Entry: Hotel Peshawar is now closed – the final visit Sunday, December 03, 2006

It is hard to believe that it is already December and we have waved farewell to our final visitors and are now preparing to leave Pakistan in less than two weeks…. Time has raced by and we are experiencing a mix of emotions about our departure.  Pakistan, and Peshawar in particular has been an exciting and unique experience, not always wonderful but never dull.  We have learned a lot about ourselves in the process and have created some unique memories for us as a family that we will treasure. 

Our final visitors were my father and step-mother (Brian and Ida) and they made the trip from Australia to coincide with the celebrations for John's 3rd birthday.  Having told them the weather was warm and sunny the day prior to their departure – there was a complete turn around and when they arrived 2 days later it was cold and wet and stayed that way for some time.  Sadly the poor weather meant that our planned trip to say good bye to all our friends in Chitral was cancelled as it was too risky to fly up as the road pass was closed with snow and if there were no incoming flights or limited ones then we would be stranded there for some time.  So Plan B was rolled out and we set off to see Swat.

 

Enroute we stopped off at Takht-i-Bhai which will be familiar to anyone who has been looking at this blog (if you feel it is over familiar imagine how we feel!  It has practically been our second home in the past months and now the chowkidar lets us in at a reduced rate – customer loyalty counts here too!)

 

Ida and I in the ruins – slightly less busy than Megan's visit and a lot colder than Emma's!  As you can see Pakistani food agrees with me and the pie-belly is growing – either that or there is something else going on. .  The road to Swat continues to be one of the worst in Pakistan but we are pleased to report that there are signs that things are finally happening and we witnessed road crews working on it as we drove up. 

 

Dad and John at a great little roadside café on the road to Malam Jabba – Pakistan's very own ski resort!  The owner had made an eye-catching feature out of the old juice cartons and crisp packets from previous clients  - stringing them around his site like bunting.  Definitely worked as it pulled us in for a drink and some great photo opportunities.

 

Testing out the chairlift at the ski resort – there was a smattering of snow about the place, just enough for a small boy (egged on by his father) to throw and snowball at his mother.  Needless to say after such abuse the mother retaliated and stuffed a particularly icy lump down the paternal front. 

 

Clouds and view on the way back down the mountain – it was a beautiful evening.

Below are two photos that escaped the sequence – they belong to Malam Jabba but who cares – a rarely seen shot of the family Gulland – usually I am taking the pictures.

Ida and John enjoying that Pepsi moment – or was it Coke?

Sunday is always a bad day to travel down the Malakand Pass and our trip was no exception – but it did provide us with opportunity to meet this charming gentleman who allowed John to try out his truck.

Small boy heaven, the inside of a Pakistani painted truck.

 

Dealing with the police at the check point

 

Talking of police Brian and Ida did the Kyhber pass trip and had the usual armed escort up the pass.

 

 

Now the main event of the visit was a small boy's 3rd birthday party.  Lots of smiles all round.

A birthday party means more presents

 

And Party games

Even pass the parcel.
   1 comments

Leza
January 7, 2007   11:17 PM PST
 
randomly came across your page.
Your song is just georgous!
Especially in the picture with the old man and his truck. John's eyes are just stunning!

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