September 27th marks the world tourism day. It is the time
to explore new places, visit the wonders of nature and take a fun filled ride.
The Day is celebrated every year with an idea to foster and spread awareness
about the importance of tourism and its social, cultural, political and
economic value.
On this day, my experience of a recent trip to the “queen of
hills” and the fantasy city of Pakistan begs to be shared. My family and some
friends were there to make it a trip of my life.
This wasn’t like a full on weeklong trip, it was more like a
long drive, and we drove from Islamabad to Murree to Patriata to Shahdra and
back to Islamabad via the motorway. It was a drive I kept wishing would last
longer.
We took off early in the morning on Monday 9th of September,
the weather was pleasant, a bit cloudy and soon to be rainy. Looking out of my
car window, I could see some of the most awe-inspiring and breathtaking views.
Murree is naturally equipped with high peak mountains, richly greenish meadows,
plateau and thick pine forests. I will definitely suggest everyone to visit
this valley and then you will definitely feel that if heaven lies somewhere on
earth then it truly lies here.
Our very next spot after reaching Murree was to visit
Patriata hills and enjoy chair lift and cable car. It was an hour journey with
lots of excitement to explore roadside areas and markets on the way. Patriata
chair lift is a ‘must experience’ thing for all the visitors and you can also
enjoy horse riding on top of the hill.
No matter where you go, light refreshments are always
desirable. So while hopping around from one spot to another and reaching to the
highest point through the chair lift ride, we came across this beautiful
hilltop cafeteria where we stopped to enjoy our 'chai-break'. The view from the
top automatically starts refreshing your mind and soul. To accompany the
Kashmiri tea in the cool and refreshing breeze, we munched on delicious snacks,
fries and yummy pakoras smothered in chatni. Their tea preparations were simply
awesome. We revived our lagging energy and stamina with each sip of the lovely
tea.
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| view from the chair lift |
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| Patriata Hills from the top |
After Patriata, our next destination was the beautiful
Shahdra valley which is located on the outskirts of Islamabad. A perfect spot
to beat the heat, surrounded by hills and lush green jungle. The spot provides
a perfect setting to nature lovers to enjoy summer to its fullest while
swimming in the crystal clear stream water.
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| A beautiful evening at Shahdra |
Going further on the journey, we had now reached the federal
capital. Being a nature-loving person, i enjoyed the lush greenery and modern
outlook of the city. There was a feeling of belonging, a sense of serenity and
calmness that perhaps no other city could match. There were no honking cars,
traffic jams and hustles and bustles of the metropolitan. While being in the
capital, we visited many places such as Lok Virsa which is Pakistan’s national
heritage museum, the newly built and one of the largest constellation that is
the Centaurus mall, the splendid Margalla hills, the magnificent shah Faisal
mosque, Jinnah avenue near the parliament house where a bunch of politicians
decide about the fate of the country and its people, daman-e-Koh. For dinner,
we went through the mountains to Monal Restaurant in Pir Sohawa. Driving these
mountains is scary, but locals do it with ease. The great thing about Pir
Sohawa is the amazing view of Islamabad from there. It’s quite a sight. I was
completely wow-ed by the beautiful scenery, ambience, music and the food. Although it was a bit expensive, but it was
definitely one of the best dining experiences I have had so far.
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| Pir Sohawa: Monal restaurant in the heart of Islamabad |
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| The beautiful Shah Faisal Masjid at night |
Being a citizen of Karachi, the business hub of Pakistan –
an extremely busy city, where life is so damn fast it becomes impossible to
escape from it. However, breaks are definitely important and I cherished my
week of peace by being close to the nature.
I ended up feeling rejuvenated and seeing some awesome places I had
never experienced in all these years living in Pakistan.
I must say that no words, no photographs, no poetry, no
prose could ever do justice to the beauty that I had the honor to witness. And
I think that the immortal beauty, which cannot be captured by the lens of a
camera or the ink of a pen is actually what makes the place ever so
fascinating. Yes, most people find love in people. I mostly find it in places
and nature.
Thanks to this trip and its memoirs, I refuse to give up
hope in better tomorrows for Pakistan. Things may look dark, but hope is all we
have. It is time to re-build parts of Pakistan that are hurt and damaged. All
we need is, a little attention from the government of Pakistan towards our
otherwise badly neglected tourism industry.
Pakistan Zindabad!
