Lahore
April 7 to 11, 2006
Every Pakistani I have met has sung the praises of Lahore. I have been told over and over again that it is the cultural capitol of Pakistan and a must for any tourist. I had hoped to visit Lahore, but was not sure I would have enough time. Since I cut short my Afghanistan trip I did have some extra days that I could now spend in the city. It is not important to my novel, but it is part of the back-story of some of my Afghan characters, so it was nice to be able to visit Lahore.
Before I could start my day I had to get back the core city. I was still staying at Malik's house in the outskirts. It was Friday, the Muslim day of worship and everyone in the house was sleeping in. I wanted to get started on site seeing, but did not want to have to wake the sleeping household. Fortunately, one of Malik’s son’s was up so I was able to explain that I was heading into town for the Regale Internet Inn (and not just taking off without paying for my room). Taking an autorickshaw I made it back into town to the Internet Inn. The Regale Internet Inn was easy to miss (and hard to find). At ground level it was nothing more than an open doorway on an alleyway off The Mall (a major boulevard in the city). The hotel itself was at the top of two flights of stairs. The Regale itself is a small but cozy backpackers’ hotel with several dorm rooms and a couple private rooms. At the rooftop were a couple shaded lounge areas where travelers could relax, mingle, and share travel stories. It even had a tiny kitchen for use by the guests. This may not seem unusual to anyone who has budget traveled and stayed at youth hostels or other backpacker places in Europe or Australia, but in South Asia a place like this is rare and a welcome relief.
The major sightseeing attractions in Lahore are the Fort, the Badshahi Mosque, the old city, and the museum. My first day I was able to explore most of the first three. Lahore is a big, busy, crowded, and chaotic city, so I have to say the best thing about the Lahore Fort was that the park like atmosphere was a welcome relief from the city outside. The only thing that annoyed me was the steep sliding scale for admissions: 10 rupees for Pakistanis and 200 rupees for foreigners. There were a couple museums in the fort, but I did not get to see all of them. This being Friday everything shut at noon and I was kicked out of the museum so people could go to the mosque to pray.
Decided to take a break at a little café in the Fort for some Pakistani tea (similar to a chai latte, but way cheaper). It is never possible to sit alone in a public place in Pakistan so I was not surprised when a man with a long henna-stained beard wearing a black karakul cap approached my table and asked in excellent English if he could join me. He introduced himself as Aslam a professor of English at Punjab University. He then explained that he wanted to talk to me about Islam, that it was the duty of all Muslims to proselytize, and offered me a free copy of the Koran in English. I had to tell him honestly that I was unlikely to ever do more than skim it and that he should save the book for a more serious student. He took this well and chatted with me for a few more minutes before heading off to the mosque to pray. Having traveled in many Muslim countries I have become accustomed to having my ear talked off about Islam, but this was unusual because Aslam was the politest person who has ever talked to me about Islam. I dubbed him the "polite professor" as a result.
The mosque was impressive and I wanted to snap a lot of photos, but it was Friday and it was full of worshippers. I felt a little uncomfortable snapping photos of people praying, but nobody seemed to mind and a few people encouraged me to do so.
After the mosque I headed into the old city. Lahore’s old city is huge and I only scratched the surface. Wandering around the dark narrow winding streets of the old city I entered a very different world than the Lahore visible from the main boulevards like The Mall.
The deeper I went into the old city the less comfortable I felt. Not a place I really wanted to spend too much time in by myself. It was fascinating, but also a little intimidating; in some ways charming in an old-world way, in others gritty and threatening like a Pakistan Mean-streets.
Heading back to my hotel I passed a large brass cannon. This is the famous Zam-Zammah of Kipling’s Kim fame. It sits in the middle of The Mall road across from the Lahore museum, just as it did in the opening of the 1901 novel: He sat, in defiance of municipal orders, astride the gun Zam-Zammah on her brick platform opposite the old Ajaib-Gher - the Wonder House, as the natives call the Lahore Museum. Who hold Zam-Zammah, that fire-breathing dragon, hold the Punjab, a for the great green-bronze piece is always first of the conqueror's loot.
I felt safer in Pakistan than I did in Afghanistan, but this is not all that stable a country either. There are many seething currents of discontent that occationally boil over. Not more than a block from the Regale was the burnt out ruins of a Kentucky Fried Chicken that was torched during the Danish cartoon protests.
The fort, the mosque, and the old city were interesting, but they could only hold my attention for so long. If that were all there was to Lahore it would only be good for a day or two. That evening I got to see some of the cultural life that Lahore is so famous for. Early in the evening a group from the hotel went to see a play by a touring troop of Indian actors on a cultural exchange from Calcutta (attempting to foster better relations between India and Pakistan). It was all in Hindi so I had no idea what it was all about, but apparently it was a critique of the caste system in India. Later back at the hotel, I saw some Sufi drummers that the owner Malik had invited to perform. Gonga Sain and Mithu Sain were brothers and the sons of a famous Sufi drummer. They were great. One of the brothers, the one in polka dots was even deaf, but it apparently had no impact on his drumming. During the performance the same guy would start spinning so fast his drum would stand out at a 90-degree angle, all the while he was still playing it. After the performance at the hotel a large group of us followed the drumming brothers to a large Sufi music festival that was happening in the city that night. It was a large event and very interesting, unfortunately I did not get to see much of it. We had three women with us, a German and two Japanese gals, and all the men in our group had to form a wall around the women to keep the crowds of Pakistani men from rushing up and groping the ladies. It was shocking; I have never seen anything like it before. You would think they had never seen a real woman before.
That next day I visited the Lahore Museum. It’s a good-sized museum with a broad range of exhibits; the greatest portion of their collections is paintings and sculptures from the region. The most memorable artwork for me was the Gandharan Buddhas. Gandhara was an ancient Buddhist kingdom in what is now Pakistan. The Buddha statues were close to two thousand years old. The thing I noticed immediately about them is that they were all skinny and had mustaches. I think I am so used to seeing East Asian depictions of Buddha as a jolly bald fat Asian man, the serious thin Buddhas with mustaches surprised me. The next night we had another musical performance at the hostel from Sain Mohammad Ali and his band of Punjabi folk musicians. This was interesting, but did not hold my attention the way the Sufi drumming did.
My third day in Lahore I went out to see the border closing ceremony in Wagah (see the Wagah entry). When I got back I had a bowl of curry at one of the food stalls around the corner from my hotel. I had eaten there before, but this time I got violently ill. About an hour after dinner I came down with the worst case of food poisoning I have ever had. I was violently ill all night long. I have never in my life been so happy that a hotel I was staying at had a sit down toilet. For my forth day in Lahore I had planned to explore the old city, but the only part of Lahore I saw was the hallway between my dormitory and the bathroom.
Every Pakistani I have met has sung the praises of Lahore. I have been told over and over again that it is the cultural capitol of Pakistan and a must for any tourist. I had hoped to visit Lahore, but was not sure I would have enough time. Since I cut short my Afghanistan trip I did have some extra days that I could now spend in the city. It is not important to my novel, but it is part of the back-story of some of my Afghan characters, so it was nice to be able to visit Lahore.
Before I could start my day I had to get back the core city. I was still staying at Malik's house in the outskirts. It was Friday, the Muslim day of worship and everyone in the house was sleeping in. I wanted to get started on site seeing, but did not want to have to wake the sleeping household. Fortunately, one of Malik’s son’s was up so I was able to explain that I was heading into town for the Regale Internet Inn (and not just taking off without paying for my room). Taking an autorickshaw I made it back into town to the Internet Inn. The Regale Internet Inn was easy to miss (and hard to find). At ground level it was nothing more than an open doorway on an alleyway off The Mall (a major boulevard in the city). The hotel itself was at the top of two flights of stairs. The Regale itself is a small but cozy backpackers’ hotel with several dorm rooms and a couple private rooms. At the rooftop were a couple shaded lounge areas where travelers could relax, mingle, and share travel stories. It even had a tiny kitchen for use by the guests. This may not seem unusual to anyone who has budget traveled and stayed at youth hostels or other backpacker places in Europe or Australia, but in South Asia a place like this is rare and a welcome relief.
The major sightseeing attractions in Lahore are the Fort, the Badshahi Mosque, the old city, and the museum. My first day I was able to explore most of the first three. Lahore is a big, busy, crowded, and chaotic city, so I have to say the best thing about the Lahore Fort was that the park like atmosphere was a welcome relief from the city outside. The only thing that annoyed me was the steep sliding scale for admissions: 10 rupees for Pakistanis and 200 rupees for foreigners. There were a couple museums in the fort, but I did not get to see all of them. This being Friday everything shut at noon and I was kicked out of the museum so people could go to the mosque to pray.
Decided to take a break at a little café in the Fort for some Pakistani tea (similar to a chai latte, but way cheaper). It is never possible to sit alone in a public place in Pakistan so I was not surprised when a man with a long henna-stained beard wearing a black karakul cap approached my table and asked in excellent English if he could join me. He introduced himself as Aslam a professor of English at Punjab University. He then explained that he wanted to talk to me about Islam, that it was the duty of all Muslims to proselytize, and offered me a free copy of the Koran in English. I had to tell him honestly that I was unlikely to ever do more than skim it and that he should save the book for a more serious student. He took this well and chatted with me for a few more minutes before heading off to the mosque to pray. Having traveled in many Muslim countries I have become accustomed to having my ear talked off about Islam, but this was unusual because Aslam was the politest person who has ever talked to me about Islam. I dubbed him the "polite professor" as a result.
The mosque was impressive and I wanted to snap a lot of photos, but it was Friday and it was full of worshippers. I felt a little uncomfortable snapping photos of people praying, but nobody seemed to mind and a few people encouraged me to do so.
After the mosque I headed into the old city. Lahore’s old city is huge and I only scratched the surface. Wandering around the dark narrow winding streets of the old city I entered a very different world than the Lahore visible from the main boulevards like The Mall.
The deeper I went into the old city the less comfortable I felt. Not a place I really wanted to spend too much time in by myself. It was fascinating, but also a little intimidating; in some ways charming in an old-world way, in others gritty and threatening like a Pakistan Mean-streets.
Heading back to my hotel I passed a large brass cannon. This is the famous Zam-Zammah of Kipling’s Kim fame. It sits in the middle of The Mall road across from the Lahore museum, just as it did in the opening of the 1901 novel: He sat, in defiance of municipal orders, astride the gun Zam-Zammah on her brick platform opposite the old Ajaib-Gher - the Wonder House, as the natives call the Lahore Museum. Who hold Zam-Zammah, that fire-breathing dragon, hold the Punjab, a for the great green-bronze piece is always first of the conqueror's loot.
I felt safer in Pakistan than I did in Afghanistan, but this is not all that stable a country either. There are many seething currents of discontent that occationally boil over. Not more than a block from the Regale was the burnt out ruins of a Kentucky Fried Chicken that was torched during the Danish cartoon protests.
The fort, the mosque, and the old city were interesting, but they could only hold my attention for so long. If that were all there was to Lahore it would only be good for a day or two. That evening I got to see some of the cultural life that Lahore is so famous for. Early in the evening a group from the hotel went to see a play by a touring troop of Indian actors on a cultural exchange from Calcutta (attempting to foster better relations between India and Pakistan). It was all in Hindi so I had no idea what it was all about, but apparently it was a critique of the caste system in India. Later back at the hotel, I saw some Sufi drummers that the owner Malik had invited to perform. Gonga Sain and Mithu Sain were brothers and the sons of a famous Sufi drummer. They were great. One of the brothers, the one in polka dots was even deaf, but it apparently had no impact on his drumming. During the performance the same guy would start spinning so fast his drum would stand out at a 90-degree angle, all the while he was still playing it. After the performance at the hotel a large group of us followed the drumming brothers to a large Sufi music festival that was happening in the city that night. It was a large event and very interesting, unfortunately I did not get to see much of it. We had three women with us, a German and two Japanese gals, and all the men in our group had to form a wall around the women to keep the crowds of Pakistani men from rushing up and groping the ladies. It was shocking; I have never seen anything like it before. You would think they had never seen a real woman before.That next day I visited the Lahore Museum. It’s a good-sized museum with a broad range of exhibits; the greatest portion of their collections is paintings and sculptures from the region. The most memorable artwork for me was the Gandharan Buddhas. Gandhara was an ancient Buddhist kingdom in what is now Pakistan. The Buddha statues were close to two thousand years old. The thing I noticed immediately about them is that they were all skinny and had mustaches. I think I am so used to seeing East Asian depictions of Buddha as a jolly bald fat Asian man, the serious thin Buddhas with mustaches surprised me. The next night we had another musical performance at the hostel from Sain Mohammad Ali and his band of Punjabi folk musicians. This was interesting, but did not hold my attention the way the Sufi drumming did.
My third day in Lahore I went out to see the border closing ceremony in Wagah (see the Wagah entry). When I got back I had a bowl of curry at one of the food stalls around the corner from my hotel. I had eaten there before, but this time I got violently ill. About an hour after dinner I came down with the worst case of food poisoning I have ever had. I was violently ill all night long. I have never in my life been so happy that a hotel I was staying at had a sit down toilet. For my forth day in Lahore I had planned to explore the old city, but the only part of Lahore I saw was the hallway between my dormitory and the bathroom.
posted by TravelWriterWannaBe at 10:42 AM
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