The Great Silk Road

Arrive at Islamabad International Airport. Welcome by our Company guide and transfer to Hotel Serena  ****. After welcome drink we move out at 1000 hrs for Islamabad local tour . Pakistan is the seat of one of the world’s oldest civilizations. The artistic traditions to which it is heir are nowhere more apparent than in the enormous diversity of its culture. There is plenty of evidence from prehistoric and historic periods to support this arguments and this all we see at Islamabad Museum. e.g. fossil jaws of apes 14 million years old found from Islamabad mountains .They belong to a species named ” Sivapithecus Pakininsis ” said to be ancestor of man. Also a 2 million years old stone axe is on display recovered from this area. This museum also houses the important finds of Mehrgarh a glorious era of Indus Civilization over 9000 years old and then of 5000 years old of Mohenjodaro and Harappa era in respective galleries. First we will have lunch in Afghan Restaurant in traditional style and then will move to see one of the world biggest mosque “The Shah Faisal Mosque , Daman e Koh , Shakar Parian and to super market to see real collection of oriental carpets gathered from China, Iran, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan , Kazakistan at bargaining rates. Dinner at Manal Restaurant located on off shoots of Himalaya range. Return to hotel for overnight stay.

An early morning departure after breakfast toward North along the Grand Trunk Road through terraced fields to Margala Pass some 28 kms which lies at the real boundary between Central Asia and Sub-continent. This is an ancient route and first indicated at 516 BC. We will walk for it through a gentle climb to see a section of the cobbled road as all most all the invaders used it including Alexander the Great in 326 B.C. A tall granite obelisk erected in 1868 A.D to commemorate General John Nicholson stand at the old pass on the left. Nicholson was one of the great folk heroes of Victorian Britain, which saw him as the archetypal Christian soldier, upright and righteous. Three kilometers from here is Taxila which is one of the real archaeological treasures of Asia and one of the world oldest existing city. The known history of Taxila span about 3000 years ( 516 BC to AD 600 ) .When the Gandharan Kingdom was absorbed by the Achaemenid Empire of Persia in 516 BC , Taxila became the capital of its eastern province. By the late fifth century BC, Taxila had become the site of the best known university in the world. According to John Marshall the level of knowledge was remarkably high, especially in the field of mathematics, medicine and astronomy. It is here that the great Sanskrit scholar Panini compiled his Sanskrit grammar in 4th Century BC. In 326 BC Alexander the Great arrived at Taxila from Pushkalavati and according to Arrian’s second century AD text Anabasis he held philosophical discussion with resident intellectuals and then dined in the great hall. From Taxila Buddhism spread to central Asia, China, Tibet, Japan and Korea.  Gondophares one of the most famous Parthian king of Taxila received St Thomas the Apostle who brought Christianity to Pakistan in AD 30.We will spend two hours here and first visit the Museum which houses one the best collection of Gandharan Buddhist art in the world. An interesting coin collection , a display of artifacts detailing the daily life of the inhabitants of ancient Taxila – utensils, weights, jewelry, toys and much more are here to see. We now move to Dharmarajika Pakistan oldest Buddhist Stupa two kilometers from here erected by Emperor Ashoka in third century BC. Main stupa was 15 meters high and 50 meters in diameter and the guide will explain it with help of map. We will move to Abbottabad via motorway driving through the Sikh’s sacred town of Hassan Abdal and Moghals Garden at Wah. For hot lunch in Western style we will stop at Resturant Usmania in the center of bustling city. We set off for Besham and enroute pass by Mansehra lies at junction of four roads and the place was selected for inscribing the fourteen rock edicts by the Buddhist Mauryan Emperor Asoka in 3rd century B.C. with his capital in Patna ( India ). Than come Hazara Plains a country full of memory of King Abhisares who kept Alexander the Great and his Greek forces away by his supreme tactics. 6kms away comes the village of Pishora where over hanging caves still preserved the hunting carvings and Buddhist painting of first century B.C. ( Visit to cave is optional as it located above the village on a steep climb ). As we descend down the Kat Galai Pass , we suddenly come to an opening which brings into view the marvelous picture of the Indus river at Thakot. The hill of Pirsar is just five miles away identified by Sir Aurel Stein as Aornos , the last stronghold west of the river Indus , which was besieged by Alexander the Great in order to haul the retreated soldiers of Swat .We cross the river Indus over a Chinese bridge and enter into Kohistan. ( we now travel on real ancient silk road which joins China to Europe ) .We reach Besham after enjoying spectacular mountain scenery of Himalayan Mountain range. Tonight our stay is in beautifully located PTDC Motel  on bank of Lion river Indus.

After early breakfast in Motel we move North and first city we cross is Pattan right on the bank of river. Here a chance discovery led to the find of a heavy weight girdle of 16 kgs of pure gold having Scythian art engraved on it of Trans – Pamir region. Next is Komila and Dassu on either side of river. Ahead of Komila open up Kandia valley , where from Bronze Age material has been recovered . Here we come across an extraordinary isolated and remarkable language ” BURUSHASKI ” spoken by several ten of thousands of people in the Karakoram mountains. Together with Basque, Ket, Nivkh, and Nehali Burushaski is one of the last languages on earth to defy classification and even the most liberal language classifiers allow Burushaski at least 10,000 years of independent development ( The booklet written by Dick Grune and published by Joseph Biddulph Publisher 1998 , ISBN 1 897999 12 7 U.K to know more details on this language ) . A joint Pakistani German research project have so far founded about 30 sites on a stretch of 100 km to both sides of the River Indus bearing 30,000 petroglyphs and 3,0000 inscriptions in more than 10 writing systems. The carving are pecked or chiseled into the dark brown varnished surface or the boulders scattered on the river banks and the terrace of the valley. The earliest example of Silk Road rock art are dating back to prehistoric times and executed by travelers like merchants, warriors, pilgrims from Central Asia, China and Pakistan. Majority of the inscriptions are executed in Indian script like Brahmi, Kharosthi, and Proto Sarada. ( Sogdian 700, Chinese 13 and Hebrew 1 ) . This is one of the wildest and most inhospitable stretches of the whole Karakorum Highway and geologically the most unstable region on earth. It is here that the Indian geological plate grinds against the Asian plate and exposes all the layers of earth’s crust and guide will point out green rocks of the bottom layers of the oceanic plate normally found 30 kilometers below the earth surface. After the decline of the Roman Empire the Silk Road fell into disuse until the 13th and 14th centuries when it was revived under the Mongols. Marco Polo came this way in 1273 AD. At Shatial town we will take a short walk to observe most interesting rock inscription and drawing in Sogdian script. For lunch we will move to Chillas Inn .Ahead of Chillas for next 100 kms as the road curves round the foot of Nanga Parbat mountain the area is plain being the bed of a lake came into being by a land slide from the mountain in 1840. The lake was 135 kms long and when the dam burst the resulting floods led to terrible destruction in the plains of Pakistan. We will have a photo stop for fascinating Nanga Parbat view. It is 8125 meters and ninth highest mountain on the western most bastions of the Himalayas and also biggest lump of rock on earth. We will move to Hotel Serena located on the banks of River Gilgit for overnight stay.

Gilgit is an old name derived from the original Girigitta that appears in the Hatun rock inscription of seventh century A.D. The morning is free to explore this only Northern Area pre- historic city for hundreds of kilometers in either direction, bustling with Mongols, Tajiks, Kirghiz, Uygars, Chinese etc. The markets are full of all sort of goods especially the Chinese stuff. During June, August and November a polo tournaments are held here and it is similar to polo played 500 years B.C in Persia. Gilgit remained under the influence of three great powers i.e Chinese, Arabs and Tibetans. Morcopolo commented in 13th century regarding Gilgit valley as “noisy with kingdoms”. After lunch you are taken to Kargah Buddha a rock carving at Kargah Nullah on way to Punial of seventh century A.D. A monastery and three stupas are upstream from here. A script about Gilgit was found here in 1939 written in Sanskrit given rich history of the area. They are now housed in Museum of London and Rome. ( Darkot is on the same road to Punial where came George Hayward in 1870 , a Royal Geographical Society explorer in search of River Oxus source.) Evening is free to stroll through the labyrinth of streets in old city and back to hotel for dinner.

After breakfast we will take a drive on 4 by 4 powered jeep on a 10 kilometers road and cross the longest suspension bridge of Asia ( 650 foot ) . It sways and undulates with the jeep’s movement. We join the Karokoram High way at Dainyor where our coach will be waiting. Hunza is 120 kilometers and takes two hours to reach. We come across gorges upto eight kilometers long and are so precipitous that you wander how the travelers on the ancient Silk Road managed to negotiate them. The remnants of caravan route is still visible on Silk Road and we will stop here for photo secession. After crossing Nomal we reach Chalt .It is at interesting place as it lies on the line of collision between two geological plates. The Indian subcontinent is still pushing northward into the Asian land mass and a clear line of collision is visible. Nine kilometer further on is the scene of ” one of the most brilliant campaigns in military history ” The British war against Hunza in 1891 and three Victoria Crosses were won in the action ( read book for more details “Where Three Empires Meet” 1893 ). Mir ‘s Palace was than captured but the King ran away to Kashgar ( China ). The Karakoram highway turn east at Chalt round the north foot of Rakaposhi Mountain. At 7,788 meters this place is steepest on earth. ( 27th highest mountain on the list ) We will have a photo stop here for this color changing mountain. About 21 kilometers ahead on the right side a shingle road lead to Minapin Glacier ” The shortest route between Asia and Europe ” ( three days trekking ). This afternoon we arrive in hotel Darbar e Hunza where we have three nights stay and one night stay if package to China – Kashgar is taken. Remainder of the day at leisure and shopping in antique bazar of Karimabad.

Hunza have been ruled by the same family since 11th century. A legend relates that the Hunzakuts are descendants from five wandering soldiers from Alexander the Great’s army settled here with their Persian wives. Hunza was the model for James Hilton’s Shangri-La in Lost Horizon also National Geographic article that claimed that in Hunza people lived longer than anywhere else on earth being free from social stress. Hunza is only one place on earth surrounded by four peaks over 7,000 meters i.e. Passu, Shishpar, Ultar, and Rakaposhi. This morning after breakfast we travel on KKH toward north to Khunjerab Pass at 4,733 meters is the highest border crossing on a paved road in the world. Our first stop will be at Ganesh village six kilometer guarded by an old watch tower and fort. We will take a walk to Silk Route guest book which is in form of inscription on the Ganesh Rock. The inscriptions are in Kharoshthi, Brahmi, Gupta, Sogdian and Tibetan with portraits of Kings like Kushan, Gondophares, Chandra Gupta. Our second stop will be at Gulmit to have hot black tea with milk and also to have a look at Attabad lake. During late summers this lake is full of migratory birds from Siberia as 70% of the world bird migration take place through this route. The water sports in Attabad Lake is optional if time permits. After crossing Ghulkin and Passu glacier observe the jagged line of seven peaks over 7,500 meters mostly virgin.We will have a photo stop at Batura Glacier and do a short trekking on it. We will pass by Sust which is a custum post on Pakistani side 34 kilometers from Passu. Khunjarab Pass which was opened in 1982 has a remarkably different scenery on either side. On Chinese side Tajiks herders are seen with their sheeps, goats, yaks and two humped Bactrian camels with lot of Chinese tourists. Tajiks are smiling and friendly and woman are happy to be photographed in their colorful costumes. We will come back to Sust to consume late hot lunch in Hotel Sust Lodge. From May to November we add five days tour which goes to Kashgar in China and enjoys its Sunday Bazar .You only require Chinese visa. We will be back to hotel and enjoy bar b q dinner tonight.

A fascinating journey of 18 kilometers this morning through the hanging bridge of Nagar. We will move in 4 by 4 powered jeep / Prados  to moving glacier of Hoppar to view this awe-inspiring natural wonder . A magnificent bowl, terraced and fertile , with views up to Miar Peaks, Golden Peak and Malubiting and down on to the Hopar which is racing forward at about 20 centimeters a day. On way back we will stop at caves or mines dug into the rocks full of rubies and garnet and you can collect them in raw form. After lunch we take a one kilometer walk through a village to 700 years old Baltit fort i.e old palace of Mirs of Hunza stands guard over the entire valley. It has 53 rooms and will be explained to you with the help of a map. Optional walk of two kilometers take us to Altit Fort 600 years old which is more impressive palace perched on a rocky cliff that falls 300 meters sheer into the Hunza River. It has all carved wooden doors and windows and a room where Mir murdered his two brothers in a struggle for accession three generations ago. Back to hotel for dinner and overnight stay.

Today after breakfast you are free to relax or take optional wonderful walk to Altit to Sarhath to Sihishkot Bridge or walk along the irrigation channel to the Ultar Glacier to the summer pastures , where you can stay with the shepherds and watch them making butter and cheese from yak’s milk. After lunch in the hotel we move back to Gilgit on the same KKH to our Hotel Sareena for over night stay.

Today after breakfast we take one of the most scenically contrasting routes by flying in PIA  air craft from Gilgit to Islamabad. What all we had seen on ground look totally different now .On the left is the fascinating view of Nanga Parbat with its cup like successive ridges which has so far engulfed 62 mountaineers and on the right are lush green valleys of Palas Kayal Valleys. It is one hour flight and on arrival at Islamabad International Air port transfer to Hotel Serena. Rest of day at leisure.

Departure to onward destination or departure to Lahore via motorway for Delhi flight or for flight by Singapore Air, Ethad Air ,Thai air etc.