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Islamabad...hot..very hot...very very hot...and we camped! But....I did find a swimimng pool! After Polly being molested by an old man we made our way to the Faisal mosque, the biggest mosque in the world! It's a very modern mosque and it was a breath of fresh air chilling out in the gardens. We also met some really nice people who were interested in chatting and not just having their photos taken with us! We then escaped the heat in the marriot hotel and were treated like royalty! I can't help but feel there is something wrong with the fact that just because you are white you deserve to be treated like royalty! We walked into the marriot dressed like...well travelers....not at all glamourous! It almost feels a bit uncomfortable! Anyway! I did like Islamabad...though it's a bit like Canberra...spread out with no center as such...a bit different from it's neighbour Rawalpindi!Our arrival in Lahore was...very hot yet again...a heat wave meant temps of 45-50degrees....and an irate group of EOEers as it took 2 and a half hours to get a hotel! I loved Lahore...I wandered the streets with Will and Polly and Ave as they all bought new cameras and then we wandered aimlessly around the bazaars! There were actually real women in the streets. fter dinner we attended a sufism night(this involves muslims getting very stoned(we didn't know this in advance) and shaking their heads from side to side for approx 6 hours!!! It was an enjoyable evening until we left and got surrounded by hundreds of men...Martin and Will put us in a rickshaw and we got stuck in the traffic...there were hands groping us from all directions...I ended up punching 2 guys and shouting obscenities to several others! I reckon it's the most uncomfortable situation I've ever been in! It put a damper on the day and actually on our entire stay in Pakistan.I can't say I hated Pakistan...I can't say I loved it either. It was certainly an experience and one of the hardest things I've ever done. I loved the fact that every Pakistani owns a truck which they pay $150 t decorate...they earn approx $100 a week! It was cheap as chips for us...but they see you coming...we payed hugely inflated prices and it was still dirt cheap. I missed seeing women...not seen or heard...and with a domestic violence rate of 90% it's hard to understand how they survive! Though headscarves were not compulsary...I found myself wearing it most of the time we were there. I hate to say it but I don't think Pakistan has much of a future at this point in time...or it's very hard to envisage. I do hope to visit again in the future and the KKH is not to be missed!So after a week of very hot weather and frequent visits to the toilets(oh how I would love to sit on one instead of squat)....bring on India!
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