Day 2.
We got up early in the morning, because we wanted to see the maximum of Murree in that single whole day that we had. We had planned our schedule before leaving and wanted to keep up the schedule, so we had to leave Murree...
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| Murree Hills |
The next day
We had to queue up to take shower, because we had a single bathroom for the four of us. Thanks God the geyser worked and it saved us from freezing to mortality in shower!
Our first destination was a breakfast place, because Nabeel refused to think about anything until we took breakfast. We had our first paratha with fried eggs at a small place filled with locals. We had decided to go only to the places where local residents dine, instead of going to high street (mall road) tourist catering pseudo Lahori, Peshawari, Sindhi etc restaurants.
After breakfast we headed out to a place in the direction of Nathia Gali (some 5Kms from Murree). This spot was discovered by Nabeel on his prior visit to Murree. This place gave us the first feeling of being in a non-urban setup. Murree otherwise (the high street Murree) is a tourist joint with all the amenities that a man can ask for in a cosmopolitan city.
Our next stop was Patriata. We could not afford a helicopter ride over Murree, but the Patriata chair lift and cable car combo was accessible and affordable for us. We did have a kind of an aerial view and most interestingly free of cost! TDCP in-charge at Murree (Patriata) generously allowed us a free ride and not only the ride (I’m talking about hospitality!).
We went up all the way to the top station, disembarking from the chair lift, which took us from the base station, at the mid station and taking cable car from there.
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| in the heart of the woods |
We went out towards the woods along with our accompanying TDCP employees to witness some of the natural beauty which lies uncovered for tourists. Walking through the woods, breathing fresh air along with cigarette smoke, we heard some kind of singing. When asked, the TDCP representatives explained that it was POTHWARI SHER (Potohari poetry) singing. They explained that usually shepherds sing these songs, while over seeing their grazing cattle (it is mostly goats).
We headed towards the sound of the singing and upon visual contact we noticed that it was no single shepherd loning it out there. There were many people sitting on the ground and listening to the one who was singing at that time. We sneaked close to them and hesitantly sat among the crowd. We were expecting the turn of all heads towards us, but most amazingly no one turned as if we were expected or as if it made no difference.
We sat there and enjoyed the singing. During the intervals we talked to the people present there and they explained that such kinds of gatherings were not planned. It was something like a single person sitting in the wild and singing and anyone who wanted could join in just for listening or even could participate in a kind of a verbal duel. The real format of Potohari poetry is dualistic, which means that one person sings about his village his girl his life and the beauty of everything and then the other person responds with a story of his own. The Potohari poetry, just as all other poetry, is mostly love related, but it has a strong tint of sorrow and longing. Potohari verse mostly tells about the beloved, who parted.
After that wonderful experience we took the same cable car and then chair lift down to the base station, where lunch awaited us. We met madam chicken at the table again. She was very nicely grilled and was saucy and well marinated. Madam chicken tasted so well that Vera even allowed herself a second serving. And guess what, our longtime, to come; companion was accompanied by rice on the table. Believe me till that time we had no idea that Madam and her companion would follow us like rock star fans!!!
Coming back to Murree from Patriata we decided to at last go to the Mall road to see the tourist life and get a feeling of being a tourist. We were amazed to see new multi-storey shopping malls filled with branded apparel, accessories and other stuff.
Cold temperatures and tiredness forced us back to our accommodation at around 22:00 hours. We were served a hot cup of tea before going to bed. We needed a nice night’s sleep, because the next day we were supposed to make a 234Km run all the way to Naran from Murree. Once in bed I had shivers, which I could not figure out the reason for, maybe it was because of the cold or maybe it was the thought of those 234Kms which we had to ride over spirally mountain roads. But whatever it was it kept me trembling till I fell asleep.
Our first destination was a breakfast place, because Nabeel refused to think about anything until we took breakfast. We had our first paratha with fried eggs at a small place filled with locals. We had decided to go only to the places where local residents dine, instead of going to high street (mall road) tourist catering pseudo Lahori, Peshawari, Sindhi etc restaurants.
Our next stop was Patriata. We could not afford a helicopter ride over Murree, but the Patriata chair lift and cable car combo was accessible and affordable for us. We did have a kind of an aerial view and most interestingly free of cost! TDCP in-charge at Murree (Patriata) generously allowed us a free ride and not only the ride (I’m talking about hospitality!).
After that wonderful experience we took the same cable car and then chair lift down to the base station, where lunch awaited us. We met madam chicken at the table again. She was very nicely grilled and was saucy and well marinated. Madam chicken tasted so well that Vera even allowed herself a second serving. And guess what, our longtime, to come; companion was accompanied by rice on the table. Believe me till that time we had no idea that Madam and her companion would follow us like rock star fans!!!