Sheereen Baha, A Sad Swati Woman

This old lady with all the sadness in her eyes waved at us for a ride, standing on the side of the climbing roads of Seegram, unable to sit on the back so she sat next to Anwar.  This is how she travels around, walking with crutches until finds a lift from someone.  In a low voice, she was complaining about those having luxury cars but don't bother to stop and see if somebody needs help.  
I asked her permission for a photo, she inquired about me and that what would I do with the photo?
And then in seconds she agreed.

This

Kooza Baanday

Kooza Baanday is a mountainous area through Saidu Sharif, on the way to Seegram.
People in the villages of Seegram travel down to Kooza Baanday shopping for meat and other necessities.
While passing by, we saw a little school boy carrying school bag on his back,
waving his hand to stop,
he wanted a ride to his home on the way.
Anwar, the driver, let the boy sit next to him and dropped him off after five minutes as the boy pointed to a corner on the road.
I asked the little boy in Pashto, "ista naom saday?" (what's your name?).
He replied, "Hazrat Ali."
Then I asked his permission to take his photo (in Urdu and Anwar translated in Pashto).  He jumped off the rickshaw and stood straight like an obedient student.
Then we saw many young boys requesting for a ride to their home.
This is how the little children here go to school and return home, either they have to walk for at least an hour or they run after trucks, vans or rickshaws requesting for a ride.  The name of Nawaz Sharif and Ameer Maqam can be seen wall-chalked everywhere in Swat Valley.

.

a boy named Hazrat Ali in Kooza Baanday

school girls in Kooza Baanday

school girls in the area of Kooza Baanday, Swat Valley, Pakistan

Hungry for Chappli

After having a long walk to the right of the hotel after Maghrib, I found a shop selling chappli kebab.  We do have chapplis in Karachi but I had a feeling that the chapplis here would taste different from the one in Karachi.
Yes, they do.
They mix onion and tomatoes in a huge quantity and very little pepper may be, which makes it taste sweetish instead of spicy.  I doubt if they use garlic in their food as the chappli or other Bar B. Q type foods gives off meaty smell.  In Karachi, we must let the meat sizzle in garlic paste so it removes the smell of meat from the food.
The old shopkeeper greeted me with a smile, asked me to sit on a chair and served me with a sample of chappli while I waited for my order.  That was very generous of him.

I had to take the photo of these okras/ladyfingers, three times larger in size than the one we have in Karachi.  I will cook them when I find a place to live here.  

Iqbal in Pashto

Momin lari hur dum

Cheena Market, Mingorah

This market is a combination of Tariq Road and Hydri Market in Karachi, quite expensive,
except for the shops are built on slopes,
bought two shawls, one for I and the other one for me.

Hurting, paining, crushing, cracking --- these are my legs.
I'm tired of walking on slopes.
Literally have drunk four milk packs since morning,
will drink Milo now,
don't know the quantity.

First I thought it is China Market as I heard the name,
but one of the shopkeeper explained it is 'Cheena Market',
'cheena' is the Pashto word for 'glasses',
as this place initially started with optical shops.

Good thing is that,
all shopkeepers anywhere in Mingorah guarantee of no mugging, no snatching, no fear.
Great People!
.