The Land of the Giants
By Mashud Barlas
Westminster
Why do explorers, photographers, mountain climbers and tourists from around the world come to northern areas of Pakistan to carry out their expeditions? Why don’t many Pakistanis go to these regions for vacations? Is it dangerous or not well maintained? Are these regions the same places as seen in the photos or is it Photoshop that photographers use to enhance such pictures? These were the questions that were playing with my mind for years. Last summer, I planned to explore and photograph these areas!
To be honest, I was stressed out after my flight got delayed three times due to bad weather, But somehow, using personal contacts, I managed to get on an Air Force plane. The giant military plane took off from Nur Khan base and it maneuvered over many valleys but couldn’t land due to dense clouds and we landed back in Islamabad. By that time, I had lost all my hopes to see the beautiful places. The very next day I went to the airport to try my luck one last time and against all odds, the PIA plane took off.
The tiny Fokker made its way through giant mountains and dense clouds, and landed safely in a mysterious valley which lay between ice capped giants! With my brain shocked and soul revived, I just thought how could such a place even exist in the middle of nowhere! It took a few seconds for me to come back to my conscious world and I got a hold of myself and looked for the guys who were at the airport to receive. I travelled to a great resort that was about 20 minutes’ drive from the airport. After travelling to the resort, I realized that at the heart of this valley lay a beautiful lake. It was not like the other lakes that I had seen before; this truly was different. It was lively and its beauty spoke for herself. This lake gave a new meaning to the word fairyland!
My guest room was next to the lake. It was like a dream come true! The more I saw, the more I was lost in the mammoth beauty of this lake. The temperature was not freezing; it was moderate so this made the view even more enjoyable. After taking some photos of this spectacular lake, I settled down and sat beside the lake with a cup of coffee and thought to myself, “Why don’t people visit the place more?” We Pakistanis can afford to go to Dubai, Switzerland, America, Turkey, Maldives and Malaysia etc. but can’t afford to see such places, which are in Pakistan. I don’t think such amazing places can be found anywhere else across the globe!
This is Pakistan and we need to discover it first before going to foreign countries for vacations. I saw the sun go down in between mountains and taking my lively thoughts with it! The next day, I glued to my tight plan and I travelled between different valleys. It was a rough ride and it took me over an hour to enter. Throughout the ride, the different landscapes didn’t fail to impress me. There was a place in between both valleys that caught my eyes. A grand river cutting its way through the valley, the ice caped mountains at back and a desert like area between the mountains and some green trees. This landscape was something I haven’t seen very often. I felt honored to get many types of landscapes in a single click and I froze this memory for lifetime. After seeing this lush green valley, I truly realized how key an area these beautiful, scenic places are for Pakistan’s tourism industry.
Many of the regions in Northern Pakistan also have mineral-rich mountains, which have a lot of potential and are truly a key region, in the future, for Pakistan. Thanks to the help of the Tourism Department and with its future help, these ‘Lands of the Giants’ can help boost Pakistan’s economy even more, as well as unlock the foreign investment gates. After visiting many lakes that were as high as 2,500 meters above sea level, I had to say goodbye to a truly magical region. It was quite overwhelming to see everything in one day but I felt happy that I did.
There’s still much more to see but at that time, the holy month of Ramadan was just around the corner so I left other places to be discovered the next time. The very next day, I came back to Islamabad. While standing at the airport, I promised these giants that I would visit them yearly! To all those who are reading this, I have one thing to say: “This is Pakistan, discover it first!”
(A student at Westminster, MashudBarlas is an award-winning photographer and author)
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