En Route

So, instead of doing a standard journal-esque entry, I thought I'd share my written notes of the journey there. All have been recorded in my Moleskin notebook (which is actually a very cool item. <nods his head to corporate sponsor>).

All of this is dated from August 27. Also, it might be helpful to refer to this map that I have artistically illustrated:

Hrrm. Remind me that I need some art work lessons when I return to Canada.

Ok, here are my notes:

- We drive past Taxila. Taxila, of course, was one of the most ancient and important archeological centres, possibly in the entire subcontinent. Some of the structures date back to the 6th century BCE. I remember, when I was 10 years old, begging my mom to take us to Taxila, only to hear from other family members about how the entire region was too dangerous. I smile wryly when I realize the irony of how much more dangerous it is 9 years onwards.

- As we pass through Hasan Abdal, Irfan Uncle points out a gurdwara on the top of one of the hills. Hasan Abdal was a place of great importance to many Sikhs. He states, smiling, that many Sikhs used to make pilgrimages to the area before it got dangerous here. Later on, after I did some more research, I found out that the temple is the Gurdwara Panja Sahib, where there is supposedly a rock with the handprint of the Guru Nanek imprinted on it.

- We zip past a sign on the highway. On the sign is written, "STAY ALERT STAY ALIVE". I imagine this to be useful advice for everyone in Pakistan.

- As we draw near to the Ghazi Barotha Dam at the Indus river, I ask Irfan bhai if dams could have helped to save people's lives. While he acknowledges that this might have helped people in the provinces of Sindh and Punjab, he doesn't think this would have helped in the northern province- I'm not sure if I understand the reasoning here, but it  deserves further exploration.

- As we drive over the bridge crossing the Indus river, I remember a section from Plutarch's Lives: "To exaggerate his reputation, Alexander left bridles and armor that were much bigger than normal, and huge altars to the gods.  On a flotilla of rafts and barges, Alexander's army floated down the Indus River...Alexander's voyage down the Indus took seven months...Out of the 120,000 infantry and 15,000 cavalry that Alexander took with him into India, only one in four came back. The news about the difficulties he had in India, his brush with death, and the huge attrition of his army in the desert, all made the conquered nations think of revolution." I see Pakistani military vehicles rolling past us and worry just a little bit.

- As we drive through Swabi, I see that the landscape is getting more and more beautiful. It is so green that it actually hurts my eyes a bit.

- Malakand Agency- see people carrying tomatoes, which apparently is a specialty of the area.

- As we drive closer to the valley of Swat, we drive past the Winston Churchill Monument. The driver proudly announces it; apparently, Churchill stayed at that spot when he visited Pakistan before independence. I find it ironic that the driver's first real interraction with me, who hasn't really spoken much to me up to this point, is a result of Churchill's, and indeed the abiding colonial legacy.

- In front of the entrance to the valley of Swat, I see a sign that says, "These bad times will not last forever." And thus I enter the Swat valley.