Where 32 - Quetta, Pakistan --OR-- India v Pakistan

HI folks,

At last - and not without a good deal of hassle and money - I have a visa for Iran. For many nationalities it is not a problem, but they dont like giving them to Brits. I have only met one other Brit in Pakistan, and he gave up trying and went back to India.

There are not too many foreigners travelling in Pakistan - I have met about 25 with most of those (for some unknown reason) being S.Korean or Japanese. Most countries do not turn out to what I expect and Pakistan is no exception to that. But first there was a bit more of India ...

Amritsar - Even by Indian standards, this place is a tip. If it didnt have a very small golden temple (and wasn't next to the only land border crossing to Pakistan) then no foreigner would ever go there. But this small 2 up, 2 down house is the centre of the Sikh religion. To make it seem more important they covered it in a huge amount of gold and put it on an island in a lake (a big tank of water really) with a causeway so believers (and non-believers for that matter) dont get their feet wet. It is the opposite to the rest of India - they dont charge you to go in, it is very serene, they give you free food and accommodation, and they let anyone go into the inner sanctum. As pennance everyone has to take their shoes and socks off even it it is freezing cold, and wear a brightly covered headscarf (provided free of course). It is the smallest 'most important' place I have been to and maybe is the more impressive because of that - worth popping in if you happen to be up that way.

Nearby, the border with Pakistan consists of huge amounts of barbed wire with one single crossing point. It is pretty quiet - that is, until the closing of the border ceremony. This is an incredibly coordinated dance by soldiers from two countries who dislike each other intensely. The impressiveness of the height of the goosestep (about head height) is only challenged by the remarkable brevity of the salutes and handshakes they exchange just before the lower their respective flags and slam the gates shut. The whole affair has become a spectacle with grandstands being built on both sides which fill with supporters who come to cheer on their country.

Then into Pakistan. The border crossing is the cleanest, best cared for and (outside the closing ceremony) quietest I have seen, mainly because locals from both sides cannot cross it and there are hardly any foreigners stupid enough to want to. The no-mans land measures about 1 metre inbetween two impressive pairs of gates belonging to the respective countries.

The Difference between Pakistan and India
- I was told the two countries were very different (they parted when the old India gained independence from Britain in 1947), but I have to say that there is more the same than different - The rubbish, air-pollution, dirt, poverty, beggars... I could go on (and probably will).


The cows
- The first thing I noticed about Pakistan was that there are no cows wandering the streets - here cows get eaten before they stray very far (a lot of Muslims here). However to make up for that (and to ensure a reasonable spread of 'manure') the streets are filled with stacks of donkey and carts, horse and carts, cow and carts and even a few camels (and carts).


The Pollution
- Because Pakistan has a large number of donkey and carts, horse and carts, cow and carts and even a few camels (and carts) which do not add (much) to air pollution, the remaining motor transport is desperate to jack up the levels by chucking out clouds of choking exhaust fumes. They are so successful in this that the pollution levels exceed even India (they have to try and beat India at everything, only occasionally do they succeed).
- In the cities and towns the rubbish is everywhere and it stinks (just like India). However in the countryside there are green fields and stuff like 'nature' without any rubbish (unlike India).


The People
- The are the most hospitable imaginable. They are forever inviting you to eat with them and they wont accept any contribution. One guy sat next to me on a minbus and we talked for about 30 seconds and he insisted on paying the fare for me as I was his guest. At street stalls vendors have refused to accept payment or undercharged me! A refreshing change from the normal attitude to foreigners in other countries (India springs to mind).


The Food
- Foodwise, from India to Pakistan is like going from oasis to desert (or should that be dessert given the local sweet tooth). A diet of pure veg has turned into pure chips, naan bread, chicken kebabs and ice-cream - although most of the time it tastes OK, it is not very healthy. Trying to get veg food is a wate of time, so my body had to make the sudden adjustment to a carniverous diet.
- Once I realised that 90% of people eat from the stalls on the street and that it is almost impossible to avoid eating meat then I started to understand the food much better. However, trying to avoid all the stuff that looks dodgy means I have got pretty hungry. And breakfast - forget it. Luckily I managed to find some Weetabix and milk so for a few days I was happy.
- Amazingly, even after eating all this dodgy stuff I have still not got ill, although I do feel I am clinging onto my health by my (remaining) fingernails.


The Travelling
- The driving here is the worst - really really appalling. I have seen several road accidents in the few weeks I have been here - all because nobody has any respect for other road users. One local guy told me 10% of people drive responsibly, the other 90% are dangerous. He was one of the 10% surprisingly enough; I just want to know where the rest of the 10% are... - What is the maximum number of Pakistanis that fit into/onto/clinging to a minibus? Trick question obviously - there is no maximum.
- Why dont Pakistanis have knees? Because there is no maximum number of Pakistanis that fit into/onto/clinging to a minibus.
- Travelling by road here is a bit of a pain in the neck, bum, knees, back, feet, head, ankles, spine etc. But it is cheap!
- Perhaps that is why foreigners get 25% off train travel - but this is such a pain to actually get with a lot of forms to fill in and loads of waiting around that hardly anyone bothers - the trains are pretty cheap anyway. They are also slow and infrequent.


The Religion
- Everyone (bar a very few Christains) is Islamic (as oppose to mainly Hindu in India). If you declare that you are not then they try and convert you straightaway. They haven't had much luck with me though.
- The old guys that dye their hair and beards bright red. I thought for a moment it was Scottish/Irish ancestory but apparently it is all done with henna. Then they let it grow out and they have two tone hair and beards in red and grey - very strange. I was told it was a religious thing but then I saw water buffalo and goats who had the same thiing done to them (yes they looked very strange) and the locals were stumped for an explanation! I dont think the women do it but since I have seen only a few womens heads (most are covered) I cant really say.
- A group of us foreigners went to a 'celebration' where some of the men, in a show of their devoutness, tie small knifes to strings and whip their backs. I'm not opposed to a bit of masocism but the amount of blood on the ground, bloodstained shirts and congealed blood and scars on their backs was a bit much. The intensity near the main place where this was going on got a bit much and even after getting through 4 security checks we were refused entry at the 5th cos we were westeners - even though we were all wearing local clothes and trying deperately to look like locals!!! The atmosphere was unbelieveably charged with religious tension, and I was really afraid that if one local turned on us with an anti western diatribe then everyone else would have followed suit - and we would have been in BIG trouble - I'm not sure the large numbers of police around would have helped us a lot. I was glad to get out unscathed anyway.

The Women
- There is segregation of the sexes in some places. A man is not allowed to sit next to a women on a bus, but compartments on trains are mixed - none of the locals understand that either.
- If I am with a foreign female (and there aren't many travelling here) we have to say that we are married (even if I have only met her 2 mins before) else the locals get very confused and she could get a lot of hassle - cos women simply don't go around on their own.
- Talking to local women, even just to ask directions, is virtually taboo. Not that I have seen too many about outside the big cities. Wandering around looking like they have nothing to do is firmly the man's job!


The Mountains
- This is what people come to Pakistan for - stunning scenery, beautiful peaks etc. Unfortunately not only is this not the absolute best time of the year to go trekking in the mountains (cos it is winter and it is very cold), but this winter has seen the most snow for over a hundred years.
- Also we were told it was too dangerous to venture off the road without an armed guard. In many places the police are non-existant so these are essentially lawless areas, and in tribal areas they have no legal jurastiction anyway.
- I joined a group of locals and made it up to a town that was 3 metres deep in snow but since the road was closed by huge avalanches we had to walk up part of the way. The town had been , and still was, cut off for over a month and food was being flown in by helicopter. As there was no where to stay up there we had to get back down the same day. Unfortunately I trusted the locals to know when it would get dark - and we ended up struggling over frozen avalanches in the dark - not recommended! (but standard practice in Pakistan).
- Whilst walking a long a clear section of road (in the light) we heard a 'ssshhh' sound above us and looked up to see a huge boulder (about the size of a car) heading straight for us. Luckily we had got at least 20m away by the time it bounced on the road and carried on down the valley.


The Kyber Pass
- The traditional route between Pakistan and Afghanistan is still a pretty dangerous place so a small group of us had to have an armed guard just to go there. It is quite easy to get a visa, but when we got to a viewpoint overlooking the border into Afghanistan we could see that it was raining there, so we decided not to go!
- On the road to the border there is aplace called 'Smuggler's Bazaar' where apart from the usual electrical goods there are shops packed with guns and drugs, all seemingly legal and all very cheap - a locally produced AK47 assault rifle costs British Pounds 50. Taking either outside the immediate area however is not a good idea.


The Tombs
Pakistan is not awash with sites to see but I did manage to see some 14th Century tombs. The main one had been half washed away by a flood 200 years ago but as it was circular, from some angles it looked complete. It was covered in blue and white tiles in beatiful mosaics. If the Taj Mahal was a body building in his prime with perfect form but lacking depth, this was a gnarled old man with personality - not in the best repair but he had tons of charcter.

Quetta
The last outpost on the road to Iran - there is nowhere bigger than a village inbetween but Iran is over 600km away. Inbetween there is just desert - and a bus journey of 15 hours on a terrible road. Luckily there is also a train - this takes 24 hours if it is on time and at this time of year it could be delayed by a lot! There are not a lot of people going that way so there is only one train every two weeks; And it leaves tomorrow, so I had better be on it. This could be the journey from hell!

So, if all goes well then I should be in Iran by Wednesday 16th March. It could be an interesting month...

Love

Ankur/Pete