A night in "the Galis"

Feeling good after a great day of biking today.  There are two ways from Abbottabad to Islamabad: one along the busy, smoggy end of the KKH and the other through the hill stations, which were British summer retreats to escape the heat of the city.  Despite an intimidating 1600m climb, we opted for the route through the hills.  I doubt any of my descriptions of the roads here are convincing anyone to plan a bicycle trip to Pakistan.

Climb we did.  By our first break after 19km we were both dripping in sweat.  Ice-cold Pepsi and Halal Lays chips never tasted so good.  As we got higher the road got steeper but the air became cleaner and noticeably cooler.  We were geared up for a climb and it was for the most part over after 30km, when we reached the top of the hills and a chic vacation city called Nathiagali.  There we had delicious pizza and were preached to a bit about religion and were given free Mountain Dew.  -Gali means mountain pass and most of these little towns are at the top of a big hill, with all sorts of impressive villas scattered in the forested slopes below.  It's not a fru-gali area, think of it as Pakistan's Muskoka.  Kashmir is a stone's throw away.  And there are monkeys, which seemed friendly enough as we fed them apples.  That is, until Tim tried to feed one by hand and it growled menacingly.  All my monkey-fear came back.  We are in a spectacular hotel at Changlagali, this would be a $300-a-night property back home.  It's right next to the Prime's Minister's brother's house; well, one of them.

Once again we were welcomed as heros wherever we went.  A few times we were basically mobbed by people wanting pictures, along with the requisite questions about our trip and looks of shock when they fully understand the distance we are travelling.  I think I waved to every single vehicle today.  Fun quotes: "you are very silky people" and "I love Jesus!"  Some people drive by and just ask where we are from.  After we respond with Canada, they cheerfully and sincerely say "Thank-you" and continue on.  I wonder what happens if you answer with the USA.  Many people here have an uncle or sister or something in Canada, often in Toronto.  I imagine that even though these wealthy people in Pakistan are leaving beautiful villas behind to live in a semi-detached in Mississauga with a low-paying job, it's still the ultimate success.  Canada is well-known and well-liked and I've never been prouder to live in a country that provides such a welcoming home to so many people of the world.  In fact, the more I travel the more I conclude that Toronto is one of the best cities to live in.  But then, food factors a lot into that choice and it's still unclear exactly how much damage Rob Ford can do.

On our first day in Pakistan we spoke to a Karachi reporter, and he took some footage for what we thought was some sort of documentary.  Apparently not, as several people told us that they saw us on the news and on the sports channel.  Internet (as well as electricity and the availability of beef) continue to be unreliable so I haven't had a good chance to look for the video online.  In the meantime we're trying not to let the fame go to our heads.

Now, Abbottabad.  Easily the biggest city we have been in so far, the bazaar is a busy, network of colourful shops.  Many cloth vendors.  Though not big cloth buyers, we liked the place.  The approach to the city was sort of bleak, and the smog, piles of garbage, and heavy traffic are likely a preview of what is to come.  We did a bit of half-hearted searching for bin Laden's encampment, but apparently it's a bit out of town.  We've met a few people who say he's been dead for awhile, and a few who have property near his encampment that has plunged in value.  There's never been a better time to buy in Abbottabad! 

We were approached by a man, claiming to be a plain-clothed cop, who asked to see our documents.  Now in "Safe Travel 101" that's a big no-no, and I held out saying that we could go to the nearby police station.  He correctly guessed that we were staying at the nicest hotel in town (the Hotel Sarban if you are wondering), and his words "We'll see you at the hotel tonight" made us more than a little uncomfortable.  The hotels that we stay in have big gates and 24-hour guards usually so safety wasn't a concern, it was just a bit unnerving.  The hotel guys explained that there are a lot of police in the city after the whole bin Laden thing, and sure enough, I was questioned by another "cop" just outside the hotel later that night as I was enjoying a few kebabs (well maybe more than a few, but at 6 cents each it's hard to hold back).  This guy immediately produced a badge and was very friendly after I explained our bike route.  He was most concerned why we were in Abbottabad, and I think the country is just on the lookout for reporters and such, which is fair.  The bin Laden raid was pretty embarassing for this country, and I imagine if the US did something like that to China there would be police and tanks and censorship everywhere.  I guess we should just consider it fortunate that they got bin Laden before hitting the debt limit and defaulting and sending the entire planet into economic chaos.

Tomorrow we plunge back to the plains, and the heat, for good in what should be a day of only downhill.  They never are.  We'll be pulling into Islamabad, the capital, sometime in the afternoon, and maybe we'll see a mosque and have an ice cream.  Doesn't get much better than that.