With the referendum behind us, I thought it time to talk about the splendors of a country I take for granted. It never occurred to me that Pakistan had so much to offer the tourist. It has not been exploited by tourists. To go into the mountains does not take much effort especially if you are already in the northern cities. We were in Islamabad so the foothills of the Himalayas were just a hop away. The vegetation started to change slowly, from bushy evergreen trees into pine forests. The road also started to thread a sinuous path through the towering hills. The air became very cool and it was no wonder that in summer during the Raj, people sought the cool mountains as an escape from the sweltering plains.
We made our first stop at the place where buses stopped and cars got washed. Little boys ran from car to car in search of cars to wash. The air may have been very fresh but one look at the frozen hands of the boys washing cars was enough to give me goose pimples. We got out to stretch and to have tea in tiny cups. Then we thought of boiled eggs deep fried in gram flour. It was not a bad appetizer at all. Clucking away, we swung on to the road again like the daredevil bus drivers who stopped in the middle of the road to pick up passengers or overtake cars on blind corners. Biting down to our cuticles, we arrived at the hill station of Murree. It seemed to our disappointment that the whole country had come here to spend the summer. Overcrowded was an understatement. We managed, with great effort, to get to the most celebrated hotel in Murree — The Cecil — where 40 years ago, two of the most popular stars of the film industry had sung melodiously and swung around the pillars.
It was party time. We sat in the sprawling gardens of the hotel and waited for lunch. The view in front was magnificent. The plains stretched in front of us. The flickering lights in the distance at night told us that Islamabad was not so far away. To digest the meal we made our way up the meandering road to the much-celebrated mall. There was such vibrancy, colors, people, smells of street food. The aroma of bread being baked. It was mouth-watering for even our full stomachs and we had to sit down to sample one of those "kharais".
After an hour of wandering along the mall, we decided to head out further up the mountains. Next stop Bhurban. This is one of the most sought after places after Murree. Some of the people who can afford Bhurban avoid the commercial environment of Murree for the more peaceful one here. It is the atmosphere that literally dragged us to this place, not to speak of the sweeping panoramic view of the plains. One is sure to rub shoulders with celebrities and parliament members and anyone who’s somebody! So instead of enjoying ourselves we kept nudging elbows to say, I spy with my little eye so we could brag to our friends back home! The roof terrace was chilly, the coffee was more like cold coffee and since we weren’t appropriately dressed we decided to get back to Murree.
A popular spot that has recently emerged in the Murree hills is Patriata. The cable cars there take you up a sweeping mountain side to a dizzy height where you look down on the world. The old lift chairs of Ayubia are losing their panache because of these new ones. Patriata is in a secluded part of the mountains and there are many spots to sit down and have a picnic. The green pine forest is a sight that is soothing to the eye and the water from small streams that is really invigorating. These streams only flow when there is heavy rainfall. We enjoyed ourselves as much as we could as the thought of going back to Islamabad was killing but we knew that all things come to an end. It might not have been the picture book holiday but to us it was incomparable.
