuine feel about them. I remember taking the Wagon from Shangrilla Hotel to Lahore and how friendly the shopkeepers are around that area. A true Pindi Phapa will always be friendly, sincere, helpful, and accommodating (of course with a few nuts here and there, which is universal). In addition to everything else, I like the Boulee (Zaban, or Dialect) that they speak in Pindi:
“O Mangee Pinjee Khaey Chatday Aan, Khair kisi de maNay Na. O Khair bhi nee daynee tay ….”
I will appreciate if someone can speak a little Pindi di Zaban here. I think it is very charming.
My first experience with Pindi Language was funny too. I was trying to get on to a VAN thru rear door (Yeah I am shy, I never tried to get on the bus thru ladies section), the conductor told me
BAO JE AGLI BARI TUN CHARR SUN
I looked at his face thinking that how could I get into the van thru WINDOW. But latter with Experience I found out that BARI means door in Big PIND.
Dear KK bhayee,
well jitna bhee attack karr lo mere pyaaray shehron ko I am going to defend them, I mean everybody not living in Islamabad has this stereotypical image that Islamabadis are all Bureaucrats. Well that is not true at all. Perhaps we could say that the people in Islamabad are wealthy, actually this is a afact that the per capita income estimated in different cities in East Asian region and Islamabad had the highest per capita income which was appximately like 7500 dollars which was unbelievably more than cities like Karachi and Bombay. It is also the safest and the best place to live in Asia after Honk Kong, this survey was conducted by time magazine.
So JJ saheb haivng the Secretariat, the senate and the National assembly plus the other governmental intitutions does not mean that all people over there are fake. Perhaps a specific area of Islamabad that is the diplomatic enclave or the Awan e Saddar.
JohnD saheb!
Yaar who is comparing Islamabad with Karachi, yaar I was born in Karachi and spent half of my life there. Well if you put it in that way if Karachi is like NYC I would rather say that Islamabad is like Washington DC not Rochester, ROchester you can is pind Dadun khan or something.
Haha! You say that Islamabadis go to sleep early, well isnt that a good habbit because we wake up for tahajut and Fajar! Just kidding, well JohnD saheb lemme tell you that there are plently of places open in both Pindi and Islamabad all night long, you just have to know the place.
If you are talking about us Islamabadis being scared well perhaps the incidence of Ojri camp will make you change your mind, on April 10 it is going to be 12 years janaab when the whole city of Pindi and Islamabad was under shelling used in intense war. I am sure such an incidence never happened in Karachi or according to my knowledge in the world. I still rememeber that April morning I was in fourth class and there was a very loud blast and then panic every where. Toba Astaghfaar aisaa time Allah kisi bhee sheher parr naa laye.
Dear NYA saheb,
Yaar you are absolutely right. Janaab there is no place like NYC, aik say aik aap ko fankaar milta hay. I just love the city and when I go for a visit I usually stay in Long Island lekin sara din different places like Manhattan, bronx, brooklyn even harlem ghoomta rehta hoon, lekin yaar phir bhee apna dil to Pakistani hay and I would rather be at Laxmi chowk in lahore having balti gosht. Us watan ki mitti ki khushboo he alag hay, jitnaa bhee Amreeka ethnic hay, Pakistan apna watan hay and jaana akhir us he mitti main hay.
As far as ISlamabad not having a rich culture is concrned, yaar you guys tell me yourself kitna arsa hua hay Islamabad banay as compared to Karachi and Lahore.
And as far as people of Pindi are concrened haha! they are the most "laraka" I have ever seen, zara zara see even like traffic ki ghalti parr larayee ho jaati hay and marnay maarnay ko tayaar ho jaatay hain. I always used to carry a baseball bat in trunk, koyee patah nahi kahan jang shuru ho jaye. And as far as the boli in pindi is concerned it is beautiful. I dont speak punjabi very well, but my when I do people make fun of me because of the jaasaan and khaansaan.
haha! there is a joke that a Raja jee from muree is going outside and his wife asks:-
RAJA JEE! KIDAR JULAAY HO?
(Raja jee where are you heading too?)
AYE MALOO UTAY JAA KAY SIRGUT LAASAAN
(I am just gonna go to the mall (muree) and have a smoke)
it is really rough to speak but very beautiful...
Well speaking of different places of Islamabad, I just wanted to ask has anyone been to Papasallis? I have been all around the world lekin there is no pizza around the world like Papasallis's! Many people will agree with me.. Has anyone been there?
take care
AliBeta
[This message has been edited by AliBeta (edited February 04, 2000).]
Oh yeah maybe i did not....im not sorry for it hahahah anywaysss no city in pakistan is better than the other all are equal and BEST at thire own place...if i call Jhelum a jaanaaat it would not make it one you know? yeah thats my point
Jaawan
Till next time**Keep_It_Simple_Stupid**©
I grew up in Taxila and attended Presentation Convent in Hassanabadal. Good old days.. ahh.
Loved bikin' on dirt tracks through corn fields around Taxila.
We'ld always venture out on unknown trails and try to get lost, but somehow manage to make it back before Maghrib.
On every weekend in summer , my dad used to take us rowing at Khanpur dam. Got my first swimming lesson in the terqouise waters of Khanpur lake.
Gilgit and Khunjarab aren't distant places when one lives right on'Shahreh-e-Karakoram'(Silk Route).
Several trips to Karakorams set-in ,desire to climb, and lust of adventure.
Now, I am sittin' here in Vancouver and goin' through all these memorable years. Upon completion of my flight training , I'ld most likely end up in Yukon territories near Arctic circle , as a rookie-pilot. What a marvelous journey it has been :)
Taxila, however , will always be emebedded in my heart . Its gentle spring breeze and citric aroma has made me who I am today.
[This message has been edited by outlaw (edited February 06, 2000).]
[This message has been edited by outlaw (edited February 06, 2000).]
Salaam Outlaw!
So are you Texalian. I really like taxilla yaar. We used to go there often. I really liked Wah. I mean that city is like small Islamabad. Nice and clean. A really good friend of mine used to live on Jehlum road.
Yaar trvalling on the silk route isnt it the most awesome experience in the world. I have been to every single place there is to visit. Swat, Kaghaan valley, Skardu and I have been till Khunjrab pass. I have always wanted to go to China through that route. Perhaps Insha Allah later in the life. You wont believe this but I travelled till Khunjrab on a roof a van. It was dangerous now that I think of it, but a very exciting experience. From the last Pakistan post ( I dont recall the name, it was like USHU) till Khunjrab I was sleeping on the top, haha! I still remember when we reached there a cousin of mine woke me up saying uth yaar Ali, pahaar aa gaye! We had also ran into some chinese slodiers who were really nice and haha! even gave a bottle of some Chinese Alcohol to one of my uncle as this was he first question my uncle asked.
And My God! Naraan! The most beautiful place in the world I have ever visited. Jheel Saif ul Mulook is a wonder itself. I just wish the PTDC did something to promote these areas. Build roads and I swear we would have more tourism than India.
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