Diary of a Vagabond

Hope is that thing with feathers that perches in the soul and sings the tune without the words and never stops... at all. ~Emily Dickinson

2010-08-26T12:21:00.001+05:00

Hope is that thing with feathers that perches in the soul and sings the tune without the words and never stops... at all. ~Emily Dickinson, originally uploaded by Misha Tanveer.

my son...

Fairy Meadows!

2010-01-07T12:11:00.007+05:00

Dream comes true

“Fairy Meadows”! a valley out of this world where crystal clear streams of waters flows by, where the unseen flowers are spread on the virgin grass lands, and the snow covered mountains stand all around it so as to shield it from outside world. Beautiful fairies are the inhabitants of this valley that are waiting for a charming prince who can bear all the pains of travel but has a desire to elope with them. That is what I dreamt of about Fairy Meadows when I first came to know about it and since than I was dreaming about the fairies.

But this time I wasn’t alone in this dream. Around 21 people, the youngest one being just 3 years old, were making plans to make this dream come true. All these twenty one people were from my family. The idea had first been introduced by my eldest brother-in-law Anwar bhai who had been to Fairy Meadows last year. He is a traveling freak and has good management and execution skills. We had made number of trips and family picnics under his leadership, so when the idea was floated and the pictures of his last trip were shared, naturally people started making their minds to join the adventure group.

We started our planning for the trip almost six months ago, applying for leaves in offices in advance, forming committees and assigning responsibilities, booking of train compartments (from Karachi to Islamabad and back) etc. At last, the much awaited month of July had started and the journey begins. We left for Islamabad from Karachi through Burraq Express (don’t be misled by its name) and reached there after a 36 hours long but an enjoyable journey. Our coach had already been booked in advance and we directly set off for Gilgit (having a night stay in Bisham in the middle.)

Offroading Experience

Our actual journey for Fairy Meadows had started on the fifth day of the trip, when on early morning; we left Gilgit for Raikot Bridge. Raikot bridge lies in the middle of Gilgit and Chilas (110 kms from Chilas) from where the jeep trek to Fairy Meadows starts. A day earlier, we stopped at Chilas for a tea break (in Shangrila Hotel), it was too hot that we had prayed for the fine weather as we had to take 2 hours journey on jeep and than 4 hours tough hiking. So today our prayers have been answered and the weather was pleasant as there were clouds on the sky.

Raikot Bridge is a bridge on Karakoram Highway over River Indus. The valley here is extremely barren with not a single tree to be in sight. All around you are just towering mountains and large boulders. One cannot imagine that there exist lush green valleys and a thick forest of Pine trees just fifteen kilometers away. The only source of life visible here that you can see is the River Indus and the Tato nala that is coming from Raikot Glacier.

At the Raikot Bridge, three jeeps have been waiting for us as they had already been booked in advance. The good thing about the Fairy Meadows is that all the lodging, dining and transport facilities have been provided by the residents of Tato village, so a system has been developed there. You don’t need to waste hours negotiating for jeep fares or porters. Once you have planned to visit Fairy Meadows you just need to book the cottages (there are a number of cottages that are managed by different owners) in advance on phone. You need to tell him about the group and he will arrange the jeep, porters and the horses for you. The fares of the jeeps, porters and even cottages are fairly reasonable and fixed. We had booked the “Fairy Meadows Cottages” and the owner of the cottage (Mr. Qari Rehmatullah) had already sent his assistant Mr. Ahmed to welcome us at Raikot Bridge. So the whole group was distributed among three jeeps and the adventure had begun.

Raikot Bridge is at the height of about 3,900 feet above sea level. The jeep track that starts from here eventually rises and ends at Tato village which is at the height of about 7,900 feet. The jeep track has been constructed by the Tato residents, therefore only their jeeps are allowed. The Pakistani government hasn’t reached here yet, therefore the Pakistani law doesn’t exist. The private sector is the only one managing all the tourism affairs in this part of land and they are doing it quiet well.

I sat at the rightmost corner of the jeep in a position that if you take your head out you will feel that you are flying. Luckily, to my right is the mountain wall and ditch was at the left where my nephew (Musab) was sitting and he had been reciting Surah Yaseen continuously. All of his dirty toilet humor which he had been making for last four days of the trip had literally disappeared and he had been trying reciting all the prayers that he could remember. The jeep track is at a good height and there would be no chance of survival if your jeep went down into the ditch.

The wide valley at the Raikot bridge had now been sandwiched among huge mountains and still there was no sign of Nanga Parbat or Fairy Meadows. Tato River was not visible at this height but its noise was coming, proving its existence.

As we moved ahead, signs of vegetation seemed to appear as few Juniper and Pine trees came across the track. After half of our journey, the jeeps started to descend as the road has to end at Tato village. The weather was pleasant and we were enjoying the jeep ride. Tato village has now been in sight and its green fields at the lower end of the mountain gives the sigh of relief for the dull eyes.

Tato, at the height of 7,900 feet is a small village that lies at the left end of mountains. Here the Raikot River flows ferociously and its roar is quiet significant in the environment. The valley is narrow here and few wooden homes have been scattered on the mountains. The inhabitants of Tato village are Kohistani people who are upright and fierce but yet they are very hospitable as well.

Trek to Mid-way Hotel

The jeep track ended here and we were moved to a café for tea and some rest while the porters had been busy in distributing our luggage. The interesting part of this distribution is that the each bag is weighed and numbered. Than a draw is taken place among the porters and each porter picked the bag whose number matched with the chit that he picked during the draw. It could be a mere 5 kg (minimum weight limit) bag or might be 25 kg (maximum weight limit) as well.

The 6 kms hiking track starts from here and it gains the height of approximately 4,000 feet ( from 7,900 feet to approx 11,500 feet). The most important question was that who wanted to hire a horse here as once you have decided that you want to go to Fairy Meadows on foot, than you have to go there on foot no matter what. Horses cannot be hired in the middle of the track nor could they be shared. This is the general rule about the horse ride but we were lucky enough that on that day, only five horses were available although we required seven. So it was decided that horses will be shared. Five people will start their journey on horses and the rest will start hiking till the horses drop the early riders to Fairy Meadows and picked the rest.

So we all started our hiking together but soon the group was divided into sub-groups as some of us were fast movers while others took breaks more often due to low stamina. The trek is about three to four meters wide (but sometimes reduced to 2 meters approx) and it gradually gains height. We started hiking besides the Raikot River and its thunderous growl was the only symphony that we listened. As we gained height, the trees also increased in numbers. Fortunately, the weather was quiet pleasant and we were protected from the scorching rays of sun. We had to take rest after every 50 meters of hike as we were not used to of mountainous tracks. In fact most of us don’t even walk regularly therefore this hike was definitely the strong test of our fitness.

Ahmed was with us at the end of the queue and he kept pushing us forward, boosting our morale that the rest of hike is just like you are walking on Shahrah-e-Faisal but the more we move forward the more strenuous it becomes. Suddenly the clouds went dark and it started drizzling. Now we can’t wait long as we have to reach Fairy Meadows before the heavy showers as there is a high probability of mud slide. Most of the people among us wanted to enjoy the trek, the weather, and the landscape around us, by keeping our pace slow but the guide and porters were constantly urging us to move fast.

Our first destination was Mid-way hotel, a chappar hotel. It was actually a shelter, made of wood, with a wooden table and benches around it and in normal conditions you may find a cold drink stall there. At the middle of the track we had to do lunch. I had taken a light breakfast therefore I was quiet starved and I kept pushing myself thinking about the yummiest Chicken Karhai that I could have at Mid-way hotel, but when I reached there, I was shocked to see the only eatables we have there were breads, sandwich spreads and marmalades. Even the breads went short as most of us were hungry and tired, so everyone was eating more than what he usually consumes.

Luckily, the heavy rain had just started after all the family members and porters had gathered there. Just in front of the chappar hotel, mud sliding started. It was a shocking experience as you see mountain losing its surface which can bring a disaster as well. There was kind of chaos developed under the chappar, as under that shelter of about ten by ten square feet, nearly 30 people were accommodated. Thanks God that horses were enjoying the rain and they didn’t need shelter.

Trek to Fairy Meadows

After an hour or so the rain stopped but now the temperature has fallen. The journey began again as slow-walkers left early with polyethylene bags on their heads but later on, raincoats had been provided as Ahmed had brought it from Fairy Meadows. The forest just after the Midway Hotel is quite enchanting, very much romantic. Now the real adventure had started because it was land-sliding going on at different turns, the trek itself was hard here, very steep and getting more difficult due to rain.

Just when we reached the steepest part of the track we’d seen one of the beautiful sights of our trip. That was the view of gigantic Raikot Glacier and the starting point of the Raikot River with Nanga Parbat at its back, with its massive presence. Although the huge massif was covered by clouds but even than, the view was amazing. Raikot Glacier rests at the feet of Nanga Parbat like a black cobra. On both sides of the glacier are the mountains covered with thick forests. Raikot River was gushing out from the mouth of Raikot Glacier.

With each step ahead, the view becomes even more mesmerizing. Now we were in deep forest where I saw precious pine trees lying down as they had completed there natural life. The rain water now flows on the track making its way down to Raikot River. We felt that we had been time traveled some 500 years back where you didn’t see any machine or car. The only means of transport available are horses or you have to rely on your legs.

The last portion of the track was the most difficult. We had to hike on a steep cliff with sharp turns. At one point, my wife tried to sit on a horse by taking a step on the rock; the stone of it displaced and went down deep into the ditch. Fortunately, she kept her nerves normal and controlled her balance. She went ahead on a horse but she left a tricky situation for the rest of us. Now the track had been reduced to only one foot wide and we had to literally jump over the muddy portion of the track so as to avoid the risk of falling down in the ice grave.

Here I would like to mention the cooperation and hospitality of the people there. We reached there in pathetic condition and they provided as much help as they can. Most of us had shortage of clothes and accessories as we were not expecting heavy showers. But Ahmed, our guide rushed forward to Fairy Meadows to get enough rain coats for us. He took care of Hiba, my five year old niece as both of her parents were busy balancing themselves on the horses.

Ahmed told us that we are now very near to Fairy Meadows and we just need to climb the last peak but this one was the hardest to pass. We were hardly pulling our legs as we had been extremely tired by now. The track had also become narrow here and only one person can pass by at a time. Suddenly, there was a huge sound like a dynamite blast and we heard something coming down. We were still in shocking state, trying to recognize what had actually happened, when someone called a little native girl, ahead of me to rush forward. She instantly jumped over the sliding area and the very next moment, we saw a huge stone rolling down at tremendous speed. We just had a narrow escape from death.

Fairy Meadows, at last

At last, the steep climb was over and we were on the top of the plateau. But the walk was not over as we have to walk atleast a kilometer more to reach the cottage site. Now we were in a thick jungle with green grasslands everywhere around us. There were streams of clear water flowing across the jungle. The melody of flowing water created a magical symphony. We walked by the jungle, crossed the streams and at last, reached the cottage site.

Cottages are at the height of the plateau with green pastures ahead of them. Two streams cross the green pastures in zig zag fashion. Ahead of green pastures is the forest beyond which is the massif of Nanga Parbat. It is so huge and so near that you can see its ice figures from the naked eye. The whole massif of Nanga Parbat is visible from the camping site and it made a lasting impact on my mind. I could have passed a whole week doing nothing but just sitting in the balcony of my cottage and watching the glorious mountain.

This place is kept as natural as it could be with all possible facilities. There are several lodges at Fairy Meadows. Everything built are of logs (Cottages, boundaries, even trash bins etc.). Our cottages (Fairy Meadows Cottages) were right in front of the grassland and Nanga Parbat ( the view can be seen directly from the window of the lodge or you can even sit in small gallery of your log cabin and enjoy the scene). The cottages are constructed to provide best protection from chilly winds blowing from the Killer Mass. You’ll find all basic amenities; comfortable bed with quilt, toilets and bathroom with shower, warm water is available in the morning, and we were the most fortunate ones that we had found electricity there. These people are now generating their own electricity with water turbine.

The good thing that I found about the people of this area is their awareness about environment and conservation of nature. There were waste bins near cottages where all the garbage was collected. I have seen native people collecting the garbage and advising the tourists not to throw garbage at any place other than waste bins.

Trek to Bial Camp

Next day we planned to move to Bial Camp 6 kms ahead from Fairy Meadows. Bial Camp is at the edge of Raikot Glacier and it is the last green habitat beyond which is only the frozen valley of ice, glaciers and Nanga Parbat. We started our trek in the thick forest, crossing the streams, passing over the dead old trees. On our left, Raikot glacier was lying few hundred feet below. Water from the melting ice was gushing out with a thunderous noise. We kept silent for few moments watching the beautiful scene of the origination of a river.

The trek ahead was quiet narrow and only one person can walk at a time. The caravan had already been divided into sub groups as before. The weather was cloudy and there was a fair chance of rain, therefore the people who were already tired of yesterday hike and were not in any mood to walk again, started complaining but democracy prevailed in our group and we made them walked with us. The trek to Bial camp is comparatively easy than the trek to Fairy Meadows.

After an hour of walk (this is the time that we took otherwise I think an average hiker can reach this spot in half an hour) the trek opened in a wide valley with lush green grassland all around and the swift stream of water flowing nearby. The trees were at its both sides leaving a small ground for camping. Nanga Parbat was still hiding behind the clouds but even than the sight is much beautiful that we decided to have a lunch.

For lunch we had brought tin packs of qeema,achar gosht and beaf butt(which is not actually a butt but Paye). Ahmed brought wood from the jungle. He did not need to cut the wood as there was already ample wood of dead trees. The water had been taken from the nearby stream to boil the tin packs. All the elders of the group have drunk this glacial water and I must say that it was much better than the bottled waters that we are used to of.

That night, we had arranged the camp fire with roasted lamb. Ahmed and his team have collected woods from the jungle and we sat around it watching Ahmed roasting the lamb. The night was cold but the heat of the fire and the aroma of roasted lamb kept us glued to benches. It was a pitch dark with no moonlight, on our back there must be Nanga Parbat but its white icy massif was not visible. The sky was filled with countless stars as they looked quiet closed to us.

Indeed, our experience of Fairy Meadows was remarkable. It is one of the most natural, precious virgin landscapes of Earth. Its originality has still been kept intact, thanks to the native people who have a great concern regarding the protection of the environment and they have adopted the natural sources to build the tourist amenities. Its meadows are green, its forests are dense, its air is refreshing, its streams are virgin and above all the view of Nanga Parbat is unforgettable. This white castle has such a huge influence on the valley that if there would be no green meadows or forest around it, even than, the mountain itself has the power to attract the nature lovers towards it.

Fairy Meadows is an outstanding camping site for adventure seeking people and heaven for hikers. It is accessible throughout the year; however, the winter season is not recommended for occasional travelers. Tourism department must take steps to promote the beautiful destination at the international level as it has the potential to catch the attention of tourists.

Adam's Peak, The Sacred Mountain of Sri Lanka

2009-01-20T15:22:00.007+05:00

Now the island of Serendib lieth under the equinoctial line, its night and day both numbering twelve hours. It measureth eighty leagues long by a breadth of thirty and its width is bounded by a lofty mountain and a deep valley. The mountain is conspicuous from a distance of three days

and it contains many rubies and other minerals, and spice trees of all sorts. I ascended that

mountain and solaced myself with a view of its marvels which are indescribable and afterwards I returned to the King.

(Sixth Voyage of Sindbad the Sailor, from The Thousand and One Arabian Nights)

What excites a traveler to take all the pains of

travel? What makes him leave the comfort of his home and wander in the wilds? What drives his excitement to take risks of his own life? Sometimes it is only a picture that he had seen somewhere and he than dreamt of reaching that place.

Sometimes, the unfold history makes him travel thousands of miles and sometimes it is only

the danger associated with the place that challenges his adventure soul to get on another journey that could be the last one of his as well.

My journey of Adam’s peak was inspired with one of its picture that I found while googling on the

web. The picture that I saw showed the pyramid shaped peak during sunrise with the complete trek glowing with bright yellow lights that seemed to be the torches. Another reason for my journey was the historical perspective of it as this is the only mountain which is considered sacred for almost all religious communities, as they consider the imprint on the rock of the summit as the footprint of their religious figures (Muslims believe it’s of Hazrat Adam; Buddhists believe it to be of Lord

Buddha; Hindus, Lord Shiva and so on). But the fact is that this place is being visited by people from ancient times. Nowadays, the peak season or the pilgrimage season is from December till

April.

It was an unexpected trip arranged in no time and

till the last moment I was not sure of climbing it that night. We left Colombo in the morning, lodged in Maskeliya; a small town near Hatton which is the base camp of Adam’s peak. The normal practice is to hike after midnight (around 2am), to reach the top at sunrise (timings throughout the year are

between 6:15am to 6:45am). So we decided to follow the same. We left the hotel around 1:00 AM and reached the starting point in 10 minutes. There was a life out there as it was a full moon night being considered sacred among Buddhists, and also, the next day was the holiday.

We started hiking around 1:45am. The trek had started with relatively small steps passing through short cliffs facilitated with electricity throughout the trek. There were different food stalls, proper washrooms built after certain distances, shaded areas with benches so that people may rest on their ways to summit (people were even sleeping there as well); even rooms were available and a massage centre where you can get foot massage especially after a hectic hike; spring water pipelined so to get you refreshed; somewhere bathing areas were present as well.

It is taboo to talk about how long it takes to climb to the top. When pilgrims meet, they always exchange greetings "karunawai" - "peace". Some groups of pilgrims reduce the monotony of the climb by singing folk songs. Every pilgrim is expected to toll the huge bell at the summit - once for each time they visited. As the deep and solemn peals resonate, the pilgrims become ecstatic.

The trek that was relatively easy at the start, after an hour or so, becomes almost steep. You raise

your head and you will find unending series of stairs going straight into the heavens. Climbing up is not an easy task. It gets truly painful to climb nearly 4800 uneven and totally steep stairs. Our legs are still paining after 3 days.

As it was full moon night (that day being the Poya day), so there was more public. We had seen people with ages ranging from 1 month babies to 80 year olds; some climbed bare-footed just to please their lords. It was not that much cold although the summit is at the height of 7359 feet (2,243

meters). The beauty of the clouds with the moonlight was breath taking. At one point, I thought of walking over the clouds, the stunning sea of clouds was all around me and it was glowing with the moonlit.

The last portion of the trek is really leg and nerve-breaking. We saw people resting at every step. Even our own condition wasn’t good. We have been climbing for the last four hours and at one point, we thought that we could not make it before sunrise as we could see the brightness towards the east.

At last we reached there just before sunrise. There is a Buddhist temple at the summit that has the imprint and where all the Buddhist rituals are performed every morning. The summit was totally covered with the crowd but somehow we got the chance to watch the beautiful sunrise from the

edge of the distant cliff. This was even more stunning that the sun was rising from the east, and the moon was setting in west, the half light n dark combination was superb.

One more unique thing about Adam’s peak is that its shadow is a perfect triangle when the sun rises and it remains in the air for sometime. This is something really amazing to watch as none of the mountain has such a perfect triangular shape. The sides of the triangle are well in-line, just like the walls of a prism. A number of people associate this thing with its sanctity.

Unfortunately, the imprint itself was covered with a cloth. So we just saw the depression from the cloth. But we got this opportunity to enter the small temple when their rituals were just started. The offerings were being made to Lord Buddha statue in the presence of a monk and a couple of other people and only we were allowed to get in, being privileged to be a foreigner. We didn’t stay there much as there was a long way down so we started walking again.

Descending was even trickier, we had to exert too much force against gravity. It seemed like our knees and ankles will cramp. In the middle, we had a kind of naans or paratha (whatever your assume it, Sri Lankans call it Paratha anyways) and tea.

Despite of all the hardships it was a great trip. Some lucky people in the world get the chance of sighting the wonderful views from the creation of our Lord Subhanahu wa Taa’ala, and we consider ourselves among those. It is advised to those who are visiting Sri Lanka to go to Adam’s Peak. It’s a once in a life time experience. Certainly!!!!

In the end, I would like to quote the words of Ibn-e-Batuta when he made a visit to this legendry mountain in 14^th century.

"We saw it from the sea when we were nine day's journey away, & when we climbed it we saw the clouds below us, shutting out our view of base. On it there are many evergreen trees & flowers of various colours, including a red rose as big as the palm of a hand. There are two tracks on the mountain leading to the Foot, one called the Baba track & the other the Mama track, meaning Adam & Eve. The Mama track is easy & is the route by which the pilgrims return, but anyone who goes by that way is not considered to have made the pilgrimage at all. The Baba track is difficult & stiff climbing. Former generations cut a sort of stairway on the mountain, & are fixed iron stanchions on it, to which they attached chains for climbers to hold on by. There are ten such chains, & the tenth is the "Chain of the Profession of Faith", so called because when one reaches it & looks down to the foot of the hill, he is seized by apprehensions & recites the profession of faith for fear of falling. From the tenth chain to the cave of al-Khidr is seven miles; this cave lies in a spacious place, where there is a spring which is also called by his name; it is full of fish, but no one catches them. Close to this there are two tanks cut in the rock on either side of the path. At the cave of al-Khidr the pilgrims leave their belongings & ascend for two miles to the summit of the mountain where the Foot is. The blessed Footprint, the Foot of our father Adam is on a lofty black rock in a wide plateau. The blessed Foot sank into the rock far enough to leave its impression hollowed out. It is eleven spans long. In the rock where the Foot is. there are nine holes cut out, in which the infidel pilgrims place offerings of gold, rubies & pearls..."
Ibn Battutah

Palestine Massacre and Muslim Leaders!

2009-01-05T16:21:00.000+05:00

As the Israel’s aggression in the heart of Gaza continues, as the sorrows and the sufferings of millions of Palestinians increases, the feelings of pain, grief, disgrace and anger increase in my heart with every passing moment. Muslims were never been disgraced like that in their history. They had never been that much power-less as they are now. They have never been un-united before as they are now.

I am not furious at all about what Israel is doing, because it is in their instinct that wherever they went, they brought destruction and mischief with them. It is always expected from Israel to kill hundreds of people just on the name of ‘safeguarding Israel’. As they had literally killed the prophets sent towards them by Allah, and they had killed them knowing the fact that they are the messengers of God and it will bring none but the wrath of God on them. So killing the ordinary Palestinians is just a small sin in their eyes as compared to what their fore-fathers have done before.

But as I said earlier, I am not furious about what Israel is doing, but I am furious about the inactiveness of the Muslim leaders, specially the Arab leaders. Are the Palestinians non-arabs? Are they not like their own brothers? Which thing has stopped their tongues to speak even a word against Israel? Are they all blind? Are they unable to perceive the growing outrage against Israel among the Muslim masses? With every bomb that explodes on the streets of Gaza, the hatred of Israel and USA rise among the Muslims and other communities of the world. If the Muslim leaders still not realize, and if they still not act, I am sure that they will be thrown out from their thrones very soon, and their American friends will be unable to support them against their own people, as America was unable to support the Shah of Iran during the time of Iranian Revolution.

The awakening wave is gaining momentum across the Muslim world and even in the West where all those people whose conscience is alive are gathering together and raising their voice against the on-going genocide carried out by Israel. Muslims in particular, have to wake up from their dreams, and have to start a struggle against the corrupt regimes of theirs. A brave and genuine leadership that speaks the language of their people is the need of the time. The sooner it arrives, the better the position of Muslims will be.

Ye daur Apne Ibrahim ki talaash may hay

Sanam-kada hay jahan, La ilaha illallah…

2008-12-06T10:33:00.000+05:00

Hard Facts

It is almost a month since I have been staying in Sri Lanka. A month time is enough to have a general observation about the country, its people, system and the culture. So in this article, I would be giving my own observations about the life here in Sri Lanka and would be comparing it with Pakistan.

Let us first talk about how did a common Pakistani thinks about Sri Lanka. Well, normally a common Pakistani doesn't have much about Sri Lanka except few names of its Cricket team like Jayasuria, Muralitharan and Chaminda Vaas. But people here in Sri Lanka generally know a lot about Pakistan. Most of them know about famous Pakistani leaders, current political situation, and they are quiet concerned about the things happening there in Pakistan. Pakistan and Pakistanis are quiet respected here as all the arms and ammunition for Sri Lankan army comes from Pakistan. Pakistan had always supported the Sri Lankan government in its war against Tamil Tigers whereas India’s role was not more than a lip-service. Sri Lankan is a good market for Pakistani products as their stores and super-markets have Pakistani Basmati rice, chakki atta, onions and potatoes. I have also seen Shan Masalas in most of the stores.

It has been raining here since last 10 days but I have never seen water sanitation problem here. Heavy downpours leave no water stranded on the roads. Neither have I seen power cuts during rains. People generally obey the traffic laws and the signals. That is why they don’t have long hours traffic blockades which are common in Karachi. I also don’t see vehicles coming from the wrong side, nor dad I hardly seen people shouting on each other while breaking the rules by themselves. Roads are also much better in condition. I haven’t seen open man-holes, garbage mountains, shattered foot paths etc. Still I wonder why the Colombo City mayor was not included in the top mayors list.

Load shedding is not a problem in Sri Lanka. They used to have it a decade ago but they have maintained the demand supply ratio at par. The electrical distribution system is much better than KESC distribution as the entire distribution network is underground. But still I don’t see roads being dugged for maintenance purpose. KESC should have learned some lessons of effective distribution from Colombo Electric Authority.

Education had always been a top priority among Sri Lankans. And you won’t believe that top schools here are run by government whose standard is equivalent to Cambridge based schools. It is much harder to get an admission in government schools because of tough competition among the candidates. Literacy rate is almost 99%. Education is free in schools. Schools also provide free books and uniforms.

People are not happy with the politicians but they don’t look forward towards Army as well. Democracy prevails here although corruption exists among the elites. Education and health indicators are not at the developed world level but still they are better than Pakistan.

The best thing about Sri Lanka is that the people always smile whenever you look at them. I haven’t seen the faces of tension, depression and anger which is quiet common in my beloved country. Most probably, they don’t have to worry about water or electricity. Neither do they need to worry about the safety of their mobile phones and wallets while walking on the roads, as crime rate is quiet low as compared to other South Asian cities. Although inflation here is highest as compared to other South Asian countries, even than you hardly find a beggar on the streets.

Seafood

2008-11-23T11:51:00.000+05:00

Being in Sri Lanka and not eating Seafood is just like being in Pakistan but not exploring Lahore. As being said in Panjabi "jiss nay Lahore nai waikhia wo jamia nai". Same could be said for "O jinn nay Ceylon may seafood nai khai wo jamia nai" :). So, we went to Mount Lavinia, a tourist district just south of Colombo on Galle Road as there are many good hotels and restaurants there that offer fresh seafood right on the beach.

So we chose to go to Mount Lavinia hotel, a grand hotel built since Colonial times. They have a fish market concept just, you go there and choose your own seafood items, from lobsters to sharks and from cuttlefish to crabs, everything is available. We selected deep-fried medium sized prawns and cuttlefish curry with fried rice for our dinner. Cuttlefish is the speciality in Sri Lanka and its delicious in taste. Don't go on its original shape otherwise you can't enjoy it. Its flesh is white in color and it tastes similar to mushrooms. Pictures of original cuttlefish and grilled one is attached herewith.

So all seafood lovers specially anwar bhai and rashid uncle are invited here. One more thing, dry fish including bombil is quiet common here. Nearly every lunch in my office cafeteria has dry fish. So all bombil lovers of our family are invited here :)...

Trip to Bentota

2008-11-12T18:20:00.000+05:00

Diary of a Vagabond

Trip to Bentota,
Saturday 8 November, 2008.

Images link: http://flickr.com/photos/54723740@N00/

Our first outdoor trip in Sri Lanka was arranged by the department colleagues to famous west coast of Sri Lanka. The West Coast of Sri Lanka is most developed and most tourist-oriented. Hundreds of European tourists head for the West Coast to spend the sunny winter in the warm and golden sand beaches. The West Coast from Negombo, North of Colombo to down south at Galle is backed by the rows of palm trees leaning over the golden sands with the fine highway running parallel to it. One can find hotels and guest-houses of all sizes and standards throughout the West Coast.

Our destination was Bentota, a beach resort 70 kms south of Colombo where he have booked the company owned guest-house. All the towns on the West Coast including Colombo are connected by the famous Galle Road. It is therefore, one can find all the major markets along this road which creates heavy traffic during the daytime, specially weekdays.

Although the distance was just 70kms, but it took us nearly two hours to reach there. We passed by some famous towns like Kaluthara, famous for its Gangatilka Temple, the largest temple of Sri Lanka and the river “Kalu Ganga” or “Black River” whose expansive mouth is crossed by a long bridge from where there are tempting views of calm waters and thickets of palm trees inland. Beruwala is another town that we passed by. It is the oldest muslim settlement of Sri Lanka.

Our resort borders the railway line that goes the southest part of Sri Lanka, known as Dandra. Crossing the railway line, and now you are in the rows of palm trees creating a heavenly atmosphere. After passing by the palm trees, now you are at the golden sands beach where the crystal clear waves of water are waiting to embrace you. Our resort was right beside the five-star hotel Taj Exotica, therefore, there were lots of opportunities to cool-off the thirsty eyes :).

We came back to our resort where Cricket was being played. They were playing Cricket with a tennis ball but without tape as here in Sri Lanka there is no concept of playing Cricket with tape-ball. I told them how fast paced tape ball cricket is and I have promised them that next time I ll coach them how to make a tape ball. After Cricket and lunch, we had a little nap and than we were ready for sea bath.

Here in Bentota, the sea waves are quiet high. I watched live surfing for the first time and I can understand why all the western people are so crazy about it. Standing on a one or two metre long board and riding over a craziest wave is a daring experience. The weather was quiet pleasant at the moment as there were thick dark clouds on the sky warning us from the upcoming thunderstorm.

It was just before maghrib that we moved back to our resort and it is the time when I really observed it. The guest-house was full furnished with AC rooms, TV lounge with a dining table and the 26” TV with cable, neat and clean bathrooms with proper lighting facility. The guest-house roofs, walls and floors were made of expensive wood which creates a comfy atmosphere. It has a wide balcony with sofas and chairs where we had dinner and karaoke later on. We were served egg burgers with “halal” chicken drumsticks as my colleagues were unsure about chicken sausages. There were “all” kinds of beverages as well.

After dinner we enjoyed with karaoke. Although most of the songs were in Sinhala which I couldn’t understand but being said that music has its own language, so I enjoyed with them as well. I was asked to sing Indian songs so I chose to sing famous song “Chayyan Chayyan”. They danced on it and later on mix one of their own song after which they sing in chorus “Chayyan Chayyan”.

It was a good experience of having get-together with department colleagues who were there with their families. Every body seems to be taking care of each other kids and families, and everybody enjoying like they are all from one family. It was so successful that now they are planning for a trip to Nuwara Eliya as company has guest houses there as well.

About Sri Lankan Food!

2008-11-06T10:27:00.000+05:00

About Sri Lankan Food
I am pretty sure that the best meals in the whole world are from Pakistan and specially from Karachi. If you are used to of Pakistani food, it would be much difficult for you to accept any other food. So what about Sri Lankan food? I won’t say it is similar to Pakistani food, although in some respects, it is. Sri Lankan food is more spicy, less oily, roti less food. Whatever food you order at a restaurant, there must be some bowls of chutneys along with the main course.

Rice is must in lunch. By the way, their rice is also different and it is not like the Basmati one that we use in Biryani. By the way, Basmati Rice is available in super-markets but it is really expensive.

They can make all types of meat but chicken and fish is more common. At most of the places, the meat is halal as most of the butchery business is being run by muslims but it is always recommended to ask before ordering any meal.

The best thing that they make is lentils (daal). Be it any kind of daal, you ll find it according to your taste buds. Their masalas are much better in aroma and in taste and in fact cheaper than Pakistan as well.

The best Sri Lankan food to try is String Hoppers. String hoppers are like namkeen sawayyan that is taken with a curry just like we took roti. Than there is another item to try known as only hoppers. Hoppers are slightly crispy papar like stuff shaped in the form of bowl and have something at base. Most common is the egg hopper where a fried egg could be found at the base of hopper bowl. You have to eat an egg along with its bowl. Hoppers are available in other flavors as well like fish, chicken, spicy, vegetable etc.

Life in Colombo

2008-11-02T12:53:00.000+05:00

Diary of a Vagabond

Colombo, Saturday 1 Nov. 2008:
Life in Colombo is slow, not fast like we used to have in Karachi. People tend to wake up early. Normally, I leave home for office at 8 AM, and at this time, except wine stores, all other shops are open. Similarly, it is hard to find any shop that is open after sun-set. Night life is literally not present here. Right now, it is 10:30 PM while I am writing this email and my apartment is on one of busiest roads of Colombo and I could hardly hear the noise of vehicles passing by. I am just thinking about the night life in Karachi, where on the weekend, some roads must have been choked with traffic by now.

People usually respect the time and most of them are on time. I have observed this in my office as well as with others whoever I dealt with. Late sittings are not common here. Load shedding is not a South Asian problem anymore. I asked my office colleagues regarding this and they literally could not understand what I am asking. Than I asked them about the power cuts and they said they used to have it in 90s but not now. Roads although by max in two or three lanes of width, but they are in good condition, and most of the time, I have found people obeying the traffic laws.

Colombo walls are free from all sort of khattati. May be, as there is no Amil baba or Sanyasi bawa present here. Surprisingly, I haven’t found any huge, ugly and life-threatening bill boards here. Bill boards do present here but they are small in size and do not pollute the look of the city. Cigarette and Alcohol marketing is banned here.

Although, inflation is quiet high here, but people still tend to make a smile. In fact, smile is the common gesture throughout Sri Lanka and it shows the friendly nature of them. Begging is not common. The only place you find beggars is the mosque J. Another surprising fact is that Sri Lanka is a country where you can proudly say that you are from Pakistan as they respect Pakistan. This is due to the reason that Pakistan had helped their Army a lot in their fight against the Tamil Tigers.

Rests of the problems are similar like Pakistan. Sri Lanka is also fighting hard to maintain its currency value and foreign exchange reserve. Just on the last trading day, its rupee value depreciated 1.5%. Oil costs are considerably high here and they haven’t brought it down. People blame the government for that whereas the government has their own reasons. By the way their annual budget is due next week.
Indian influence is visible on their media but not in their culture as they have preserved their language and their strong commitment with the Buddhist religion as nearly 69% of Sri Lankans are Buddhists out of which 95% Sinhalese are Buddhists. 95% of Muslims here speak Tamil.

Colombo Diary, Oct. 28, 2008

2008-10-29T16:27:00.000+06:00

DIARY OF A VAGABOND

Colombo, 28th October 2008: Today I had a day long meeting at Hotel Cinnamon Grand. Had taken all three meals at the hote,l the food was quiet good there. Except pork, all of the food was halal and quiet tasty. I reached home at 9:30 PM.

I was quiet tired so went to bed early around 10:30 PM or so. We just went into the bed and the light was gone. Oh God, do we have load-shedding problem in Colombo as well? I asked Faiza to open the windows and see whether the whole area is out of light or not. She told me that there is a complete black-out. Suddenly, there is a huge blast nearby and we heard lots of gun shots. There were too many red flares and search lights on the sky. It looked like that there is an air strike on Colombo as I have seen the similar videos of US air strikes on Baghdad. The vehicles that were on the road were stopped and were asked to turn-off their lights. It was a great lightening show but at the same time it was terrifying experience for us as well. I asked Faiza to remain calm and recite whatever she had remembered. I tried calling few people but the phone line was jammed. At last, Yousuf bhai answered the call and he asked us to remain calm and not to leave the apartment. He told us that he is near the Colombo airport and the Sri Lankan fighter jets are now up in the air.

Later on, in the morning we came to know that the Tamil Tigers attacked on some oil depo with light air-crafts. These air-crafts are able to fly at very low height and therefore, they cannot be traced in the radar. Anyways, there wasn’t any serious casualty but the planes were able to escape as well.

On yesterday’s event, I just thought that sometimes, bad decisions made by the leaders made nations suffer for a long time. This beautiful island is suffering with the same as both groups are now burning in the fire of revenge and no one is ready to cool it off.

Colombo Diary

2008-10-29T15:06:00.000+06:00

DIARY OF A VAGABOND

Colombo Day 1: Our flight was an hour late and we took-off at 2:00 AM and landed in Colombo 6:45 AM via brief stopover at Mumbai. As we were landing on the Colombo airport the only thing we could see is trees and water. There was a heavy rainfall two or three days ago so its impact could be easily seen. My company had already sent a car so it took us almost an hour to reach our apartment. I was so tired that I could not remember what passed by during this one hour drive. I just woke up when the driver was parking the car in the building’s garage. I thought I have been taken to a hotel as the building’s (Ascon Towers) entrance was just like that. There was a huge hexagonal lobby, the apartment buildings forms a hexagon. Prasantha, Writer’s consultant was there to welcome us. We went into a capsule and went straight away to the 9th floor where our apartment is.

The apartment is a 3 bedroom with a lounge and kitchen. Bedroom has a master bed with a wooden cupboard and a dressing table with an attached bathroom. Another bedroom is just at right while the third bedroom with a single bed is at the other end of the lounge. Bathroom is a bit small where there is square glass based section for taking bath. This is the common practice throughout Sri Lanka as they used to have separated glass based sections for bath so that the rest of the bathroom remains dry. The whole apartment is recently painted with white colour. The bedroom windows and the lounge’s lobby are west open so the cool breeze circulates the whole apartment, so we don’t need to use AC although it is there in every room. The apartment is situated at the busy Dr. Danister De Silve Mawatha road and the hustling and the bustling noise of Colombo can be heard anytime specially if you open the windows.

Prasantha showed us the apartment but actually there was no light at that time. Moreover, the kitchen was absent with any basic cooking utensils. Only the pair of plates and spoons was present. I asked Prasantha how am I going to make breakfast as I was really hungry at that moment. He also has no answer but he said that the apartment owner is coming in half an hour and he must be able to answer all of my queries. He took us down at the first floor in the shop to buy some necessary breakfast material. In the meantime the owner of apartment arrived Mr. A. K. Rizvi. It was the pleasant surprise to know that he was a Sri Lankan muslim. I told him that I would be unable to cook anything as the kitchen is absent with basic utilities and my shipment will take atleast three t o four days to arrive.

He said he ll arrange the lunch for us and he also invited us at the dinner at his home and from there Faiza could pick the cooking stuff that we require. I was quiet amazed by her generosity and was really thankful to him as well. Meanwhile I called my Sri Lankan colleague and asked her to send me a car so that I can buy some necessary stuff but I got a cold response from her that since the office is closed on weekends so she ll not be able to help us until Monday. Here again Rizvi came like an angel. He first sent breakfast (daal, roti and fish curry) and tea through his worker and than he asked me whether I need to go to buy any food item like beef or chicken and other home stuff.

So he took us first to the muslim beef market where we bought beef and chicken. He introduced us to the local shop-owners and asked them to facilitate us anytime we go there. Than he took us to the super-market in his Land Cruiser. There we came to know that our landlord is not an ordinary man as he owns the garments factory and his the big exporter of Sri Lankan garment. He has purchased this apartment along with few other apartments and a 500 square yard newly constructed home that he rented out. He is also the general secretary of Moors (Muslims) Sports Club.

He left us there at Richard Peires Super Market and told us that he will pick us after half an hour. The market is just like Naheed in Karachi with all the items of need at one place. But the price of every item was quiet high than what we used to pay in Pakistan. Faiza had a great shock while looking at the prices of any item. He said that since Rizvi is a rich man, he would have no problem in buying the stuff from the expensive market but I had a fair idea that the grocery would be at the same rate even in the open market. So the first shopping where we bought only the basic stuff cost us nearly 10,000 Sri Lankan Rs. SLR J. The basic stuff includes:

Basmati Rice: 167 Rs. Per kg
Flour: 100 rs kg.
Small Lux: 32 rs.
Apple juice: 298 rs a litre.
Garam masalas and some plastic items.

After the shopping, he took us to the KFC shop to have lunch which is also a bit expensive. Most of the food restaurants have Halal food here as Muslims here are quiet wealthy and they have good spendable income.

A brief rest in the evening and the Rizvi was again there to take us for the dinner. We first went to the Prasantha’s house. The house is artistically constructed with the granite stairs at the entrance. A small balcony with numerous articrafts hanging on the walls that leads us to a lounge. The lounge flooring was done by a granite with black granite on its borders. Windows and doors are of expensive wood with the small garden at the back of the lounge. We spent a good time there talking about food, politics local traditions etc. Prasantha was a nice fellow and he and his wife ll be sending us to Maldives. I have asked them to search for any reasonable and cost effective tour operator. We had a tea over there and than we left for Rizvi’s house.

He first took us to the newly constructed house which he rented out to a Pakistani family. The house is situated at the posh area of Colombo and its about 2200 square feet with a garden and the garage on the front. Most of the flooring is of expensive granite and marble tiles where as the wooden work was being done of the most expensive teak wood. He told us that he had a purchase a teak tree and all the wood has been obtained from that tree. He spent nearly 275 lacs on its construction with the similar amount to purchase the land.

After than, he took us to the his nearby house where we had a dinner of spring hoppers with chicken and potato curry. It was so tasty and has a south Indian taste as his forefathers and wife were also from there. Spring hoppers are like namkeen sawayyan that is taken with a curry just like we took roti. Faiza collected the necessary cooking stuff from her wife’s kitchen that we ll be using until we get our shipment.

He told me that his brother has the garment factory at Ratnapura (the famous gem mining site in Sri Lanka) and he ll be taking us along with his family on the holidays. He also promised to help me with the up-coming qurbani.

So this is what I need to tell you about our first day in Sri Lanka. I am thankful to Allah that he helped us by sending such a nice people who had taken care of us just like we are their family members. Both Rizvi and Prsantha are very good in nature although they belong to higher status but they are quiet simple in nature.

This is Sunday 2:40 here while I sign-off as Rizvi had just just arrived with a lunch and the invitation of Zikr (Darse Quran) mehfil at his parent’s house after Asr. Please keep remember in your prayers.

Best Regards,
Umair Ahmed Shaikh

Gorakh Hill Expedition, August 2006

2006-08-20T18:50:00.000+05:00

Ever wondered to have an environment, atmosphere and the weather like Murree in Sindh? You would be thinking that I have gone nuts but no, it is like that. If you can reach to Gorakh Hill you will agree to what I have written above.

Gorakh Hill lies in the Kirthar range that spreads along the border of Sindh and Baluchistan and perhaps it is one of the highest peaks in that range. The mountain range has provided the natural geographical distribution for the two provinces. Gorakh hill is situated in the Johi tehsil of the Dadu district where as the Wudh town of Baluchistan lies on its other end. It has an altitude of about 5,500 feet. The weather conditions at the hill in summer are cooler at night whereas it remains moderate at daytime. In winter the temperature goes down to almost -8 to -12 degree centigrade. Being the highest peak in a region, one can have a beautiful view of a valley from the top. The area is surrounded by arid mountains with small green pastures at certain points. During rainy season one can see various streams of water flowing throughout the area.

One can reach Gorakh hill by either coming into the Dadu town or from Sehwan Shareef. If someone is coming from Karachi than he should reach Johi through Sehwan Shareef via Bhan Saeedabad as it is shorter than that of Dadu. Johi is situated at a distance of 40 kms from Sehwan Shareef whereas Sehwan Shareef is about 137 kms from Jamshoro. The Indus highway from Jamshoro to Sehwan Shareef is in very good condition and one can enjoy the pleasant drive while enjoying the scenic beauty as the Indus river flows at the right of highway while having the view of barren mountains at its left. The road condition from Sehwan Shareef onwards is not good and one can only reach to the top by either through double cabin or by jeep. It is recommended to hire a double cabin from Hyderabad as we had faced problem in arranging the vehicle from Sehwan.

Our experience of exploring Gorakh Hill was full of excitement and adventures. We started our journey from Karachi on the early morning hours of 13th August 2006 at about 7:30 AM. We reached Sehwan Shareef through Indus Highway at about 12 PM. There we transferred our bags in two double cabins and started our journey towards Johi town. We reached Johi town at about 1:15 PM, had a lunch there at Shadabad Welfare Organization (SWO), a local community development NGO that had made all the arrangements for our trip.

From Johi we again started our journey towards the Wahi Pandi, the union council of Johi and the base camp for Gorakh Hill. It is a small village with a population of about 20,000. If someone in interested to have a look at the rural Sindh than Wahi Pandi is a perfect place to visit. It is among the few villages of Pakistan which have a clean and clear atmosphere and where one can find all the basic facilities of life. The outskirts of the village contains a good number of trees called “Beej” in Sindhi. I have seen them for the first time. The jharnas of water coming from the top form a considerable wider stream that flows side by side of the village. These trees and the stream made a good view from the top.

We had a tea break here at the local community library while our double cabin was filled by all the supplies that we needed for the night stay. The people here are mostly Baluchis but they mostly speak Siraiki and Sindhi language. They are very cooperative and friendly in nature. One can hire the services of guide from here as well.

We started to move towards the final destination i.e. Gorakh Hill at about 4 PM. The road to Gorakh Hill from Wahi Pandi is about 54 kms which is under construction. The journey starts from the plane valley of Wahi Pandi that gradually ends into the mountain range. The mountains gradually increase their height so it is a beautiful example of transformation of plane valley to the hard and rigid mountainous region. The area is mostly barren with no sign of a tree. One can only see the wild bushes on the mountains. The mountains have different shapes and figures here. Some of the mountains look similar to the mountain range of Utah in United States.

Due to bad road condition we covered the 54 kms distance in about 5 hours. The track is not dangerous but has few sharp turns at some places. We got trapped at one such turn where the work was going on to expand the turn. For this purpose the mountain was bifurcated through dynamites due to which huge number of small stones on the track made impossible for the tyre to have a firm grip. Anyways, we managed to overcome this turn with the help of Pathan driver who was the worker of contractor there.

We reached the top after sunset when it was an absolute darkness all around the valley. Since it was the rainy season we saw a cool lightening show arranged by the Creator. The climate at the top was cool and we have to wear the sweaters or jackets to keep ourselves warm.

There is only one so-called rest house at the top. Rest house is consisted of two rooms with only one room that could be used for rest as the other one is being used as a store room. Electricity line is there but we hardly found any lighten bulb there as due to heavy rains. Rest house has one generator in working condition. There is no water at the top so it is recommended to take good amount of water with you.

The sunrise is definitely worth viewing here. As the early sun rays hits the top, one can have a look at the beautiful valley of Wahi Pandi at east, whereas the Sindh-Baluchistan border lies at its west. It’s also a good tracking place for trekking lovers as one can explore the valley in almost every direction. The hiking here is relatively easy as the rocks are hard with the gentle slope. One natural track of about 5 days goes from the Gorakh to the Wadh town of Baluchistan which lies in the Khuzdar district.

There were some unforgettable events that happened in this trip that I wanted to share. It is related to the selfless and kind support that was provided by almost everyone we met there. While we were driving back to Wahi Pandi next day, one of the double cabin’s tyre got punctured just a 100 meters below the top. The rest of the group members including me were on the double cabin that had already moved ahead. Our vehicle’s engine and axle condition was also poor and we had to stop the vehicle just before the sharp turn where we had been trapped yesterday. The track was also blocked as some jeep got stucked there last night in heavy rain. We waited for the other double cabin to come but it showed no sign. Our driver was able to contact SWO people at Sehwan through V-PTCL Wireless Phone (at the labour camp near the sharp turn). Thanks to V-PTCL. We also tried contacting the rest house but the wireless signals have not reached there at that time. We cannot do anything but to wait for a support from base camp.

After three hours we saw three men walking down from the top. I was able to recognize one of them as our cook who had travelled almost 12 kms to inform us the calamity that had befallen on the other double cabin. Now the problem was to send the tyre to the top. Our double cabin was already short of tyre as its two tyres got punctured last night. At the labour camp we saw another double cabin which had been waiting there for the road to get opened. We asked them and they provided us the tyre without any hesitation. Now again the problem was how to send that tyre to the top. For this purpose the people at the labour camp arranged some Baloch natives that knew the short routes to the top. They put the tyre on their head and started the journey to the top. They would have covered the strenuous 12 kms distance on foot with a heavy tyre on head, but fortunately a jeep came up later that gave us the good news that road has been opened and was also agreed to catch the Baloch from the track and make it reach to the top.

The other unselfish support was given by the contractor there who was about to explode the mountain (through dynamites) that day and he asked us to come down by 10 AM max. But since one of the vehicle was punctured he waited us till 4 PM.

Last but not the least, I could not forget the hospitality of the people there, whoever we met, wherever we go. The people welcomed us with their open hearts. They served us the delicious meals that we would not have thought of, and have given us the respect that even we do not see in the blood relations here in the cosmopolitan. They tried to provide us as much comfort as they can and they had given us the new concept of selfless life that we the Karachiites had somewhat forgotten.

In last, some suggestion for the visitors. Although we were the first family that had visited the place with women and children, I would still not recommend it as a family resort until the proper road is developed. The area is free from dacoits so there is no security issue. The only issue is the lack of proper road track and the supply system. There is neither any phone line at the top nor any mobile network is working there but it is heartening to see V-PTCL Wireless Phone service working there. But again I would suggest the readers not to rely on the outside help, instead they should take all precautionary and safety measures themselves.