"THE ENCHANTING BEAUTY OF... " a Pakistan Travel Page by WAHEEDASLAM

Pakistan is located at the latitude of 23? - 27? North and 61? - 76? east in the Northern Hemisphere. Its occupies an area of 796095 Square KMs or 31043 Square Miles. It shares a long border with India in the east, In the south there is the Arabian sea , the South west is bordered with Iran , North west with Afghanistan & North east shares a high altitude border with China.Physically it is the vast valley of mighty Indus river; which runs through the whole country as its blood line. North Pakistan inherits one of the highest land of the world.This fabulous land of river Indus houses about 130.5 Million people belonging to many ethnic groups and tribes.Pakistan has many beautyful & heavenily Valleys including Kaghan Valley in the north, Sawat, Muree Hills, Hunza & Kalash Vallies & many many more. It is a land full of rivers, lakes, Highest mountains in the world.
The National language is Urdu understood by most of the people all over the country.Administratively it is divided into 4 provinces and a centrally administered area (FATA) In the south it is Sindh province. In the South west Baluchistan, Northwest is called North west province and in the east is Punjab the largest population wise province . The North eastern areas and some areas in North west are controlled by the central government.Pakistan is also a land of ancient civilizations of nearly 5,000 years old. The ruins of these sites can still be found in various part of the country.Bazaars and marriages are the main center of cultural activities. In every city there is a typical bazaar with crowds of People and heaps of merchandise. Marriages are also bustling affairs large No. of guests 500 - 3000 and a lot of activity are the key features of a marriage.

MOEN-JO-DHARO:
At Moen-jo-daro (Mound of the Dead) on the West Bank of River Indus in Sind. have been found the remains of one of the earliest and most developed urban civilization of the ancient world. Discovered in 1922, Moen-jo-daro was once a metropolis of great importance, forming part of the Indus Valley Civilization complete together with Harappa (discovered in 1921) in Sahiwal District of the Punjab about 1287.48 Kms (800 miles away from Moen-jo-daro.

HARRAPA:
Harappan culture which existed in the Indus River Valley and which reached its peak around 2600 BC, shortly after the development of urban societies in Mesopotamia and Egypt.Located few miles away from the city Sahiwal these ruins are about 2,500 years old.

OTHER SITES:
Pakistan's hisory is full of history. There are many ancient civilizations discovered all around the country. Kot digi, Peshawar's ancient forts,Ancient Bolan Pass civilizations & many many more sites to explore for the tourists who are intresting in Ancient history. Pakistan is full ot it!

The journey to the beautiful & spell-binding side of Pakistan starts from Rawalpindi-Islamabad(capital of Pakistan). The main point to head from here to the nothern areas of the country is Abbottabad.There is a choice of four roads from Islamabad to Abbottabad.The most scenic but longest is via Muree(Pakistan's most popular holiday resort)and Nathiagali,which takes three to four hours. The road is usually blocked by snow from April to December.The other three roads all starts out on the Grand trunk road towards Peshawar,leaving the main road at different points and converging at Haripur (35 km north of G.T. road.

Islamabad is the Capital of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The city was built between 1960 - 1970 to replace the Capital from Karachi to Islamabad. Before this it was just a small village, a part of which still exists; with its mud houses and typical village life. Islamabad is a city of modern architecture there are some great examples of modern buildings in Islamabad. The roads are wide and lined with grass& roses. The city is divided into several residential & commercial areas. Blue area , Jinnah Super Market , Aabpara are the main commercial Areas. Among the buildings, the new Prime ministers secretariat , Assembly building , The Awami Markaz , Some ambushes on Diplomatic Enclave, and The great Faisal Mosque are worth seeing. Rawalpindi though twin city to Islamabad, is the main city with a population of around 2 Millions; is a bustling city with a lot of activity. Rawalpindi was the garrison town in the English times and even now it is the head quarter of Pakistan Army. The bazaars of Rawalpindi are no less then any oriental bazaar like the Sunday market in China or Afrasiab Samarkand. Only Raja Bazaar can take atleast two days to stroll around.