Gilgit 2

Happy Easter everyone! I hope that you all had a joyful and peaceful celebration. I’ll leave an account of my Easter weekend to the next instalment, as I realise it has taken me quite a while to continue the Gilgit story. This was partly due to writers block (in other words laziness in my case) and partly there has been yet more uncertainty because of a bomb in an Islamabad restaurant. It is not good as Islamabad usually has high surveillance, and it was specifically targeting foreigners – this is the first time that foreigners have been a target since 2002.

Anyway, I’ll move from that depressing note and back to the Gilgit story… The reason I went there was because I was with an MIED team who came for training at the Professional Development Centre of the Aga Khan Education Services. The Aga Khan is the Imam of the Ismaili sect of Islam, and he has had a huge impact in this area through the Aga Khan Development Network, of which AKES is part. The Professional Development Centre provides training for people working in the education sector – members of NGOs, teachers, head-teachers and government officials.

The Northern Areas of Pakistan are very interesting – they are in a crucial geopolitical position – on the east they border India, to the north China, coming round there is a few km next to Tajikistan, and Afghanistan, and then to the south the North West Frontier Province. It is so surprising how liberal parts of this area are given the conservative nature of their surroundings. The literacy rate is considerably better here than in the rest of Pakistan, and it was not unusual to see groups of young women wandering around, which is so different to everywhere else I have seen in Pakistan (except Islamabad). A major contrast to travelling up on the KKH through Indus Kohistan where there were no women around.

The first day we were in Gilgit we went on a field visit to Hunza, which is an area about three hours north of Gilgit on the KKH, and so beautiful! First we went to a school and met members of the community and mothers. The women were happy to speak out and tell us of their experiences and how they contribute to the running of the school. This was so inspiring as I hadn’t yet been to any community meeting where the women spoke out in front of the men. In addition, a woman who had had no education spoke about the importance of early childhood care and education, and why care is so important for children of this age. It really shows that attitudes can change towards the importance of education and particularly female education.

Then we drove to Karimabad – we went past Rakaposhi, one of the highest mountains in the world, but I couldn’t see the top because it was cloudy. We were able to visit the Baltit fort in Karimabad, which is a 700 year old fort that was the home of the ruling family of the area. It was influenced by Tibetan culture because one of the Prince’s married a Princess from Baltistan, and it does look slightly like the Potala Palace (not that I have seen that!). It was really interesting seeing where the family had lived for hundreds of years – the kitchen with huge stone pots and blackened ceiling due to centuries of wood burning, the jail and the private rooms. The Mir of Hunza donated the building to the Aga Khan to be conserved and restored.

The rest of the week in Gilgit I participated in the training course at PDCN, which was really excellent. I learnt a lot about problems with the education system in Pakistan, and theories of school improvement. The training centre was amazing – the trainers were really enthusiastic and couldn’t do enough to help us, the views were stunning, and the buildings very well resourced. I was even able to read the Economist!

I flew back, as there was a consensus that going back by road was a little too risky following the attack on Plan. It is meant to be a really spectacular flight, and taking off between the mountains was amazing. But then, you don’t need three guesses – I felt a little sick and so couldn't enjy the views to their full extent.

I could say that I have been run off my feet in Islamabad, but that would be rather a major embellishment of the truth. Don’t think that my whole life here is one big long exciting adventure – most of my time in Islamabad has been spent eating, sleeping, reading and watching DVDs (and a bit of shopping given that all the clothes I had with me when I flew from Gilgit were suitable for a Himalayan winter, and now it seems like a tropical summer). And doing some work.

The other day we went up to Mansehra so I could collect my things. It has been about a month since I have been there, and it was really depressing packing everything up. The last time I was there was for one evening between being in Islamabad and going up to Gilgit, and I remember thinking thank goodness I am home. Before the elections we had to pack up all our things in case of evacuation from the country, and I was certain then that we wouldn’t be leaving. Now, I realise that anything is possible, and situations change within a minute. I’m definitely learning not to take anything for granted.

Anyway, I am coming home for a bit in a couple of days Inshallah so would really like to catch up with as many people as possible!