I plan to take time off work/study before my Maters and what better way to spend this time (and keep my folks happy) than visit Pakistan. They’ve been at my back for ages but i never seem to get the time.
Well neways I’m hoping to go down this autumn - spend about 5/6 months down there. No doubt most of my time will be spent in and around my parents Village in Rawal Pindi but I was hoping to catch up and visit the rest of Pakistan.
As this is gonna be my first ever visit I know nothing about anything. Please note down any ‘must-go’ places.
Ur help will be much appreciated
Sobi.
PS. Any ideas on how I can successfully fight off any prospective proposals whilst down there - cuz that’s what I’m dreading most
And what may I ask, has Confused got to do with any of this ??? Will u please stop trying to match make us … I’ve already proposed to him 3 times and he turned me down every single time
Sadi Sobi. You will have a marvelous time. Gujar Khan is a neat little place. In terms of seeing places, how long will you be staying there? If you have like 2 months, you can see most of the country. PIA does some packages (reasonably priced) you should look into that. Rail is another fun way to experience Pakistan. If you want to truly enjoy the local customs and culture, travel 2nd class (3rd class was abolished in the Railway some 15 years ago). Don’t be shy to engage yourself in conversations – you will always meet people who will be interested in talking with you. Show a little generational sensitivity; i.e., when talking to elders, always refer to them as MaaN Ji, or Bazugo, and always initiate conversations with asking "“where are you from?” it is a good starter and when people find out that you are interested in them, they open up like a book. Ask them about life in their village/city, local crafts, local famous people, etc. People will even talk about their family problems with you if you are willing to listen.
I will suggest that you should for sure see Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar, Quetta, and depending on for how long you are there for, you may want to see the archaeological sites and also visit the mountainous region of the country.
Best of luck.
I have no pointers about fighting off prospective proposals other than that you should dress provocatively. Show a little cleavage and no one will come near you.
You will be there in perfact time for the north kaghan naran swat wagera are a 15 day trip. http://www.tourism.gov.pk/ is the PTDC site… their services are very good… atlease they used to be. If you are into trekking and hiking go to chitral and gilgit. The flights to gilgit is the most… ‘interesting’ I have ever flown (quite a few times). for the north two books by isabelle and ben shaw , trekking in pk and Pakistan, are the best refference (those guys spent 15 years trekking in pakistan)…
offcourse do try to attend some shadis and mangnis wagera (yur own will do too
NYAhmadie, thanx 4 the advice bro. I know that I sometimes act quite rude/disrespectful etc etc etc but I’m really not that bad in real life and I do know how to respect my elders - but I can see where you’re coming from.
I’d love to see what the REAL Pakistan is about. I don’t want to be spoon fed and taken to all these posh nosh hotels and would rather visit the villages but knowing my parents they’d never allow me to go into the slums.
I also want to meet REAL people. People with traditional values who have not suffered from outside influences, but I think my lack of language skills might act as a barrier. I can just about manage Patwari with my family and friends, never mind Urdu with outsiders Sighz
The PIA deal sounds good, gonna look into that one.
Thanx 4 the advice on how to fight off any prospective rishtai but somehow I have yet to come across any vulgar looking Salwar Kameez
Thanx 4 the advise who-me, but this trip sounds slightly gorra-style. I want to do it all desi style. Forget the hiking and the partying, i want to milk cows and learn how to cook roti on the tandoor. Plus I got 6 months, sO I’d get bored if i finished my travelling in 15 days !!!
If i do decide to get married, You’ll be the first to know
… and people are very nice… I dont see any reason why your parents shouldnt allow you.
you might not be used to some things that ppl do there… like every aunty is require by law to pat yur head and ruin the hair do… but thats the way its done. Dont mind those things.
If you have relatives in small cities…well then you’ll see a lot of real pakistan. I always say that over the years I have changed SO much in everything… but when ever I visit my khala everything is same as it was 10 years ago ( hayee wo bachpan ke din
Oh wow Sadi Sobi, I'm planning to do the same thing. I wanna study there for a year or so before post-grad and just live there coz I've never 'lived' there iether. But the difference is that my parents think its a waste of time and don't see any point in my going. According to my dad, I'll be crying to come back within a month! But I'm willing to try it out for myself!
Dont forget to visit Nathia Gali. take a road trip Friom Abotabad upto Murree (Nathia Gali comes in the way). All the way is worth watching especially areas around Nathia Gali and Donga Gali. These areas are better then even Naran and Kaghan.
Visit Paye (Its near Shogran) in the evening. For this u can take a stay in Shogran and manage to go paye in the evening. The best place for a beutifull evening.
Same is with Jheel Saiful Malook. And if u some how manage to see Jheel in "Chandani Raat", i am sure u will not be able to hold that beuty. Chandani Raat main beuty of Jheel Saif can not be described in words. In day time its normal.
Why Me, Sorry didn’t mean to offend by calling some of the Villages slums. I’m from a village myself so i was just being hypocritical. Anyway, parents are cool about me visiting villages where i have relatives - but they wouldn’t let me visit the real slums and i desperately want to see these. & Whats wrong with wearing Salwar Kameez, i wear them all the time at home
Cato - This year is gonna be like the last break i’ll ever get so i wanted to make it worth while. This way, i can come home as soon as i get homesick wheeras if i went there to study i wouldn’t be able to up and leave
Plan a road trip from Islamabad to Abbotabad
start at around 4 5 in the evening
by the time you reach the outskirts of Abbotabad it will be around 7 8 at night
and the view is breath taking
All the houses on the mountains will have their lights on and it will seem like the mountains have come alive with a thousand candles burning all over em
and unless you are heavy into travelling, sight seeing and have a good partner with... I dont think yur parents will allow it.
I can just imagine starting from KHI and going to Queta and from Queta to ISB on train... Stopping on all major stations for a couple of days for sight seeing.......
BOY that'll be fun.
A thing about pakistan is that where ever you go, be it lahore khi or other big cities or not so big cities like rahim yar khan or bahawal pur..... you always have historic places to visit and ppl to tell stories about them......... or maybe thats true for everywhere.......
But going around in train is highly recommended.......
…erm if you want to experience “real” Pakistan make sure you go to a few darbars [shrines] of Sufi saints as well. KhaRee Sharif near Mirpur is always an excellent place to go (its quite near Mangla Dam so you can kill 2 birds with one stone
Personally I aint seen too much either…I might try to go later this year too on a package holiday or something–i want to see the northern areas of natural beauty
Na seriously, I’m begging my parents to let me go travelling by myself but they’re not allowing it so i’m either gonna be stuck in boring old Gujar Khan for three months, or i’m gonna be travelling around with a load of security guards (relatives). Either way, i think i’m gonna die of boredom