Low Back Sprain

My Dear,
The last day at Peshawar, I had some spare time. I decided to visit the hotel gym to use the treadmill and weights. Beside the gym there is a badminton court and by chance I saw the gym minder with two rackets. He offered me a chance to play and we played a game. Towards the end of the game when he was leading 13 to 12, I tried to retrieve his drop shot (Malaysia boleh spirit). Then the unthinkable happened...., I sprained my lower back. Then I was not sure whether it was a result of overstretching or tearing of the soft tissue. Yesterday, after several hours of sitting in the bus, the sprain got worsened and now I am feeling the agony. Today, at Pak Halim's house, I borrowed his hot water bottle and a tube of deep healing rub. If it got worse tonight, I plan to visit the clinic tomorrow.

Looks like I am going to miss my jogging routine for at least a week. Will try to compensate with light exercises. Anyway no bed rest for me as I think prolonged bed rest can lead to a loss of muscle strength, and may in fact make muscles stiffer, adding to pain and discomfort.
Thinking of you...

NWFP, FATA and Khyber Pass

Phew!! This must be one of the most exhaustive weeks that we have had. After returning from AJK (see previous posting), we departed for the next visit to North West Frontier Province (NWFP). The journey to Peshawar took us about three hours, with a break at an attraction along the way. The Attock Fort, situated along the bank of the Indus was built by the Moghuls, during the period of Akhbar the Great. The fort overlooking the Indus and Kabul rivers is strategically located, currently housing one of Pakistan Commando Units. We were also taken to a room where the former PM, Nawab Shariff was housed when he was under arrest; before his self exile to Saudi Arabia. Further along the way, we came across to PAF Bases, i.e. at Kamra (home of the Mirages) and at Risalpur (a training base). I remembered few of our colleagues passed through PAF Base Risalpur as QFIs (such as Uncle Loke, Alwi, Mohan and late Rashiff).

We reached Peshawar and checked into the Pearl Continental. That night we were invited by one of our colleagues (a local) to sample a local Bar-B-Q at one of the hotels in town. The next day we called upon the Chief Minister of the Province. Quite an interesting character. He insisted to converse in Urdu and fond of giving long answers to our short questions. For the allied officers' benefit, his answers has to be translated and that intensified the agony. NWFP is one of the most backward province in Pakistan. Some of the social economic indicators are high population growth, very high poverty (45%), very low literacy rate (56% amongst men and 25% amongst women) narrow resource base, low human resource, heavy debt burden. Nonetheless some of the potentials available are hydel potential, forestry, minerals and gemstone and gateway trade with Afghanistan and Central Asian Republics. The other major problem is that, currently the province is home to about 1.8 million Afghan refugees. At the height of the conflict, the province had close to 4 million refugees. After 20 years most of them has returned to Afghanistan, but whatever remains has more or less got integrated into the society. The problem is, they continued to be part of social ills as most of them are engaged in illegal activities, mostly smuggling, poppy cultivation (currently about 6,000 acres)and gun running. After the visit to Chief Minister, we visited the Army 11 Corps were we had lunch. No 11 Corps is responsible for the security of the whole province, including Federal Administered Tribal Area (FATA). The army only entered FATA in 2001 (consequent to Pakistan's joining the war against terrorism) as before this, the area is considered very hostile and out of army's jurisdiction. FATA is ruled by tribal warlords called Maliks. No 11 Corps was also involved in the recent earthquake relief, whereby in NWFP there were 22,000 death and 15,000 injuries.

That night we were invited to the governor's house for dinner. The governor (an ex-Navy officer) gave us a specific briefing on FATA. FATA comprised of 7 districts, Bajaur (where the recent US attack took place), Khyber, Kurram, Mohmand, Orakzai, North and South Waziristan. FATA is loosely governed by the central government, through the provincial governor. The governor is assisted by local administrators called "political agents" nominated from the various tribes. Here warlords rules and tribal law called "jigra" (council of the elders) is used to settle any disputes amongst various tribes. It is also based on "collective responsibility" whereby the whole tribe will be held responsible until the culprit is identified (sounds like our cadet days at RMC). The justice is swift and punishment harsh (again, sound like the cadet days). FATA has been the frontline area on many occasions. When the Soviets invaded Afghanistan in 1979, FATA was used by the US as a conduit to transfer weapons and also as training grounds for mujahideens. These mujahideens, mostly from Arab states (see my earlier postings) are later to become part of the problem to the US. Whatever remains here, formed the Al-Qaeda and of course, FATA is always their sanctuary, until today.

The next day, we visited the famous Khyber Pass. We traveled to the famous Khyber Pass, which sits on the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Khyber pass is about 33 kms long and the narrowest part used to be only passable by two camels. Currently, it is about 33 meters wide and work is still proceeding to widen the part to permit traffics. We visited the "Khyber Rifles", a sort of border militia (Frontier Force) that guards the region. We saw tribal dances, had lunch and toured a well-documented museum. They had pictures of numerous world leaders who had visited the area including Jackie Kennedy, three US Presidents, Princess Di, the Raja Permaisuriri Agong (the late mother of present Agong) and several other world leaders. We were told that $2 billion in trade passes from Pakistan to Afghanistan on this road every year. That doesn't count the smuggling that occurs which would add a huge amount to the total. This area of the NWFP is part of the tribal areas you hear about on the news. The terrain is rugged and so are the people. The border is over 600km long and to say it is difficult to patrol is an understatement. The border between Pakistan and Afghanistan referredred to as the Durand Line. The line was agreed as officiboundarydry line betweBritishish India and Afghansitan on 12 Nov 1893. Sir Henry Mortimer Durrand from the British side and Amir Abdul Rahman Khan from the Afghan side signed the historical document. We past several villages. Many of the manfolks just sit by the road side watching the vehicles passing by. Looks like this is the main activity of the folks here. Many of the homes sit behind massive walls made of brick, dirt, or mud. The walls are so high you can't see the homes behind them. There's no telling what goes on in this area; it's truly an unsolvable policing problem.

We struggled back to the hotel in the evening, dead tired from the tough journey to the Pass. Nevertheless, I am glad I made it to the place as I have heard so much about it.

Note: Photographs of the trip can be viewed in my photo blog here.

Decision Making Process

We had free morning today for us to recuperate from the arduous bus ride. At noon we had a lecture by one of the DS (an OR qualified) on Decision Making Process. Good lecture. During the lecture he made reference to the "making of right and wrong decisions" and quip that fighter pilots (he himself being a fighter pilot) make decision "shooting from the hip". During the Q&A, I commented that as fighter pilot we were trained to make quick and impromptu decisions, in both offensive and defensive situations. Sometimes, we do not have the leisure of time on our side. The OODA Loop propounded by Boyd, taught us to make the right decisions in the constraint of time, complete with "what if" options. Fight is very dynamic and fighter pilots need to weigh these options in that little time before loosing the opportunity. The time we ran out of these options, we will be dead.

Did my routine jog this afternoon and thereafter another session at the local gym. I suffered on the scale due to two days of hotel food and Kashmiri kourma. Promised to get rid of that extra kilo by pounding myself a bit more. Will pack gym gear for my next trip to Peshawar. Should be e good trip and looking forward to visit the famous Khyber Pass. Deposit my luggage in the afternoon for our trip to Peshawar. After that, I hopped across to F7 to get myself a pullover (blue in colour - to match my uniform). Need that in case its chilly during the visit. Cost me Rp 700 (about RM 43).

Next blog posting, InsyaAllah will be in three days time. Take care.

Azad Jammu & Kashmir

Woke up this morning with a splitting headache (the two panadols I took last night gave me only slight relief). It must be the consequent of the arduous coach ride we had the last two days. You see, we started our visit to Azad Jammu & Kashmir (AJK) on Sunday with a night-stopover at Murree. Murree, situated about 7,000 feet, is a highland tourist destination for the locals and also Pakistanis as far away as Karachi. The journey was slow as we traveled in an convoy of six coaches. At the top, it was chilly as the temperature plummeted to almost zero during the evening when we arrived. We stopped at army unit for some hot tea and fresh pakora before we checked in (only the allied officers - as the local officers were boarded at the army lodges) at the Pearl Continental. Our stay at this beautiful hotel was only for dinner, night cap and breakfast and we paid USD 100!!

The next day, we started early to AJK. It was a long and difficult journey, mostly downhill through a winding road. Certain parts the road was damaged due to the recent earthquake and the coach had to carefully negotiate through landslides and crevice. The ride became more exciting whenever we had to overtake big overloaded trucks. We arrived Muzaffarabad (the capital of AJK) at 1100 am for again a nice cup of Kashmiri tea and more pakora.

AJK (freed states of Jammu & Kashmir) is the Paksitani part of the divide and for its history and other literature its official website can be viewed here. On 8 Oct 05, AJK was devastated by an earthquake and the epicentre was actually at Muzaffarabad. We were actually supposed to visit Muzaffarabad in middle of October, but was postponed due to the calamity. Well, this city was almost completely ruined. We saw many damaged buildings, homes, hospitals and schools (the Neelum hotel, where we were supposed to stay during our earlier proposed visit actually disappeared into the Neelum river) Many of the affectees are placed in tents and makeshift shelters. In AJK the earthquake destroyed more than 240,000 houses leaving 43,000 dead and injuring 30,000. It was a sheer devastation.

Currently, No 12 Div of Pakistan Army is in-charge of reconstruction. The Div Commander told us that the challengers are the reconstruction of shelters, schools, hospitals, roads, the maintenance of law and order, transportation of goods to effected areas (mostly done by helicopters), prevention of epidemics, provides medical and trauma attention and provides safety for foreigners and NGOs. To assist them, AJK also has many foreign troops from US and NATO forces plus assistance from the UN. At the height of the search and rescue efforts, a total of 16 foreign teams were present, including Malaysian SMART.

We finished off our visit with the President of AJK (an ex-Maj General and also NDC trained). During the dialogue, I managed to ask him a question about the opportunities of people to people contacts between the two sides of Kashmir that can provide impetus towards final destination of peaceful settlement.
After the dialogue we were feasted with Kashmiri delight, including a delicious Kashmiri mutton kourma (similar to our own kourma).

With full tummy and our thoughts with the unfortunate Kashmiris, we started our journey back to Islamabad. This time round we did not stop at Murree. Again it was through the long and winding road, uphill to Murree and downhill towards Islamabad. We arrived campus at 8 pm, with swirling heads.

What is hot in Malaysia

Today I am compelled to join the bandwagon in the ongoing discourse on Article 121 (1a) of the Federal Constitution. This article states that the Civil Court has no jurisdiction on matters under the purview of the Syariah Court. From what I understand, there was a joint memorandum submitted by 10 non-Muslim cabinet ministers, urging a review on the laws related to conversion of religion. Well in my humble opinion, 10 ministers constitutes almost a third of the entire cabinet. Also, it can be argued that they are looking after the interests of the Malaysian non-Muslims which constitutes about 40% of the entire population. Now the point is, 40% is quite a sizeable proportion and their interest needs to addressed. I am not trying to enter in any argument here, but just looking at things objectively, not emotionally. Muslims have to accept reality that living in pluralistic society, the interest of minority need to be taken care off. After all, some of the important constitutional principles that can be derived from the Sunnah of the Prophet is that the non-Muslim citizens of the state is to be based on sincere friendship, honorable dealing and mutual respect. On this issue, the PM was reportedly quoted as saying that only laws that can create problems and misinterpretations should be studied whether they should be amended to make them clearer. I agreed with him that the sub-clauses relating to religious conversion can be reviewed and ought to be looked into. The issue has it roots after the tussle over the religious status of the late M. Moorthy @ Mohammad Abdullah in December. Even today there is news on another similar case with regards to an 89-year-old woman, who was born a Malay Muslim. Her death has sparked off a controversy as the family wishes to perform her burial rites according to the Buddhist faith. Again in my humble opinion, there is certainly a problem here and sub-clauses of related article of the constitution need to be amended. The federal constitution need to be robust enough to adopt important changes as we move and progress in time. It should not be sacrosanct.

Dato' Azizan might want to know that at F7 the Afghan french fries is still in business and also the jagong goreng. However, I think their days are numbered as today I came across a pop-corn vending machine. (Above picture shows the jagong man. The guy in the middle appeared from no where - kat sini dia orang suka posing)

Malaysian Medical Team

Last night I attended dinner on the invitation of our Malaysian Medical Team who are going back to Malaysia in a few days time. The dinner is attended by the whole team plus officers from the High Commission. It was to mark the end of their stay in Pakistan to offer medical assistance to the earthquake victims. Our team, equipped with field hospital was stationed at Battagram, one of the village devastated by the earthquake. From my brief conversation with the leading doctor, our team was held with high esteem amongst the local and did a wonderful job. The team made up of 140 personnel with 15 doctors, including 6 specialist, like O&G, pediatrician and surgeon. From what I learnt, since the setting up of the hospital on 31 Oct 05, the team treated a total of 21,000 patients - an average of about 250 patients a day. They have done an excellent job. The pride of MAF and Malaysia. I am sure Malaysians will be hearing more of the team once they return.

This morning I finally finished my share of work for our Group Research Paper. Phew!!. Wrapped up my presentation text and e-mailed to the group leader for him to scrutinize. Upon returning from Kashmir and Peshawar, we will be making our slides, doing rehearsal and preparations for our final presentation on 18 Feb. Now I am also eagerly waiting for the feedback from the faculty on my early effort on Individual Research Paper. Once, that is cleared, I can say that major part of my work in this Institution has been done. No celebration yet, as we will be having two major exercises on Security and Policy Formulations next month. My hope is that I will be spared from the rigor of being nominated as leaders. Berdoa saje lah...

135 Days to Go

Friday and another week that got a tick in the box. One hundred and thirty-five days to go!!!! Actually its not my effort at all counting these number of days but we have amongst us a specialist in doing just that. One of our Nigerian colleagues is fond of doing the counting and if any one of us need to know numbers of days left, we just consult him. Way to go..

Today there was another effort at Group Research Presentation (GRP) by four participants. The discussion was about BMD and its Impact on Regional Security. Very heavy stuff, but I thought the research was very comprehensive and analytical. Presentation was very methodological and interesting. Again due to the classified nature of the discussion, I am not able to dilate much.
We also have a briefing on the impending trips to Kashmir and Peshawar. Looking forward to the trip and hoping for a clear weather and of course not too cold. On both occasion, will be staying at Pearl Continental. Last night, I bumped into Jamil at Kabul. Told him about my trip to Peshawar and confided to him of my intention to revisit Shiraz restaurant for that wonderful lamb barbecue. Hope we have spare time for that. Look out for my future blog on this point.

Thursday, Jan 19

Dear Luv
Just now, the telephone line that we have been asking, finally has been installed. Now I can communicate with you using phone cards (please view photo here). This will be a better alternative than the slow and voiceless yahoo stuff. The other day, maxis assured me that you are now international and can call me anytime you want. Masa belum tidur should be nice (memberahikan). Cuma take note the time difference. I miss you...miss you...miss you dearly.
This afternoon I went to the Obmen Valooti at Blue Area to change money. Today we got Rp 59.5 for every one USD. I need the Rp to pay for my trip to Muree and Kasmir this weekend.

Note on Urbanization
Another long day. We had student led Group Research Presentation (GRP) on Urbanization and its Impact on Socio Development. The group did relatively well by outlining the historical aspect and problems in Pakistan. Group also suggested some measures to be taken for the future. As I have written in my earlier blog, Karachi is an example of chaotic urbanization problem in Pakistan. Major problem is caused by the presence of "Kachi Vadis" (Pendatang Haram to us in Malaysia). Finally, a three-pronged strategy was proposed by the Group.
Today I have discussion with the guy from travel agency arranging for our Foreign Tour. The good thing is that, he promised to fulfill my request to fly me back to KL from London. I ask to fly direct, but he may be able to get me back via Frankfurt or Dubai. No complain, though. Berdoa semua beres!!

To my ex-MPAT colleagues - you probably remember the buzz words that were frequently used in the course. Words such as Hegemony, Paradoxical and Aggrandizement were often heard in the hall. Here, apart from hegemony, other common buzz words are Dichotomy, Compulsion and Nexus. In MPAT we always made reference to Sun Tzu, Clausewitz, Kenneth Waltz and Barry Buzan. Here, only two individuals, i.e. Ulama Iqbal and Quaid-e-Azam MA Jinnah. And here in NDC, we are not able to hear Jalal's remark "...from my reading...", or Ku Mat's Kelantanese slang. What a wonderful time we had at MPAT.

Terrorism and National Security

Long day today. We had Panel Discussion on the above subject. Quite interesting though. The panel was made up of an ex-Interior Minister, an academician and a senior police officer. The professor started the lecture by laying down some basic facts about terrorism from academic perspective. Terrorism is actually and old phenomena, dating back to the middle ages, but gain prominence since the last century. 9/11 brought new dimension to terrorism when the concept of state security is threatened by non-state actors. He said that it is there is no consensus in the definition of terrorism because of various interpretations of historical and political events. However, he presented four features. Firstly, it must be deliberate or pre-planned, secondly, targeted at civilians and non-military targets (soft targets), thirdly, it is instrumental in character – designed to achieve some political agenda by use or threat of violence and lastly, fear is created to mould behavior – objective is to intimidate. At the end terrorism need an audience as its implications need to be noticed by others to have its profound impact. Can we make reference to the US attack against Iraq, Afghanistan and more recently into Pakistan's territory (with the resultant collatoral damage) and say that the US is the terrorist?
He further added that today’s international system becomes more “status quo” oriented and shun any revisionist power. Case in point is the situation in Kashmir itself whereby Pakistan is considered revisionist, whilst India is considered Status Quo (in reference to the LoC). Among the measures needed to address the problem, the lecturer pointed out that there is a need for law and order, a need to address the root causes and a requirement for an overall global cooperation.
The second lecturer touched on sectarianism and ethnicity. Some interesting facts are; (1) during Soviet invasion in Afghanistan, encouraged by the West, Pakistan used to be the conduit for weapons and manpower (mostly from Arab Peninsular – as many as 25,000) (2) the West left Afghanistan in shambles with leftover of western and Soviet weapons (3) the fighters are considered persona non grata in their homeland - of which they become the founders of Al-Qaeda. The problem of today could have been avoided to a certain degree if Afghanistan was not left high and dry, and rebuilt with a stable political structure. In jest, the lecturer mentioned that post Afghan, Pakistan received four “gifts”; left over weapons, refugees (4 million), narcotics and religious extremism. To avoid detailing certain sensitive matters, I will not dilate on the points of sectarianism and ethnicity. But what is needed are justice, equitable sharing of power, creating “new” provinces (nothing wrong – he added), independence judiciary, genuine democracy and meritocracy.
The last lecturer was a class. He is full of wits and brought up some interesting anecdotes. He is the man on the ground- so to speak. He brought up some interesting facts and gave us new perspective on the internal dynamics of Pakistan. He also talked about the uncontrolled proliferation of weapons and narcotics at the border area. The most hilarious statement he made was about his visit to the “tribal area” in the course of his duty. The tribal leader offered him a metal “stool” for him to sit. He refused, saying that he prefer to sit on the floor like the others. The leader insisted, pointing out that “its is an anti-thank mine and your weight will not make any difference”. Another quip he made was when talking about international system and American hegemony. He said in a Gallup Poll, the requirement was to solicit opinions about food programme. It did not work in Africa as Africans do not know anything about food. It did not work in Russia as the Russians do not know anything about opinion. It did not work in Europe as Europeans do not know anything about “the lack of” and lastly it did not work in America as the Americans do not know anything about the rest of the world.
Finally, one of the speakers quipped that “if there is no double standard in international politics, the world will be boring and many people will loose their jobs".
It was a indeed an enjoyable day. Hope we have more days like this.
(note: my comments are in italics)

Today there was a break in the weather. It was bright and sunny with the temparature at mid-teens. Took the opportunity to jog and test myself for my jogging test this saturday. Found out that I am not up to the mark (RK, if you are reading this - my timing sucks!). Maybe I will give an excuse this saturday before I make an ass out of myself.

Tonight I took Manah and Zul for some Chinese (Jabri has other commitment). We had the usual stuff. Have a good chat and close the night with some chinese tea. Manah passed a chance for some Gulap Jamun at the sweet shop.

Composite Dialogue

Soon the two nuclear powered countries in South Asia will enter their third round of composite dialogue. The problem between these two neighbors has bedeviled their relation for the last 58 years since their partition. For the last six months we were here, this issue has been in the agenda in almost all the lectures, discussions and exercises. Of course, it is understandable since Indo/Pak relations has great impact on the overall security concern of both the states, external or internal. In one of our earlier syndicate discussion we identified two major steps taken by both governments to find an everlasting solution. One is the holding of composite dialogues and the other is the setting up of several Confidence Building Measures (CBMs). To a certain extent these has helped in putting the problem at rest. At least the ceasefire is holding and there are several openings at the Line of Control (LoC). Soon if all goes well there may be bus services across the LoC.

But my argument is that, these measures are steps taken at the official level by both the governments. There is a great need for the other form measures to be taken, such as by the NGOs and people themselves. After all, good and stable relations will serve the people. Currently,very little roles are being played by the organizations and people to people contact is almost nil. Whatever contacts they have are only amongst the people of Kashmir and even that in a controlled environment. What we have seen thus far is far from what we hope to achieve. During our visit to Wagah for the flag lowering ceremony we witnessed how people from both sides acted to the slightest provocation. The people treated the ceremony as a spectator sport, cheering and jeering and shouting provocative slogans. I always felt that the whole thing is actually a charade, designed to play with the emotions of the people from both sides. It certainly does not augur well with the need for non confrontational approach to the whole problem.

The role of the media is also vital in promoting people to people contact and molding positive opinion towards peaceful settlement. A while back, I happen come across a forum programme on the cable TV (CNN hosted by Jim Clancy) conducted to debate on this relationship issue, attended by audience made up of youngsters. From the questions forwarded, I gathered all of them wishes a normalization in relation and wishes the two countries to forget the pass, move on and progress. To me, the countries belongs to this generation and their opinion need to be taken aboard. Like I said in my earlier blog posting, both countries need to take positive steps in settling the issue. The window of opportunity is now and any further delay will not be good at all. Furthermore, the Kashmiris are continuing to suffer with this impasse, what more after the earthquake. One more thing - Kashmiris need to be in the whole equation and their opinion matters. Act now for the sake of the muslim ummah!!

Helen and Benj - if you are reading this posting, just to let you know that this weekend I will be going to Kashmir for our organised visit. We will be visiting Muzaffarabad and if the weather holds, will be able to peer across the LoC at IHK. Will let you know on the situation there once I get back. Will keep you posted.

Water Issue and Kalabagh Dam

Today we have a Panel Discussion on water distribution between provinces. The panel consisted three eminent speakers who talked on various issues concerning water distribution. Water distribution remains one of the hotly debated issue amongst all the provinces and currently the Water Accord of 1991 is used for the equitable sharing of this vital resource. Notwithstanding, this accord, other problem existing is the scarcity of water and energy (hydel) due to shortage of dams and the ineffectiveness of older dams due to sediment. The issue now is the proposal to construct several dams over the Indus, including the controversial Kalabagh Dam. This construction has its roots long ago, in 1953 to be exact. However, after all these years, no consensus has been reached between provinces on this matter. To Pakistan this issue remains a vital factor, as in few years time if water situation does not significantly improve, the country is going into a crisis situation. This is going to be bad for the country and the people. As stressed by the chairman of the panel, doing nothing is not an option.
Today after lunch, I offered my Oman, Saudi and Turkmenistan colleagues the pineapple that I had brought from KL. I took the opportunity to show my skill (or the lack of it) in slicing and preparing the fruit. They seems to be impressed and enjoyed the pineapple very much (nasib baik rasa manis - thank you Giant Supermarket)
Since before my departure to KL my beloved Compaq Laptop has been slowed down to a crawl. I guess it has been infected with some FODs from those countless numbers of garbage mails that I have been receiving. Luckily my Paper has been wrapped up. Nevertheless, I brought it to the computer shop to be cleaned up. It is working wonders now, moving like a brand new ferrari. Now, outside it is raining. Sucks!! Looks like I got to stick to the gym and pound my body on the new treadmill.

First Day of Third Term

Today we begin our third term. The seating has been rearranged and I am seated right at the back in a row of 12 (the ND Hall may be viewed here). Any further back, I will be joining the Commandant, as he seats right behind me. No more sleeping during lecture for me. Sucks!! It is a bit far to the screen for my comfort but I guess for this term not much time will be spent in the hall as we will have two major exercises and visits to the provinces. The day starts with a lecture on Debt Management. About the IMF, the lecturer quipped that at one time, this country is so much dependence on its loan that even his children knew whenever the IMF is in town. One factor he stressed was that, “exchange rate stability is very vital to debt management of a country”.

In the morning we greeted each other and exchanged eid-adha greetings. During this time, my Palestinian colleague noticed my Montblanc and exclaimed that I should not be using that pen as it is made in Israel. He pointed to the logo of the pen and said that it represents the Star of David (Magen David). I tried to explain to him that as far as I know, the signet actually represents the summit of Mont Blanc, the highest mountain in Western Europe - but I know he is not convinced. Well…not sure if I should auction off my precious Montblanc (this is my second set, as I lost my first one upon arrival).

In the local daily today, a news on Moscow Circus caught my attention. The circus is visiting Ulan Bator, Mongolia and currently the cold weather has effected the circus elephants. To keep them warm, they were given plenty of vodka. I remembered plenty of stories about vodka when we were in Moscow. We used to call vodka, “minyak cap kapak”. Not only it serves the Russian craze for highly spirited drinks, but also a cure for all. It was once used on me by my Russian colleagues when I accidentally bruised my forehead in a swimming pool during one of the banya sessions. However, the most hilarious occasion was when it was used by our bus driver when the demister was not working. It was in the middle of winter, during one of our family outing, when the bus developed the problem. The windscreen was misting up, causing him to loose his visibility. He took a bottle of vodka, poured it on a piece of cloth, and spread it throughout the windscreen. Walla… the mist cleared and he chugged along, leaving the whole bus smelling of vodka. I remembered arriving at the destination with the children almost intoxicated. There was another time when I developed a bad cold. My driver prescribed me a mixture of honey, eggs and plenty of vodka. After taking that concoction, I went to sleep (almost stone), and only to wake-up when I felt so hot under the covers and my whole body was drenched with sweat. The prescription actually works. Yum Seng to minyak cap kapak!!!

This afternoon I finally managed to continue with my jogging routine with a break in the dreadful weather. Been out of routine for the last one week whilst I was in KL, the 5 km jog seems to be a slow drag. My feet felt like lead. Continue with some exercises in the gym and found out that our gym has been equipped with a new treadmill. A welcome addition, in the event when the weather sucks.

This evening, we (German and Nigerian colleagues) were invited by our American friends to join them for dinner at their house at F8. It was a indeed wonderful dinnerbelievedelived they can cook very well.

Money,money,money

This is a story about Kadam Erfan (see my photo blog). The other day he came to my room and pulled out from his pocket a pile of notes. My eyes almost popped out as he plonked the pile on my table and gabble something in a mixture of urdu and little English. Most of the notes are in hundreds and thousands. Apparently one of his friend "found" the notes in one of the guest house in F7 where he is working. I inspected the pile and found out that it was made up of Nigerian Naira, Egyptian Pound, Chinese Yuan and Turkmenistan Manat. Hmm..found the notes eh, I thought. My mind began to wonder the unthinkable as we have amongst us colleagues from these countries. I tried to squeeze the truth out of him but with my limited urdu and his poor command of English , I failed. Nonetheless, he requested me to change the notes into Pakistani Rupee (to him besides Rupees, other notes are just pieces of paper). He seems to be eager to get the notes changed and I promised to assist. I hopped to the currency converter website and made the values in Rupees known to him. All that notes came to only about 200 Rupees (about RM 31). Gave him few Rupees extra for good measure. By chance I like to keep notes and I was still without some of these currencies. What caught my attention was the rates of Naira and Manat. One Rupee is equivalent to 2.2 Naira and equivalent to 87 Manat. 2000 Manat got him only 23 Rupees. I can see his disappointment.

Today's Log - Missed jogging today as the weather was dreadful. It was wet and cold. Went to Azman and Kathy's for lunch. Chance to meet a few Malaysian Mindef Officers on their way back to KL after their tour in quake area. Again campus was hit by power failure in the evening. Hopped across with Al-Manah to Kabul for some snacks. Again met a few Malaysian from Perlis who were here for volunteer works (Northern Volunteer).

Celoteh Cuti

One week in KL with the family really helped to bring up my sanity level. I managed to do all the things that I have jotted down in my checklist. Best of all the precious little time spent with the family filled up my "emotional bank account", that hopefully will last for the next couple of months. I had the steam Ikan Bawal like I dreamt and my first breakfast consist of what I missed most - Chok Kodok bilis fried to perfection, with good mug of hot steaming teh tarik (see my photo blog). Eid-Adha was spent in Kuantan and it was indeed a fun time as we performed the Qurban obligations. That night after reciting prayers, we had sumptuous meal of nasi minyak and gulai daging qurban (see my photo blog). Thank you to all the professional and amateur cooks that had pitched in. Tapi raya ni tak sempat berjemaah, sebab we were on the road. We got to leave for Kuantan only in the morning of the Eid, as the day before, abang was having his university semester examination.
Whilst in KL, two news items caught my attention. One is on the ongoing debate on the good and bad side of teh tarik and the other on the usage of handphones in school. To me like anything else that we consume, will be bad if taken too much. I do enjoy an occasional cuppa of this "national drink" but one must know the limit. As the drink is a concoction of sugar and condensed milk - it must be taken in moderation (Pok Ku has written something about this). About the handphone debate, I always wonder why the authorities prefer to implement their decisions and wait for reactions by the public. I thought it is wise to discuss and be debated before implementation!! As it is, the public reactions are understandable as in my opinion handphones in schools does not suit the environment and will have a lot of negative impacts. As I understand, the authorities decided to allow the usage based on requirements by some parents, and done in a haste without further study on their impacts. I have a feeling the decisions, like most of them, will be reversed. Authorities should not make arbitrary decisions, as education for our future generations is of great importance!!. As I read the ongoing debate in yesterday's daily, I also came across a story of using of handphone to recite a prayer for the dearly departed (there was a picture of a lady holding the handphone close to the grave). Looks like handphones has really ruled our life and changed our habit and behavioral pattern. What will they think of next??

Back to School and Travel Story

Alhamdulillah, syukur kami selamat sampai Islamabad as scheduled, pada jam 9.15 malam. We were pleasantly surprised with the beautiful night in Islamabad with a temperature of 13 degs C. The air was cool and the night was beautiful. However, all is not too well after all - when we reached our rooms, the whole campus was in total darkness - we have another power failure. I groped around in the dark and luckily managed to locate my emergency light. We decided to go to Jinnah and have some coffee in the hope the power will be restored upon our return. It was not to be the case, as I hit the sack at midnight. The power was however restored this morning at 5.
The flight from KL was smooth but we were delayed in Singapore for about an hour due to some problems with the loading of the cargo. The Captain offered his apology and promised to make up for the loss time. However he came back 5 hours later to let us now on the time of arrival Karachi and again apologized by saying that he tried but can't make up for the loss time due to strong head wind. I was just thinking then about "life". Some of us encountered headwind and some encountered tailwind. Like the advertisement that we saw at KLIA said, "Life is like a journey" - it has its beginning and ending. We may encounter headwinds or tailwinds, but hopefully we do not encounter much turbulence and rough weather.
Now, a bit of on-board story. Seating beside our row, we have a mother with two teenage daughters. They must be one of the most restless of passengers I have encountered. They keep on working through their on-board luggage for their beauty needs. The daughters boarded wearing tight jeans and T-Shirts and left the aircraft wearing typical Pakistani dress. On board (in the toilet, of course) they changed their clothing (including the mum) transforming themselves from a modern tourist to a typical homebound Pakistani. After their transformation, they keep on pouring countless bottles of perfume and skin care lotions. We also bumped into a Pakistani gentlemen and we striked a conversation with him. Quite an interesting fellow. The best quip was from him when he said "all countries in the world has an army but in Pakistan, the army has a country".
We arrived Karachi and rushed to the transfer desk. Alhamdulillah, we were on time to catch our flight to Islamabad. The flight was full and again we encountered restless passengers in the form of two Arab-speaking boys who chatted loudly and in high pitch, throughout the entire flight. What a night ....
This morning my biological clock woke me up at 5 am as power was restored. Today, weather permitting, I plan to catch up with my jogging and to tidy up the room. Signing off..
p/s - No damage to the pineapples and papaya.

Women Empowerment

This blog backdates to the lecture we had just before we break-off for our term break. It was rather interesting about women empowerment in Pakistan. We had three prominent ladies to address us. One of the presenter addressed a significant development in legal terms for women, the recently introduced “"Honor Killing Bill." This bill, introduced and approved in 2004 makes Honor Killing a culpable act, essentially murder and it is dealt with as murder in the nation'’s penal code. This act, which involved killing of young women who had married or fallen in love with someone other than the mate selected for them by their parents had been dealt with as a "“grave and sudden provocation"” in the past, essentially a crime of passion, without the consequences of premeditated murder, which is what it is. Unfortunately, this act is still largely driven by cultural norms and occurs quite frequently in the less developed rural areas. At present there are approximately 2 cases per day in Pakistan. The presenter discussed the cultural practice of "“vani"” which involved giving a young girl as consideration as a compromise of a dispute or promoting child marriages -– both of these are now prohibited by law; however, cases still exist, a 7 year old girl was recently given to a 40 year old man in Balochistan to settle a dispute. Another practice, the so called, "“jirga"” is an extra-judicial, tribal form of "rough and ready"’ justice based on customary law in the rural and tribal areas. It is an Indo-Pakistan specific concept. This practice is outlawed in the Sindh and Punjab provinces, but not in Balochistan, the Northern Areas, or the NW Frontier Province. There are essentially three parallel systems of justice in the country - the jirga, the sharia, and civil/criminal. In early Islam the main thrust of jurisprudence and training of jurisprudence came from women.
Property rights of women and inheritances are also a problem in this patriarchal society. Although these rights are not denied by religion, the dogma of current culture forces women to surrender their rights or not to receive their due share. The concept of gender is Pakistan is derived from an ideology of patriarchy, compounded by a stone age tribalism and robber baron feudalism.
Key impediments to gender equality in Pakistan are:
1. Justice reform and police reform - these are essential to ensure enforcement of laws and convictions of guilty in gender-based crimes.
2. A deep rooted bias and tradition of discrimination against women - this must be challenged; remember, power in politics must be "taken"” it is never "“given."”
The lecture rounded up with an optimistic note by pointing out the forces of change is gaining momentum and people are beginning to accept these changes.
Note: Malaysians may like to link the above with our own predicament as reported in today's Malay Mail.

Home Sweet Home

Alhamdulillah, arrived safely home today at 12 noon. Flight was delayed at Karachi for about an hour due to waiting for connecting passengers from Islamabad. We finally took off at 2 am. Managed to catch about 3 hours of well deserved sleep whilst on board as the flight was smooth without much problems. Now, I am writing this blogg from Seksyen 7, Shah Alam. Its good to be home. Looking forward for the rest of the week and to enjoy the favourate delicacies.

Bigfoot Vs King Kong

Hollywood has King Kong and Johor has Bigfoot. Looks like the Kong mania has got into us. One thing for sure, the orang asli concern can really sketch. He should be able to make a decent living drawing caricatures at the Central Market. One thing...I notice the "family jewel" is missing. Either he is a eunuch bigfoot or he need to visit Thailand for some enlargement session (as related by Pak Ku in one of his earlier blog postings). Anyway, one thing for sure, this bigfoot story will be good for the economy of Johor and the orang asli community. As reported, there will be an influx of tourists. Keep up the good work. - Sketch taken from NST Online.

Foreign Policy and Relations

This morning we heard from two Ambassadors. Firstly we have the US ambassador who generally talked about the regional security from US perspective and US/Pak relationship. The introducer, a Navy Commander, did very well in giving an overall scenario on the topic and also in introducing the speaker. In my mind, he some what threw the ambassador off balance (...talk about the strategy of preemption!!!). I managed to ask a question with regards to what I perceived the need for the US to play a more positive role in Indo/Pak relation, specifically on the Kashmir issue. He said that the answers to the dispute lies with the two countries and the people of Kashmir. The US has got minimal role, as often said by Secretary Rice.

The second talk was by the India High Commissioner who spoke eloquently on the topic of Indian Foreign Policy and Indo/Pak relations. He started off on the right note by appraising the audience on the Indian foreign policy formulation. He stressed that in the case of India, it was a good thing that any policy will be discussed and debated with the opposition and other interest group before it is formalized. In my mind that is why in India's case, they always has consensus in every issues. The Q&A was very interesting indeed. The audience had a field day posing very provocative and hard questions, but the High Commissioner was up to the mark, answering every questions with poise and confidence. He was indeed a season diplomat. The more questions were asked (almost all on the state of Indo/Pak relations) the more confident he got and at times I thought he is beginning to enjoy the session. The faculty cut short the session by half an hour for what I thought was a good move.

Off for my afternoon jog!!...chao

My Thoughts - For Pakistanis, the window of opportunity is now, for three reasons. Firstly, due to more pragmatic approaches shown by the present two governments, the relation is at its highest level. Secondly, the recent earthquake disaster experienced by Pakistan has brought the world to share the sorrows with Pakistan and the sufferings of the Kashmiris. There is probably a shift towards the Pakistan's cause. Thirdly, and most importantly, India is currently a regional economic power and given the stable economic growth of 6%, will be a world power soon. By then, if Pakistan's economy remains at the current status, the disparity will be too large and will not become a factor any more. The only way to get out of this poverty, illiteracy and backwardness quagmire is to have a everlasting peace with the eastern neighbor. Your neighbor will not put a brake to its quest for economic supremacy. It is to your interest to act now. Insyallah, Pakistan will have a better future. Pakistan need to move beyond Pakistan Zindabar.

Malaysia..oh..Malaysia

About an hour ago Jadoon delivered the flight ticket for home. Double happiness, as Halim was also here to process my Karachi claim. Insyallah, by Saturday will be home in time for Hari Raya Haji. Ticket price has gone up as I believed PIA has got no choice but to do so like all other airlines. Fuel prices has spiraled. I am now paying PKR 36,000 equivalent to about USD 600. Little price to pay considering my chance to be with the family for a week!!
To my dear wife, please remember no meat, no chicken...but you know what I miss. Steam bawal and plenty of sayur. Yummy...

Looking Back 2005

Four days into 2006. Looking back, I may say that for 2005, three events significantly have an impact on me my life. Firstly, was 11 March. Well, on this day I joined the "fifty" club. I thought this was very significant for me as Alhamdulillah, Allah has given me good health, stable job and with it the rezki (tidak mewah tetapi mencukupi) and most of all, having an understanding wife whom I loved very much and two wonderful boys. I am looking positively towards the future hoping for continued blessing from Allah. One thing for sure is, I will strive to be a better person, a better husband and father and also to meet all social obligations.
Secondly, was 23 July. On this day, I left my family in KL for Islamabad. I left them knowing that my dear wife has to learn to play the role of a father and Fadzlan to face his own big hurdle in life, that is the SPM. Of course, I left with the doa to the almighty, for the family's wellbeing. Now, after six months, I felt that my dear wife has passed with flying colours and Fadzlan finished his examination.
Lastly, was 8 October which I considered the most significant. This was the day when Pakistan experienced the worst ever earthquake, registering 7.6 on the Richter scale. For me, the experience was very traumatic as we continued to face after shocks many weeks after that. The total devastation was unimaginable. Well, almost 100,000 perished, most of them are children and the poor and many more were made homeless, Until this day many of the unfortunate are still leaving in tents, facing more hardship as the winter sets in. Allah-o-Akhbar, Allah-o-Akhbar. God is great. This experience reminded me on the greatness of Allah and how helpless all of us against his power. What's important is for all of us to continue striving for the true path, remembering the greatness of Allah.
Let us all pray for our better future, for our family, for all ummah and off course to our beloved nation, Malaysia. Amin...

Pedih Mata...

Yahoo...finally the mid term break is approaching. Insyallah, in three days time i will be flying back to KL to be with the family. Again, yahoo...finally, my paper is all wrapped up about an hour ago. When i sat to start writing the paper two months ago, i was quite skeptical, terfikir juga... kot,kot tak larat dan terkejar-kejar macam kat MPAT dulu. Tapi, alhamdulillah berkat doa kaum keluarga semua beres. Hari Jumaat ini kita akan hantar.
Tapi sekarang ni, mata pedih...dok tenung computer lama sangat, for the last three nights. Juga heater dalam bilik ni dok peningkan kepala. Lagipun, dah tiga malam tak dapat tidur dengan nyenyak. Bukan dok fikir apa-apa. Dah lah susah nak tidur, pukul 3 atau 3.30 mesti terbangun. Yang menjadi masalah ialah kesejukan. Heater ni, jika nak tidur kena offkan, sebab depa kata, kalau tak, kot tengah tidur nanti ada bocor ke, gas akan escape dan kita nanti tak bangun..bangun.
Hari ni pergi jogging jauh sikit sebab cuaca cerah, tak macam semalam. Tapi masih sejuk. Lepas jogging, pergi gym, buat ab dan bench press. Rasa sedap sikit. Ni lepas maghrib dan sat lagi nak masak sayur. Rasa nak makan nasi malam ni....dah lama tak rasa masakan sendiri. Nasi pun dah masak, berbau pun sedap...hmmm. Oh ya, pagi tadi, i buat breakfast dan jemput dua kawan lain to join me. I masak omelette, masuk cheese dan olive slices dan juga toast and sausages. Minum teh tarik. Not much comment from them, but i guess there were satisfied, because they make another request. Tengok lah kalau rajin....

Camels and Donkeys

In Peshawar, Jamil related a story. In this age of globalization, smuggling has gone high-tech. Smugglers no more has to carry fridge and plasma TV on their backs across the desert. Nowadays, this service are carried out by camels and donkeys!! Yes folks, with GPS accuracy these beast of burden carry out their duties, traveling miles carrying the precious cargo unassisted through the rough terrain. They are smart enough to stop at predetermined check points to rest and feed. Sure beats the enforcement folks. When stopped, these "smugglers" would have said nothing!! Way to go!!

Life Is Just Like That

Sometimes life is just a drag. Been here for almost half a year is indeed challenging. How to turn this into opportunities? They used to say. Little, as I can see it. Maybe jauh dimata dekat dihati as the peribahasa goes. The further we are apart, the heart grows fonder and this at times can help, especially when we have just passed our silver jubilee.
No way! I rather be side by side and accept whatever consequences. I thought whatever little time we had together the other week will give me an extra after burn to propel me into the coming weeks. But alas, after three days, I began missing d'isteri. Missing you.... Been trying to push myself through this dreadful winter day and try to do some work. Managed to do some bits on my paper which is due on the 6th. Got it printed and will go through in the next couple of days.
At times I began thinking..what is it for me? Being away from home and family? What has Almighty lined up for me? Pray and seeking guidance from Almighty is the only solace. Again knowing you alone, doing the household chores and ensuring Adik's wellbeing is heart wrenching. But then, life is just like that.. The challenges? Either take the bull by the horn or manoeuvre around them. The separation, just like days, has to have the beginning, the middle and the end!! At the end of it, we shall look back and say, "I have done it and got round it", with great satisfaction. The price? Leave it to the Almighty. I guess, what is important is to continue the days with hard work, positive attitude, whilst continuously seeking guidance. Life is just like that!! Goodbye 2005, as I shall continue to look on the bright side, into the days of 2006.

Jan 1, New Years Day

Woke up for morning prayer at 0620. It was a cold and wet morning as it was drizzling. Went back to bed and slept for another 2 hours. Had toast and a slice of cheese for breakfast. Dare not eat more as my I am still worried about the condition of my tummy. It turns out ok as the day progresses. Work on the computer and do some cleaning up of the room which was left in a bit of a mess when we left for Karachi. Also I managed to pack the bag for my impending trip home. The bag was packed with the items that we had earlier bought in Islamabad and Karachi, minus the pots and pans that we got in Peshawar. That will go in a box, hopefully delivered home later by the C 130. Pak Halim came and picked us up for lunch at his house, in honour of the new Immigration officer who just arrived 3 days before. His name is Nik and he hailed from Kelantan (of course). A bachelor and this is his first posting. Seems to be a decent fellow. We had kampung style lunch with ikan kering and sambal (minus ulam). Apart from Nik and ourselves, the lunch was also attended by Azman and his wife and Haji Aris. We had a good casual discussion after lunch, whilst having coffee and malay delicacies like ketayap and bingka ubi. It was raining outside and the hot kopi O was very good indeed. We had Asar and Maghrib prayers before departing back to the college.
Tomorrow will be business as us usal, as we will be back in the ND Hall for the lectures.

Celoteh Karachi

We landed at Faisal PAF Base at noon and straight proceed to Regent Plaza in a motorcade of three buses led by an outridder. Upon leaving the base parameters, we were engulfed with the daily traffic. The traffic is madness here. Nothing to describe the magnitude of the situation. Seems to be very little law and order. The road here is the place of the `survival of the fittest', `might is right', and `who dare wins'. The road seems to be the lifeline and the veins of the city as people mixed with rickshaws, busses, colourful trucks, police cars, ambulance, horses carts, donkey carts, motorcycles, bicycles, jaywalkers, vagabonds and beggars spend much of their times on the roads. Honking is a must and the louder the better. One positive aspect though. Everybody seems to be taking this madness in a stride and kept their cool. No tempers and certainly no road bullies here. The pollution is is also another story. It is so dusty that we have to clean our pipes daily.
The highlight of our six days in Karachi visiting the Bazaars and trip on the PN Ships. The bazaar is very crowded with locals and also tourists. Malaysians seems to frequent this place as most of the shop owners tried to converse with us in Malays. At this bazaar, the clothing and fabrics are relatively cheaper then in Islamabad. We bought some leather goods, shirts and clothing materials.
We also had a good time when we were taken for a ride on PNS Shahjahan, a Type 21 Frigate. This frigate is an ex RN Ship when it was commissioned as HMS Active (probably saw actions in the Falklands). Her sister ship, PNS Badr also joined for some serials. We sailed into the Arabian Sea and severals serials were demonstrated. It includes boarding using fast assault boat (Zodiac) and Sea King helos (counter-terrorism). The assault came from the stern at very fast speed and delivered six special forces personnel. It was a daring and dangerous manoeuvers boarding the frigate at such a high speed. Other serials includes, jack-stay transfer where three of our colleagues volunteered to be transfers. PNS Badr came to about 1000 feet from our frigate and this is also an interesting manoeuvre. We were also shown deck landing by an Alouette helo. We later had lunch before sailing back into the harbour. We really had a lot of fun time, and throughout we were served with unlimited food and drinks. I was amazed by the cleanliness and the professionalism of the crew. Well done to the captain and crew of PNS Shahjahan. Keep up the good work.
We also visited a new Navy Base at Omara and a new port infrastructure at Gwadar. It was a day trip with the C 130. Gwadar is very close with the Iranian border and from the briefing given the port should be `operational' by Jun 06. Umm.. I doubt!!
The day before we depart for Islamabad, we had a picnic at the beach. It was arranged by the PN at one of their beach chalet. We played beach volleyball and cricket. Here I have my first hand at cricket, and my local colleagues said that I have the hang of it. Can you believe that? For lunch, I had some semosas and `haleem' a local delicacy resembling lentil soup. It was a bit spicy but since I enjoyed it I have seconds. I think this act proved unwise as I developed a bad tummy upset that night (as related in the preceding blog).
In Karachi also we have an opportunity to meet the family of one of my colleague. The family is wonderful. We were very welcomed and felt at home. We had dinner with them.
One of the nights we were also taken for a dinner at a popular place called `Bar-B-Q Tonight'. This place is jam packed with patrons. It had five levels and served local dishes of kebabs, nans, chickens and muttons. It also served something different than Islamabad, that is fish and sea foods. Yumm.... I really miss fresh seafood. Here I satisfied my craving for fish by having Ikan Bawal Bakar a la Pakistan. Not bad. We finished of dinner by stopping at an ice cream parlour for a cone of Movenpick icecream. Yummy....!!!
That was Karachi for us. Will definitely see Karachi again...Insyaallah.

Story-tellers Bazaar

Wednesday, December 21. I engaged a local tour agency to take us for a day trip to Peshawar. I managed to get a day leave from college. That morning we started our trip very early and by 8 am we were already out of Islamabad. The traffic was rather smooth with little traffic as we were on the opposite. After about 45 minutes, we stopped at a small village to have a look at an old site. We proceed and arrived our destination after about 2 hours and 40 minutes. Firstly, we visited the museum. It was rather an interesting museum, as most of the collections were dedicated to the Buddhist relics that were discovered in abundance from an excavation in the area. Later we went to the bazaar, popularly known as the Story-Tellers bazaar. It got its name from the time when traders stopped at this place to exchange stories and passed information about their trips. The bazaar was indeed very vibrant and there are so many shoplots and traders, engaged in all sort of trading like clothing, household goods, jeweler, spices and foodstuffs. We stopped at one of the tea house (an old establishment) to sample the local hot green tea. We were skeptical at first as the surrounding is rather unsanitary. Nonetheless, we brave ourselves to have a go and alhamdulillah, we came out ok. We also stopped by at one of the shop selling semi-precious stones. We managed to get a few strands of these stones.
Later at noon, we went for lunch at a restaurant that served local delights such as Briyani and kebabs. It was definitely one of the best lunch we had. The food was superb and the mutton was very fresh and tender. Yummy!!!
Before we departed back home, we detoured to what was commonly known as `the smugglers bazaar'. A bit out of town but it was worth the visit as this place is a heaven for bargain hunters looking anything from electronics to household goods. We arrived in Islamabad at 7 pm.

The Visit

18 Dis 05 at 2 am, I was at Islamabad International waiting for dear wife, arriving on Emirates from Dubai. It was cold that night and I tried to stay in the car for a while. The aircraft landed just about on time and after a brief jostling with the locals, I managed to locate her coming out of the terminal. Alhamdulillah, all the arrangements went well. We greeted and proceeded to the college.