| |
.::
Pakistan ::.
(Read How My Country Looks Like)
Pakistan is a young country with rich past offering
a great variety of attractions to its visitors, comparatively more than any
other Asian country. It has been attracting, from times immemorial, traders
and travellers, saints and scholars, adventurers and invaders from all walks
of life and from all over the world.
Through the ages Pakistan has been the cradle of
some of the greatest civilizations the world has known, beginning with the
prehistoric Indus Valley Civilizations, about four thousand five hundred
years ago. For the present day visitors Pakistan spreads out a vast
landscape of 7,96,095 sq.km.full of amazing richness and variety.
Pakistan offers to its visitors a blend of centuries
old civilizations, unspoilt natural beauty, world famous mountain ranges of
Karakorams, Hindu Kush and Himalayas with world renowned highest peaks like
K-2 and the toughest and rocky like Nanga Parhat, fertile valleys like
Kaghan, Swat, Gilgit, Hunza and Chitral, green fields, golf courses, biggest
dams like Tarbela - rushing streams and waterfalls - sweet water lakes like
Haliji, Keenjhar and Manchar full of waterbirds and fish. There are several
alpine lakes such as Iatchura, Satpara, Saiful Maluk at heights varying from
5300m to 6500m full Rainbow Trout amid snowclad mountains. Biggest salt
range with unique salt mines peculiar archaeological sites like Moenjodaro,
Taxila and Harappa -grand historical Mughal monuments such as Badshahi
mosque, Shalimar Garden, Lahore fort and historic Khyber pass - hundreds of
miles long sunny, sandy and rocky beaches - old cities and bazars full of
amusement and a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables. Besides, one could
enjoy in Pakistan good angling, deep-sea fishing, shooting, hunting,
excellent cricket, hockey, tennis, golf, squash, swimming, riding,
mountaineering and trekking. In fact, Pakistan offet-s such a variety of
tourist attractions that it could cater to a very large variety of tourist
interests.
Introduction of Pakistan would not be complete without
indicating geographical features of the Countiy which is divided into 5
regions. (i) Mountains region including the Karakorams, the Hindu Kush and
the Western off shoots of the Himalyas covering northern and north western
parts. (ii) The Pothwar Plateau and Salt range. (iii) The Indus plain, the
most fertile and densely populated area of the country (iv) The desert zone
comprising Thal, Choulistan and Thar- and (v) The Baluchistan Plateau.
In a sense, Pakistan stands astride the mighty
river Indus which rises in Tibet, flows through the Karakorams range, Gilgit,
Swat and Kohistan through the great gorge at Attock and so enters the Punjab
plain. It is now joined by other rivers, the Jhelum, the Chenab, the Ravi
and the Sutlej - proceeds southwards through Sindh and finally pours its
waters into the Arabian Sea.
In the North, beneath the towering peaks of the
Himalayas, the Karakorams and the Hindu Kush, the land wears a majestic
aspect with treeclad slopes and valleys of captivating beauty. It is rich in
wild life, small and big game abounding with tumbling streams well stocked
with Trout and that doughty fighter, the Mahseer. It is fertile too, growing
sugar-cane, tobacco, cotton, rice and wheat. To have travelled in Swat,
Gilgit and Hunza upto Khunjrab top is an unforgettable experience in a
countryside as beautiful as it is historic.
Further south, in the valley of Peshawar, the scene
possesses not quite the same mighty grandeur, but a gentler beauty. Here,
too, nature is prolific with its immense variety of fruit - oranges,
peaches, apricots, almonds - as well as wheat, rice and tobacco.
The plains of the Punjab, Bahawalpur and Sindh
are watered by the Indus and its tributaries by means of a vast irrigation
system which is known as the largest in the world. The fertile soil produces
fine cotton and rice, wheat maize, tobacco, and sugar-cane, providing
occupation and livelihood for eighty five percent of the population of the
country.
Most of the area in Baluchistan is arid and looks
like a desert. There are, however, many valleys which are very fertile and
produce, fine fruits in such an abundance that Quetta is known as the fruit
orchard of Pakistan.
Along the coast of the Arabian Sea, a considerable
fishing industry is carried on, yielding a fine harvest of edible fish,
shell-fish highly esteemed in the western countries and exported there in
frozen form, as well as non-edible fish yielding vitamin-rich oils,
fish-meal and fertilizer.
Urdu is the national language of the country but
English is extensively used in all official and commercial circles, fairly
widely in hotels, railway stations and large stores. English is also used as
the medium of instruction for higher education. There are a few regional
languages as well which are spoken in various parts of the country such as
Punjabi, Pushto, Seraiki, Sindhi and Baluchi etc
|
|
