Project Pakistan turned 1 today!
A street covered with rose petals, they were spread out to dry by farmers ready for export
Photo by: KM Chaudary
Jewel of Manora’s Crown. Or is it? There is so much at this tiny strip of the land that it makes you wonder why is this place not flocked with tourists. An old lighthouse flanked by a protestant church. This scene should be cherished and not guarded by unwelcoming navy check posts and unfriendly chowkidars.
Manora’s lighthouse is the tallest in Pakistan. It was inaugurated on April 1, 1889 and its light is visible from 20 nautical miles. Hyper-radiant Fresnel lens is used to generate the light reaching this distance. The original lighthouse at the same place was erected in 1851 which was replaced by much taller lighthouse in 1891 with increased traffic reaching Karachi port. The current lighthouse is 91 feet tall.
The small protestant church right next to it is called the St Paul’s church. It is much older than the current lighthouse and its roof stands on wooden trusses. The place is locked up and too bad even the chowkidars at the lighthouse were not welcoming. You need to know someone to make your way in. Photography is prohibited. It is beautiful from inside. Bold paint, design and light adds to the flavour. The swirling staircase gets narrower as you reach closer to the top. The place is really old. The optical setup from good old days is intact and maintained well by KPT. The base on which the giant optical setup rotates is not fueled by a generator but is winded using a key! Move out to the balcony and experience the view. Feel the vastness of Arabian Sea. Turn around and witness the vastness of the city. Its rusty skyline, narrow lanes of Manora town, busy kemari port, fast moving boats, magnificent oyster rocks. Everything looks tiny, pure and free of trouble. You feel like believing in the city again, drowning all its sorrows in your heart.
The view needs to be shared with all. It move you in a way very few things can.
Why would an American singer want to sing in Pakistan and share her feelings for this country with her people back home? Well, Heather Schmid says she has plenty of reason to be doing so.
5 things you don’t know about Pakistani People…
1. PAKISTANI PASSION :
I love the intensity with which Pakistani people love their country, food, life, sports, and music. A bustling nation full of life and expression. There are no inhibitions here! Not a shy nation.
2. PAKISTANI HOSPITALITY:
Pakistanis’ make you feel just like one of their family. They open their hearts to you. I love the open Hearts ( khoola dill) and brave hearts (zinda dill) of Pakistani. Everything that has gone on, there is still this feeling of openness.
3. TALENT/INTELLIGENCE
Pakistanis’ are really smart. They know the ground realities regarding politics, politicians, economics and world politic. There are just a lot of smart articulate people here. And, they will tell it like it is.
4. PAKISTAN- FUN LOVING NATURE
I found the average Pakistani to be free, fun loving, positive and upbeat. I love the spirit of celebration from Basant to Marriages to Palistan cricket team winning celebrations. This is a nation that likes a good party.
5. CARING
I love how everyone here is called Auntie or Uncle. There is a cultural respect of elders that is really refreshing. People commonly refer to each other as sister and brother, older people have titles, parents are not called by there first names. That is not even mentioning the major charities like EDHi which helps the country provide ambulance services and emergency relief through out the whole country. A really honest respected charity.
People don’t know all of the good qualities about Pakistanis. The fun loving, the smart, the charitable, the caring part. I was reminded when I was in Pakistan this time people are getting the wrong idea about Pakistan. So, I should at least talk about my experiences in Pakistan. How I was treated, how easily I traveled throughout the country and how nice everyone was to me.
Pakistan Zindabad
CNN Presents : Heli Skiing in Karokoram Mountains of Pakistan.
Heliskiers from about 6 countries who completed the first ever Heliskiing on the high altitude mountains of the mighty Karakoram range. The group was assisted by Pakistan Army to reach the skiing point without hiking up.
Play cricket in Pakistan – it’s safer than you think
By: Rob Crilly (The Telegraph)
Rob Crilly is Pakistan correspondent of The Daily Telegraph and The Sunday Telegraph. Before that he spent five years writing about Africa for The Times, The Irish Times, The Daily Mail, The Scotsman and The Christian Science Monitor from his base in Nairobi.
The history of England versus Pakistan cricket matches is filled with umpiring disputes. My favourite came in 1956, when a touring MCC team became increasingly frustrated with the decisions of Idrees Beg, who was apparently rather too willing to raise his finger to home appeals. After dinner, a group of MCC players donned masks and “kidnapped” the umpire, brought him back to their hotel and doused him with water. In some versions of this colourful tale, they debagged him, leaving him to run through the streets of Peshawar naked from the waist down.
Yes, that’s right, Peshawar, capital of what was then called North-West Frontier Province.
The city stands at the restive gateway to the Khyber Pass. The city is filled with Pashtun tribesmen, many from across the Afghan border, giving the place a lawless frontier feel. It was here that CIA officers spotted the cellphone of Osama bin Laden’s courier, the man who led them to the al-Qaeda leader’s lair. Staff at the US consulate in the city have been attacked repeatedly since 2010.
British diplomatic staff are not allowed in the city at all – with or without trousers. It is difficult to believe test cricket was being played there only six or seven years ago.
I was reminded of the tale of Idrees Begg’s possibly apocryphal trousers at the weekend when it emerged that English cricketers were being warned not to travel to Pakistan to take part in the Pakistan Super League (PSL), a T20 tournament to be held in March. The country has been off limits to international XIs since the terrible attack on the Sri Lankan team bus in 2009.
It is true that Pakistan is a dangerous place. If you are a Shia, a Pakistani politician from Karachi, a 15-year-old girl who criticises the Taliban or if you venture into the tribal lands that butt up against Afghanistan, this is a country filled with danger.
Yet that is not the country that I know. Islamabad is a gentle city of roundabouts and parks. Today teams of gardeners are tidying verges ready for replanting. Yesterday, I strolled into the Margalla hills surrounded by families having picnics. Nowhere in Lahore or Karachi have I been made to feel anything other than welcome. Not once have I been concerned for my safety.
Too often the outside world seems to think it knows better. The bleak portrayal of the country in Kathryn Bigelow’s Zero Dark Thirty (I can assure you that American diplomats are not sleeping on sofas or slumming it with shared kitchens) or video games such as Medal of Honor, seem to suggest terrorists on every corner.
Forget all that. Instead follow the example of former Spurs star Graham Roberts and Irish rugby player Justin Fitzpatrick who have both had coaching stints here. Geoff Lawson has apparently let it be known he’d like to coach one of the PSL teams and Julien Fountain, from Sussex, is the current fielding coach of the Pakistan team, working under Dav Whatmore, an Aussie.
So my message to England’s players is: forget the dire warnings, and come and see for yourselves. My spare room is at your disposal. Although I would advise you not to kidnap anyone in Peshawar.
Top 10 most Famous Pakistanis ! Do you Agree ?
9) Huma Abedin
Where Yasmeen Ghauri may be a success story most Pakistani parents fear, Huma Abedin is probably their dream child. Abedin was born in Michigan to an Indian father and Pakistani mother, but raised in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Hoping to become the next Christiane Amanpour while attending George Washington University, she applied for an internship in the White House Press Office. She was instead hired as an intern for Hilary Clinton in 1996, eventually becoming Clinton’s personal aide. During the 2008 presidential race, Abedin’s title was “Travelling Chief of Staff,” and she now serves as Secretary Clinton’s Senior Advisor. Abedin herself is rather elusive for being a fairly public figure. Personal information is hard to find, aside from her recent engagement to New York Democrat Anthony Weiner. But her fashion and unflappability is renowned in both stylistic and political circles, resulting in a 2007 spread in Vogue. She has gained respect and complimentary quotes from Oscar de la Renta and John McCain alike, and her fluency in Urdu and Arabic has served Clinton well, as Huma is often consulted on issues pertaining to the Middle East.
About the list
(As children of the South Asian Diaspora, actors, actresses and musicians of Pakistani descent are becoming far more visible in American and European media. Television, once homogenously white and black, now has a sprinkling of other cultural colors. Recent music has long evolved to more of a multicultural beat than simply the Beatles’ use of sitars and tablas in the 60s.
As part of gotmilk blog’s Top 10 theme this month, we at Divanee thought we’d explore the world of pop culture and see which celebrities add a little ‘Pakistani’ to the mix. How many did you know about? Any surprises? Who else can you add to the mix? )
Top 10 most Famous Pakistanis ! Do you Agree ?
10) Jessica Lucas
This 24-year old, half-Pakistani/half-Haitian Canadian actress is currently playing the role of Riley Richmond on the revamped series, Melrose Place. Playing a hot-to-trot elementary school teacher with commitment issues, Lucas isn’t new to the scene of tween-television. She had a recurring role on the new 90210 as an undercover cop posing as a student, and prior to that she starred as Bekka Lawrence in the Canadian-based teen show Edgemont. CSI fans may have seen her play Ronnie Lake for a four-episode arc or perhaps you may remember her as Lily Ford in the 2008 JJ Abrams film Cloverfield. Lucas’ dream project is “something in the musical realm.” Having achieved box-office success on the big screen and now small, the only place left for this artist to breakthrough is on Broadway.
About the list
(As children of the South Asian Diaspora, actors, actresses and musicians of Pakistani descent are becoming far more visible in American and European media. Television, once homogenously white and black, now has a sprinkling of other cultural colors. Recent music has long evolved to more of a multicultural beat than simply the Beatles’ use of sitars and tablas in the 60s.
As part of gotmilk blog’s Top 10 theme this month, we at Divanee thought we’d explore the world of pop culture and see which celebrities add a little ‘Pakistani’ to the mix. How many did you know about? Any surprises? Who else can you add to the mix? )
“Lab pe ati hai dua ban k tamana meri , zindagi shama ki surat ho khudaya meri” Allama Iqbal
(From the Lips comes a Prayer in the form of a Desire ; My life should emulate a Candle, Oh God) A candle burns itself to provide light for others)
On November 14th 2012 , I had a chance to dine with 5 extraordinary women who by trade were bluegrass musicians touring Pakistan. A befitting name to the group , “Della Mae” - kept its true american spirit of bluegrass traditional music as they performed and made countless fans from Pakistan.
I had the good fortunes of meeting these lovely ladies through our very own Ms. Natasha Ejaz who performed on a number of shows with Celia,Jenni lyn, Shelby,Kimber and Courtney. Each a star in their own right is truly a master in her craft, especially a two time national fiddle champion Kimber Ludiker.
In celebrations of “Iqbal Day” on November 9th, a local Pakistani holiday celebrating its national poets anniversary ; Della Mae and Natasha Ejaz prepared an Urdu song based on Iqbal’s poetry ‘Lab pe ati hai dua” astonishingly in less than 20 minutes before the show. Words to the song are truly beautiful which is included as a prayer in many Urdu schools through out Pakistan and recited during the school assembly sessions.
Here is a link to this outstanding performance: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=492905237407820
A day before leaving for their next country of tour ‘Kazakhstan’; Della Mae spent their afternoon with children from less privileged background. After a playing their complete line up and then some more , the group showed their instruments to the children and allowed them to play it. For me, that moment was the highlight of their tour to our country. Being able to not only share their music with the young ones but also hoping to inspire Pakistani children to pick up a Kimber’s fiddle or a Jenni lyn’s mandolin or the monstrous yet beautiful Shelby’s double bass.
The week Della Mae were in town , they made all the headlines and for the right reasons - but what ladies will be most remembered for their cover of Nazia Hasan’s classic hit number ‘Boom Boom’ with Natasha Ejaz. Enjoy this performance and I hope Della Mae will be back soon.
Thank you for reading and may you Live long and Prosper.
Congratulations to Sana Saleem !
Sana is a blogger for the Guardian, Dawn.com and Global Voices. Her blog Mystified Justices was awarded Best Activist Blog by Google & CIO Pakistan blog awards 2010, and best regional blog by brass crescent society.
Visit: http://sanasaleem.com
Malala Yosufzia , Hussein Haqqani and Farah Ispahani also made 2012 FP list.
Artist of the Year 2013 : Imran Qureshi
Deutsche Bank’s art programme has announced Pakistani artist Imran Qureshi as its “Artist of the Year” for 2013.
Watch this short video.
The legendary Jahangir Khan
Those who oppose women rights have learnt God’s religion without Fatima.
Respond with ‘Peace’
Forbes Magazine cover: Pakistani American billionaire Shahid Khan. Auto-parts supplier and NFL team owner.
“With sweat and smarts, Pakistan-born Shahid Khan built a $3.4 billion manufacturing juggernaut from the ruins of an Illinois auto parts maker. To celebrate, he just bought one of the worst teams in the NFL, with the pledge of a similar turnaround. Only in America, folks
