Travels in a troubled nation

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Wagah border guard / Photo by appaji

We proceeded by train to Lhasa and worked our way south via Mt Everest to Kathmandu. I don’t wish to analyse or over simplify the social and political situation of either country here, rather put forward my own humble impressions.

India to Pakistan

Crossing the Wagah border into Pakistan the warmth and genuine hospitality is immediately palpable. It is easy to be lulled into a sense of security, nonetheless we decide to forego Swat in favour of more time in the Hunza Valley.  On our way up from Lahore we bump into a television crew filming a travel segment and a newly outfitted army convey stoically making their way to the battlefield.

Pakistan to China

Braving the 45 degree steep hairpins & pencil thin roads of the Karakoram, we inch past landslides & vicarious road construction into China. The day we reach Kashgar we hear of heavy altercations in the Swat Valley resulting in thousands of refugees. Our journey in Pakistan abounds in fond personal memories, but persistent headlines remind us of the increasingly fragile security situation in the face of the Taliban.

But China doesn’t have any security issues. That it wants to talk about.

Tibet

Swept along by Tibetan pilgrims we circumambulate the Jorkhang Temple located at the core of Lhasa and at the very heart of Tibetan culture. The security personal appointed by the government to protect the temple march in groups of six in the opposite direction, counter to local customs.  Security cameras bare down on the public square and rooftops are dotted with armed guards.  Monestary complexes echo ghost towns as monks sit in jail awaiting liberation.

My heart swells to think of the open friendliness of the common men and women in Pakistan, despite terrorism being a very real part of the everyday. In stark contrast I was affronted by communism and capitalism in China. We met friendly people but never came close to the heart of matters in China.

The landscape in Tibet is simply stunning and like nothing else on this earth, however the dullness in the eyes of its people will overshadow and haunt me.  In the end its clear what matters most to me when I travel; the people make the place. I’ll hold onto moments of spontaneous happiness shared with strangers along the road and cherish open approaches to difference. Travelling is after all a privileged opportunity to draw strength from our incredible diversity.