Islamabad

I must admit that I was very disappointed by Islamabad. After forming impressions about Pakistan in the Hunza valley I'd expected the capital to be fairly well developed.

The exact opposite is true.

I was trying to think of how to sum up Islamabad – and all I could think of was that it feels like a city recovering from a war – but that seemed too melodramatic. Except when I was in Lahore I got chatting to a British guy who described the city in exactly the same way – so I guess there must be something in the description.

Having arrived and found a place to stay, I headed to the Indian High Commission to apply for a visa, only to find I'd missed them by 30 minutes.

Just to get into the Embassy “enclave” is hard work – there are security checks and concrete blast barriers around the perimeter, and every car is checked for bombs. It took me a bit of negotiation to get in through the gate (bizarrely I had to promise to “call in” at the British Embassay for them to finally let me go into the enclave).

Once inside, security is really tight - you can't even see the British Embassy: it's hidden behind a blast proof perimeter fence which is covered in razor wire.

It was certainly very unsettling – and as I walked past the newest 5 star hotel in town on my way back to town and saw the security measures they were using - I started to wonder just how safe it was in Islamabad.

To top it all I met a Pakistani from London in one of the markets who told me that he thought I was crazy coming here because of the security situation...

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One thing that really surprised me is how little English people speak. It's not uncommon to find people with very little or no English – including those who come into contact with tourists on a regular basis.

After meeting so many well educated people in Hunza - it was a real surprise to find the opposite in the capital...

And there's not really that much to see in Islamabad.

In Islamabad there's the Faisal Sha mosque – which is said to be one of the biggest in the world. And while it looks impressive from a distance – it's only when you get up close that it becomes obvious that it's a concrete pour and paint job.

The main courtyard of the mosque:



One of the four huge minarets – there's an urban myth that the CIA were worried that they contained missiles and asked to inspect them (you could almost believe it :-)



The mosque – Pakistan's answer to “modern” architecture:



The other thing to do here is visit Taxila an hour's journey from the capital – which has ruins from the 6th Century BC. While the museum is a total waste of time and money (foreigners have to pay 200 rupees to see the two very small and disappointing rooms), the rest of the main sites are worth the trip. It's incredible to think how old the ruins are here, and reflects the rich history of this part of the world and it's connection with the silk route.

The Dharmarajika mound – this Buddhist stupa was built in the 3rd century BC - it's unusual in that it had Greek style columns to support the main building.



Buddha's feet – reflecting the spread of Buddhism from India more than two thousand years ago:



Remains of the ancient town of Sirkap – built 200 years BC in Indo-Greek style:









A boy watching sheep at the ruins:



On Monday I returned to the Indian High Commission. Security inside the Commission is very tight, and the whole place is covered in sand bags to absorb bomb blasts.

After a total nightmare which took most of the morning trying to get the form filled in (it has to be typed – not hand written) I returned to the Commission and spent 15 minutes trying to get my visa form submitted. The first five minutes were spent hearing how dangerous Pakistan was and how I shouldn't even be here.

The second five minutes was spent listening to the man telling me I should have applied for the visa in London. When I explained I'd been on the road seven months and it would have expired I was told that that was irrelevant – I should have applied in London!

For the final five minutes I was repeatedly told that it was highly unlikely that my application would be granted - because we lived in “difficult times”.

Whatever...

So with nothing else to do – I headed to Lahore...