Homeward Bound

I was fourteen when I left Pakistan and I have been living in America for over a decade now. I have not visited Pakistan ever since I left in over 14 years so I finally decided to pay my visit in February with my parents. I was nervous, anxious but excited to go back and visit the homeland.

FIRST STOP, KARACHI
Karachi is the capital of the Pakistani province of Sindh and Pakistan's most cosmopolitan city. As someone who was born and raised in Karachi, I was super thrilled to go back and see how the city has changed, visit my school, meet my schoolmates and eat some of the best street food of Karachi. As soon as I landed, I felt like a stranger in my own city. Everything was changed and it was unrecognizable. The city I once knew by heart, no longer seemed familiar to me. 

After a day of struggling with the local time zone and being jet lagged, I went to the local markets and bought some of the most beautiful handicrafts and bespoke clothes made by the local artisans. After two days of shopping, I met with my childhood schoolmate and paid visit to my school. The feeling of meeting my childhood best friend after 14 years cannot be expressed in words. We both went back to the school and reminisced about old times and how we lived a carefree life with no responsibilities. 

SECOND STOP, SARGODHA
After staying in Karachi for few days, my parents and I flew to Lahore. We stayed overnight at a friends house and left in the afternoon for Sargodha. Sargodha is the eleventh largest city and one of the fastest growing cities of Pakistan. 

My parents had lived in Sargodha in the 80's when they got married. They had become very good friends with their neighbors. They remained friends for over 30 years and they have been wanting to visit them ever since we left the country. We stayed with them for few days and they took care of us and treated us like a family we never had. We went sight seeing, visited the local markets, villages and a very obscure sightseeing place known to few locals only.

THIRD STOP, LAHORE
After staying with the family in Sargodha for few days, we left together for Lahore. Lahore is the capital city of the Pakistani province of Punjab, and is the country’s second-most populous city after Karachi. We had dinner at "Salt'n Pepper" village restaurant. One of Pakistan's most recognized and distinguished restaurants. The Village offers authentic Pakistani cuisine and the revival of some old recipes.

The next day we visited the Badshahi Mosque, Lahore Fort, Sheesh Mahal, Minar-e-Pakistan, Tomb of Muhammad Iqbal (a poet widely revered in Pakistan), food street and Heera Mandi (red-light district). The architecture of Badshahi Mosque, Lahore Fort and Sheesh Mahal have a strong regional style which was heavily influenced by Persian architectural styles. The mosque features red sandstone with white marble inlay and remains the largest and most recent of the grand imperial mosques of the Mughal-era. The Lahore Fort is notable for having been almost entirely rebuilt in the 17th century, when the Mughal Empire was at the height of its splendor and opulence. In 1981, the fort was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its "outstanding repertoire". The mahal is in the form of a semi-octagon, and consists of apartments roofed with gilded cupolas and intricately decorated with pietra dura and convex glass and mirror mosaic with thousands of small mirrors.

The colorful Lahore food street is lined with food stalls, restaurants, and other food shops alongside the Badshahi Mosque leading to the Lahore Fort. While I was taking the tour, I stumbled upon an ongoing photoshoot and had the opportunity to photograph and work with the local photographer, designer and beautiful models.

After visiting the food street, we went to the Heera mandi ("Diamond Market"), sometimes referred to as "Shahi Mohallah", the oldest red light district in Pakistan. The area's name is traditionally described by locals to describe the beauty of the girls in the market, as the word Heera means "diamond" in Urdu. The market was originally the centre of the city's tawaif (concubine) culture for the Lahore's Mughal era elite during the 15th and 16th centuries. During the day, Heera Mandi is much like any other Pakistani bazaars and is known for its good food, wide range of Khussa (traditional Mughal footwear) and shops for musical instruments but at night, it is operated as brothel houses.

FOURTH AND LAST STOP, KARACHI
After saying our goodbyes in Lahore and leaving beautiful memories there, we flew back to Karachi and stayed there for 2 nights. I met with few other friends of mine and ended the night by having dinner at one of the most anticipated restaurants of Karachi, Kolachi. No visit to Karachi is complete without visiting this restaurant. It is situated at a heartwarming view of Do Darya by the Arabian Sea.

After staying in Pakistan for two weeks, it was time for me to leave. My heart was full of joy and sorrow. I did almost everything I had planned and hoped to do during my trip. I got to meet my friends I haven't seen in years, reconnected with family I didn't know I have, did tons of shopping, ate some of the best food of my life, saw some of the most beautiful places and people with hearts made of gold. I met some of the most humble and whole hearted people during my trip. They gave me so much love and respect that made it really hard for me to leave. I am forever thankful and grateful to all those who made this trip one of the best and unforgettable trips of my life. 

Thank you. I love each one of you ❤️

- Rubaa

Click here to see pictures from Karachi and Sargodha. Click here to see pictures from Lahore.