A Gem
August 31, 2009
One of my friend is collecting Gemstones these days, and he has some wonderful collection of the gems. One is this beautiful Double Shaded Ruby crystal… This one is for Sale
Gem : Double Shaded African Ruby
Ring : Pure Silver
Cost : 10,000 PKR
Contact: +92 321 4658889 (Rizwan Janjua)
Taken: Canon Power Shot using available light.
Discover Yourself!
August 28, 2009
I remember, that I was a teenager, sitting in the living room with my father. We were watching television. Someone is being interviewed. I cannot remember who it was, but he has just said, "I am trying to find myself."
My father’s response, "Hmmph! You’re right there. What’s so hard about that?"
Being a teenager, I naturally thought that was an excellent remark, although I never would have let my father know that. Yet, at the same time, I was in a quandary because I too was trying to find myself and wasn’t sure where to look.
Being who you really are requires bravery because there is no road map. You have to find your own way. One guide I am sure of is pain. If you are hurting – you are not being true to yourself. If you hate your job, it is not where you belong. If your relationships make you feel bad, those are not the people you should be with. When you are happy, when you experience joy – then you are on the right path. It may not be the right path for anyone but you. That’s okay; no one can take this journey for you. Many will try to get you to take the path they have chosen – to validate their choices.
In my opinion, if you have to find yourself, Follow joy, walk away from pain. Experience solitude. Take some time to get to know who you are. Take a walk. Meditate. Just be alone for a while. Think. Follow your curiosity. Discover your life, discover yourself!
Taken: South East view of Kaghan Valley from Meadows of Paya, Kaghan Valley, Pakistan
Unspoiled Paradise
August 27, 2009
Above the hill station of Shogran, after an hour of jumpy and bumpy jeep ride through dense forest of fir and pine, lies a plateau with breathtaking views. Its dimensions seems to be unlimited, At the feet is Sari Lake, before is Jungles of Sharan, and the scenery continues as one can have the clear view of Mt. Malka Parbat and Mt. Makra, with the endless fileds of grass and colorful flowers all around.
Once you reach Paya the discomfort of the journey is forgotten. Its totally out of this world, just like fairy land. Kaghan sure is a perfect hide-away for family. Its mountains, dales, lakes, water-falls, streams and glaciers are still in an unbelievable pristine state. It is indeed an unspoiled paradise!
Taken: Edge of Paya, Overlooking Sari Lake, Shogran, Kaghan Valley, Pakistan.
And Once Again
August 26, 2009
And once again the Virus of Tagging struck me, Tagged by so many fellows this time… Muzaffar Bukhari, Kiran, R M Kahan, *RK*, Anas Ahmed are few to name….
So here are couple of things about me…..
1. I have been living all around Pakistan… I was born in Karachi, then moved to Islamabad Naval Complex, then to Sargodha, then to Quetta, Risalpur and then settled down in Rawalpindi.
2. Since childhood I have been a scientist and love to be home alone so that I can utilize all my skills to the limit… Mainly after that Mom & Dad utilize theirs too.
3. I Actually Hate Microsoft Windows, I am a Linux/Unix/FreeBSD Guy.
4. If I have to define myself in one world, I would say “Capricious”.
5. Since emotions are contagious, the people you’re around will influence how you’re feeling and sometimes will have more impact than you can withstand. I am a pure example of it.
6. I have been collecting Music from around the world, my kitty is dominated by Trance, but I have Arabic, Spanish, and Traditional music from Japan, China, Europe & many more…. These days my fav music is Chilled.
7. My all time favorite movies are Saving Private Ryan, Forrest Gump, Behind Enemy Lines, Vertical Limit, and off course Tons of Animations like Madagascar, Ice Age, Over The Hedge… I am not big fan of Indian Movies.
8. I am a day dreamer, and sometimes I even dream while I am driving… Pretty scary moments.
9. It is hell of difficult to tell 10 things about yourself… I am dehydrated…
10. What I want is to deploy the Linux everywhere, even my watch, and integrate all the IT systems of Pakistan… using the same hardware and network structure it is very possible.
At last I made it…
Lost Ways
August 26, 2009
If we coast along in a comfortable life, we become used to comfort and tend to choose simple, easy options. It is when faced with real challenges that we are forced to look at issues from a fresh perspective. Getting out of a comfort zone can be a very powerful way to regain motivation. When faced with adversity, it brings the best out in ourselves.
Taken: Lost Ways of Ultar Meadows, Karimabad, Central Hunza, Northern Areas of Pakistan.
In Search of Fairies
August 24, 2009
As we were dropped by our Jeep, we did not see any kind of lake or the snow-clad mountains. All there was depth, with a gushing water flowing through the arid terrain. A slide in the way has blocked our way. It was about half hour walk to lake from there… Our journey was far from the lake, deep into the valley behind the lake into total wilderness.
The lake was kind of packed with visitors, the first glimpse was not as much enchanting as it should be… So we keep on moving, moving fast until the lake was at our right and the valley was wide open before us… From here the real journey begings to the Base of Malka Parbat (Queen of Mountains)… and into Kach Gali… Looking back from this point gives a unique sense of being lost in the mountains.. With water sources for the lake under our feet, we started our search for the Fairies…. And the search goes on….
Taken: Valley behind Lake Saif ul Maluk, Naran, Kaghan Valley, Pakistan.
Jewel of Jalkhad
August 21, 2009
Its been almost twelve hours I have been driving continuously, but we have to get to the destination I have in mind, it was about time when we turned a last twist on the road and Jalkhad appeared right before our eyes… This was the perfect place to camp on. At Jalkhad the road bifurcates. One leads to Chilas and joins KKH while the other goes to Sharda and Muzzafarabad in Azad Kashmir. This part is popularly known as MNJ (Mansehra – Naran – Jalkhad) road. It runs along the Kunhar River up to Jalkhad and from there over the Nuri Nar Pass to Sharda.
We searched around for a best camping spot away from the road, untill our eyes locked down to a place around river bank which was not visible from the road and there were couple of huts of Gujjar Nomad families at some distance. It was a nice idea to take permission as this made us and them comfortable with us. We put our tents and went to sleep for couple of hours.
I was awake by a laughter in the sound of flowing river beside me. And this young lady was enjoying the conversation with my wife… I grabbed the cam and unzip the tent. She was at first shy, but friendly. It was no time when she was totally indulged with us, playing and cherishing.
She also had one of his younger cousin accompanying, he was one scared buddy, will post his picture in couple of days…
Have a nice weekend fellows, and enjoy the blessed month of Ramadan.
Taken: Our Camping site at Jalkhad Valley, Kaghan, Pakistan.
Fabled Mountain
August 20, 2009
There is something mysterious lies on the Northern edge of monsoon belt in the outer Himalayas. A mountain which has always been fabled. Many says it has never been conquered, some tell the stories with such a powerful emotion that they are felt true. The time you found yourself in the middle of lake and the mountain every fairy tale comes to life… Ancient times a brought in front of eyes with fairies and prince charming.
Mount Malka Parbat; as far as my knowledge the real name is Mahali Ka Parbat but with time it becomes the queen of mountains. It sure has the role of villain in the fairy tales as this was possessed by an evil Jin. And as far as its presence in the valley this sure seems to be a giant ruthless beast, ready to take over the entire valley of Kach Gali in Kaghan.
Taken: A start point of Kach Gali, Behind Saif Ul Maluk Lake, Kaghan Valley, Pakistan.
Land of Fairy Tales-Panorama
August 19, 2009
Words fail to describe the beauty of this place. Once you are there, you never want to leave. In the fairyland the famous lake itself is so charming, luring and tempting that the visitor fall in love with it. It is here at Saif Ul Malook where you meet the queen of mountain, the Malka Parbat peak wat the majestic height of 17,360 ft.
The elders in the valley tell the story of the prince by the name of Saif Ul Malook who fell in love with a fairy. He would usually come to the lake in wilderness, which was surrounded by tall snow clad peaks. One day the young prince saw a fascinating spectacle. A beautiful fairy was dancing on the surface of the lake. Curiosity brought him close to her and he stole her clothes. The modest fairy agreed to marry him in return for her clothes, an incident which turned into intense love.
The couple started meeting but the union enraged the fairy’s demon lover, who was so angry that out of anger flooded the entire Kaghan valley. When the floods subsided, Saiful Malook went up the lake only to find that nobody was there. After waiting all day he would come back in the evening. This went on for some days until he started to worry for the safety of the fairy. But he had no other way of finding about her whereabouts besides coming to the lake.
One day he was waiting by the lake when he spotted a group of fairies having bath in the waters at the other side of the lake. He went to the other side and begged them to let him know about Badar Jamal’s whereabouts but the fairies laughed at his abysmal state. Yet a kind-hearted fairy came forward and told the prince that Badar Jamal’s movements had been confined to the close vicinity of the Koh Qaaf; a mystical range of mountains located in the Caucasus. The prince left for the Koh Qaaf, braving all odds, and finally succeeded in his mission – getting married to the fairy Badar Jamal.
Taken: Panorama of eight vertical shots, taken from the south edge of the Lake Saif Ul Malook, Naran, Kaghan Valley, Pakistan.
Jalkhad
August 13, 2009
This place called "Jalkhad" has been very inspiring to me. A terrain totally changes after you cross Jalkhad, no pine and fir trees, only big rocks around the valley floor with Kunhar flowing and small streams adding up more energy to it… As I have to make choice to take my partner to camp for the first time experience the only place I come up with was Jalkhad.
The moment has come, things are prepared as tonight we would start our journey to a wonderfilled land of Kunhar and camp at Jalkhad. I hope you would remember us in your prayers…
Here is the plan, just to make sense of
14th August
Leaving Rawalpindi: 02:00 Hrs
Balakot: 06:00 Hrs
Breakfast at Kewai : 07:00 Hrs
Reach Naran: 11:00 Hrs
Jalkhad: 14:00 Hrs
Camp / Lunch / Dinner / Breakfast
15th August
Drive Back to Naran: 10:00 Hrs
Saif Ul Maluk: 12:00 Hrs
Wandering in KachGali : 15:00 Hrs
(Juices, Energy Bars, Snacks)
Back to Naran: 17:00 Hrs
Drive to Shogran: 20:00 Hrs
Camp (Dinner / Breakfast)
16th August
Paya Meadows: 10:00 Hrs
Makra Base Camp: 13:00 Hrs
Lunch
Back to Shogran: 16:00 Hrs
Drive Back to Rawalpindi: 18:00 Hrs
Dinner at Abottabad.
