Blogs from Karachi, Pakistan, Asia - page 2

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Asia » Pakistan » Karachi October 17th 2009

Apart from being the prime city of Pakistan and Jinnah's final resting haven, Karachi is driving the economy of the homeland on the smooth sail since its independence. Not only its dwellers enjoy beating the heat by heading towards the beaches it also holds a rich cultural and historical importance. Coronologically, 700 years back Mohammad bin Qasim, a young muslim warrior entered through the famous Gharo Creek or Bhambore City to conqure the whole of Sindh province and spread the religion Islam. Bhambore now situated at the northern outskirts of Karachi. On his way back he threw some of the date seeds which to this day stand tall as only landmark left of his arrival. Story of tragic love affair of Marvi also happens to originate in Bhambore. It is believed that she ran away with ... read more

Asia » Pakistan » Karachi November 21st 2007

Pakistan solo When I left Quetta, I was determent to leave a part of my life - and Ann - behind. Before I could go though, we had to finalize a few things that had cropped up at the last moment: proof of life for the SVB (my pension) and permission to drive the car, which is in Ann’s name, out of the country. That done though, after the usual hold-ups and misunderstandings, I was finally free to leave. A last picture, a fare-well and off I was, promptly going in the wrong direction. That was soon corrected though, and I hit the road to Kalat. It was still light when I stopped at an all night filling station with restaurant, an establishment where hot meals were dispensed out of large pots and one could choose ... read more

Asia » Pakistan » Karachi April 30th 2007

Salam everyone! My 1st official day in Pakistan and I just had lunch, so my driver suggested me to use the internet for an hour before we head off to the open air Air Force Museum. It's blistering hot out there, and fortunately, I do not have to don long sleeved here in Karachi! Would have suffocated from the heat! The roads are sooo dusty and the streets are very dirty. In a way, Karachi is like no other cities I have been to. I was quite shocked to see the state of the roads and the condition of the buildings here. There are lots of rubble lying everywhere, as well as piles of rubbish congregated on roadside corners. A combination of Yangon(which isn't as dusty), Mandalay(which is dirty but also not as dusty), Phnom Penh(the ... read more

Asia » Pakistan » Karachi November 6th 2006

Yes I have arrived in Pakistan and I have heard and read more about bomb blasts and death in the different Pakistani cities than I ever did in Kabul... The day before I arrived in Peshawar a bomb killed a dozen people not far from my hotel and a few days after I left several more bombs went of in Peshawar... So I don't know which is safer, Afghanistan or Pakistan... Peshawar is a nice city with a great atmosphere... I visited the smugglers bazaar which I didn't find that impressive... Sure you can buy your hashish and what not there, and they have a few small arms for sale... Of course a picture had to be taken of me with an AK-47... They also offered me cocaine, which I politely refused... But if you are ... read more
Peshawar
Peshawar
Peshawar

Asia » Pakistan » Karachi October 6th 2006

I returned to Karachi on October 3rd and had the opportunity to meet with the new President of Aga Khan University – Mr. Firoz Rasul. Firoz has just relocated from Vancouver (yes another Canadian in these parts) and is the former CEO of Ballard Power Systems. He is an impressive man and has that rare talent of a leader to make you feel instantly at ease in his company. I sense he is a strong team builder and has the ability to get the best out of people. I very much enjoyed our discussions about his aspirations for AKU. This is a President not content to have AKU be the best University in Pakistan. The ambition is to be the best internationally and this view is quickly moving through the ranks. I was impressed by the ... read more
B&B
Room for One More
Shopping District

Asia » Pakistan » Karachi September 27th 2006

I arrived in Karachi Pakistan last Saturday. It has been an exotic whirlwind. I am completely overwhelmed with what I have seen and what I have learned. First of all, I like Karachi…liked it from the first moment. This is a very large city - some 15 million. And the city has a huge footprint. After flying all night from Nairobi with only an hour stop over in Dubai (I’ll be spending a couple of days on my way home), I arrived in Karachi at about 11 am. The airport is modern, under construction - as is most of Karachi and very efficient. I was through customs in no time and was very pleased to see my bag waiting for me. I was promptly met by a driver. By the way, I am getting way to ... read more
Three on One
Riding Side Saddle
Karachi Traffic

Asia » Pakistan » Karachi March 5th 2006

Even though I describe the streets as full of desperation, I am fascinated every time we drive through the streets. Most of the photos that you’ll see are taken from inside the car. Our favorite driver, Saleh Mohammed, is from an area called Mansehra. Most of his relatives lost their homes in the earthquake. Sali Mohammed gets us from point A to B in a hurry. Weaving in and out of traffic as the lines on the roads don’t apply here in Karachi. Saleh Mohammed uses the horn to notify vehicles ahead that we are coming up behind. We’ve noticed that on average, Pakistanis do not use helmets for their motorcycles, though you will see some young and modern men using them. Those guys usually have fancier bikes and they are wearing jeans and leather jackets. ... read more
Metal Barricade at the Sheraton
Metal Detector at the Sheraton
Cin and Galib at the Sheraton

Asia » Pakistan » Karachi March 4th 2006

Whew! ~ After 20 hours of flying over the past 2 days, Galib & I have arrived safely in Karachi, Pakistan. We both enjoyed flying with Emirates Air. One of the unique things we discovered were the video cams on the front of the plane and at the belly. You can have the pilot's view at the click of a button. Very cool when we were landing! We stayed in Dubai for 8 hours while in transit to Karachi. One could shop all day at the airport alone!!! Wow, the duty-free shops were amazing. Instead, we opted for fluffy pillows and crisp linens and headed straight to the Dubai International Hotel for some zzzz's. Afterwards, we satisfied our cravings for McDonald's...I had a Halal burger and Galib enjoyed a McArabia Meal. I'm looooving it!!! After a ... read more
Dubai McDonald
Malir Girl's School
Malir girl

Asia » Pakistan » Karachi October 27th 2005

WOW first impressions of Karachi are hot and dusty. For an Englishman I was all disturbed at the lack of rain. In three months of being in Pakistan it did not rain once - whats that all about!! I was based in the Clifton area of town and was suitably impressed by the life style. Some great restaurants about with a nice mix of cuisine. Clifton boasts a very smart shopping centre too with everything you could ever wish for - sadly even a McDonlads is there. I was warmed by the friendliness of the locals though got a bit bothered by people coming up and asking which part of London I was from - only to find they were on holidays from UK visiting family!! Being Pakistans main port city there is lots of activity ... read more
A sad reality in Karachi now adays
beach scene Karachi




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