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Pakistan

A nuclear power with a literacy rate of less than 50%. Home to some of the earliest of civilizations, yet unable to forge peace with her neighbors. This country of contradictions reminded us powerfully of many of the advantages we take for granted in our own lives and of the beauty inherent in all people.
Badshahi mosque in Lahore
The Badshahi mosque in Lahore 
Man at a tea stand in Chitral

The openness and willingness to meet and help travelers in their country set the Pakistanis apart during our stay there. Old men at tea houses gladly shared food and drink with us, in return for just a bit of conversation.
Dave and Suz at home in Lahore
So of course we did our best to fit right in!! 

Youngsters at the Khyber Pass

The smiles of the people were everywhere, from this girl and her younger brother on the Afghani border... 


To these boys in the wild west town of Peshawar
Hotel guard in Kalam
and this proud tribesman in the Northwest Frontier Province 

Life in the big cities (we were in Lahore) was a curious mix of the familiar and fantastic

Shrine of Sheikh Rukn-i-Alam in Multan
Tomb-mosque in Multan with the famous blue edging 


Inside the Wazir Khan mosque in Lahore
Shalimar Gardens in Lahore
On the way to evening prayers in Shalimar Gardens
Mural in Sheikhpura
A mural of Shah Jehangir in Shaikhpura 


Playing cricket at school

We were lucky enough to be invited to several weddings

Pakistani bride
Here a new bride, looking dutifully downcast about the prospect of leaving her family, is escorted from her home 

Susan's classroom assistant also got married in a lavish Christian ceremony

Once we got out of the big cities, life in the mountains was an entirely different prospect:


We met this family in the Swat valley

Working hard in Swat

A spectacular view of the Himalayas from an abandoned palace north of Skardu

Peshawar was perhaps the most wildly colorful city we visited. Near the Afghan border, it was swollen with refugees

 For many Pakistani women life exists behind the veil of purdah. These women in Peshawar are covered head-to-toe in a garment called a burka that keeps any male eyes from glimpsing the secrets within... 
Peshewar jeweler
An old man examining Afghani jewelry in a Peshawar shop

The transportation around Pakistan was full of color, noise, and smoke!


A row of buses waits at the Rawalpindi bus station
Pakistani bus
The view from inside a Pakistani bus. The women all had to sit in the front section, the entire inside and outside were decorated and painted, and the driver (yes, that's him on the right) keeps a close watch on the goings on.
Dave at the Khyber Pass
Dave en route to the Khyber Pass

Special Excursion!! Come visit a Pakistani rug making factory

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