Explorer Diaries: Islamabad

Food

The Monal sits over 1000 metres above sea level, nestled into the side of the Margala Hills overlooking the plains of Peshawar and Lahore. Dinner at Monal offers dramatic sunset views amidst a sophisticated and luxurious ambience. Diners can choose to sit in any of the seven, uniquely themed terraces or the general dining area and there's something for everyone on the menu - from traditional Pakistani dishes including karahi, makhni and jalfrezi to food from around the world including pizzas's, shawarma, Chinese and Thai options. There are also salads, sauces and light bites and a whole array of drinks from fresh juices to fruit milkshakes, mocktails and ice-cream shakes. The food is fabulous but the experience of dining in the hills of the National Park cannot be beaten. 

Chaaye Khana offers a little something different if you're in the mood for casual. A cozy affair, this brunch spot was launched for the love of tea. A zen-like atmosphere is unique to Chaaye Khana which houses a chess table, books and a peaceful library area. The cafe offers several unique tea blends, coffee, sandwiches, salads, soups and bakery items. For those with a sweet tooth, Chaaye Khana offers delectable desserts which include glazed pastries, dark chocolate brownies and fruit pies. 

Stay

Serena Hotel - Tucked away between the Margala Hills and Rawal Lake, the Serena Hotel offers everything you could want by combining the best of international luxury and local heritage. Surrounded by 14 acres of gardens, the architecture boasts an Islamic world influence with al fresco terraces and pavilions. Inside, the design aesthetic has been given finishing touches by local artisans. With a wide range of rooms and suites to suit all tastes, as well as an outdoor pool, international award-nominated spa, the Serena is the best place in town to relax and de-stress on your visit to Islamabad.

Shelton's Rezidor Islamabad is set next to The Centaurus Mall and is a perfect guesthouse for explorers. Close enough to the mountains for you to go hiking if you wish, the Rezidor offers spacious rooms with private bathrooms and desk areas. Some rooms have balconies. Attention to detail is key and the team here has certainly delivered with luxe details and art deco influenced furniture and local artisanal decor from rugs to wall hangings. 

Explore the City

There's so much to do and see in the city that it really depends on your interests. From shopping to art galleries, to country clubs and mountain resorts, there's something for everyone in this city if you just know where to look.

EMAC - Extreme Maneuvers Adventure Club
Try your hand at skydiving, parachute jumping, paragliding, flying boat rides, scuba diving, snorkeling, jeep safaris, archery, adventure camping, cliff diving, cave exploration and so much more. EMAC is a must for the thrill seekers and adrenaline junkies.

Maisha Spa
For those looking for a more relaxed day, make sure to stop at Maisha located in the Serena Hotel. A luxurious spa for the weary traveller, Maisha is home to a state of the art fitness centre, full service spa and stimulating workouts. From massages to facials, hydrotherapy and beauty treatments, you'll find all the pampering and serenity you could possibly want at the hands of these talented therapists.

National Art Gallery, Pakistan
For the traveller in search of an immersive cultural experience, there is Pakistan's most well-known national gallery. Operated by the Pakistan National Council of the Arts (PNCA) the gallery has two main strands: Visual Arts and Performing Arts, to house the wide range of talent across the country. 

Home to over 1000 pieces of local art and local plays and showcases, the gallery runs regular shows and cultural festivals to engage visitors in the best that Pakistani art has to offer.

Coke Studio Explorer: Musical Discovery in Pakistan

The music scene in Pakistan is huge. The sheer amount of raw talent, skill, enthusiasm and love for music across the country is second to none. A resurgence of the craft has taken centre stage in recent years following decades of stamping down by previous leadership on what was considered "un-Islamic" in this largely Muslim country. 

Putting that to one side however, Pakistan is today enjoying exploring its roots in sound, from the melodious sounds of Mehdi Hassan to the legend that was Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. (NFAK is perhaps single-handedly responsible for bringing the sound of Qawaali, a devotional musical art of the Sufi's, to the world at large.)

Today, music has become mainstream once again with a focus on rediscovering old favourites and elevating emerging new talent and perhaps nowhere has this been clearer, than with the popularity of Coke Studio. 

The Coke Studio sessions are now in their 7th season and have undergone a new iteration with Coke Studio Explorer. The original sessions were quite literally put together as "jamming sessions" for artists of different backgrounds and experience, drawing on old and new across different musical styles and genres. 

Set within a studio sponsored by Coca Cola, the sessions proved insanely popular with the TV audiences who kept coming back for more. I've included some of my favourite acts below:

Coke Studio Explorer has taken flight in season 11 of Coke Studio and unlike Coke Studio which involved a variety of artists coming into the studio to jam with producers and create outstanding sound, Explorer turns this on its head so that the producers head out of the studio and across Pakistan to discover fresh, regional talent, mainly focused on local, traditional music, unique to each area.

The series only started this month so it has a way to go as we discover new artists and forms of music. What was perhaps the most surprising to me, was that, as someone of Pakistani heritage, I had always felt that I knew a lot about my culture and history and the art of Pakistan in all its forms. 

I learnt that I don't know anything at all. See for yourself...

It's Time to Eradicate Polio in Pakistan.

Some of you may know that I'm British Pakistani. I was born and raised in the UK where I have lived my entire life but I hold Pakistan very, very close to my heart. The stories of my mother's childhood, climbing mango trees with mischievous cousins, my dad standing up to his college Principal in the 1980's, the turmoil of political change from democracy to dictatorship and back again; all of these things coupled with my own visits and time spent in the country have strengthened the natural fondness I felt for this far-away nation. 

Perhaps because of all these things, I've spent a lot of my time thinking about what Pakistan needs in order to grow and develop as a nation, and how it can ensure the country is fit for purpose for its population of c.200 million people in the future.

Pakistan is a young country both in age and demographics. The majority of the country's population is young, under the age of 30. But it is a country that faces significant challenges, the majority of which are unfortunately state-enabled, if not a direct result of. One of its key issues is healthcare, or rather the lack of affordable, high quality healthcare as well as accessibility to healthcare provision. Healthcare and medicine as a whole is a huge topic and with a population the size of Pakistan's, there is never going to be an immediate fix.

However, the one area that has persistently seen setbacks but is possibly also the one area that could realistically be solved in my lifetime, is the eradication of many major diseases; chief among these, is polio. Pakistan and neighbouring Afghanistan are the last two countries in the world with significant instances of polio across the population. Every other country around the world has managed to either fully eradicate the disease, or seriously limited its instances so that it is no longer statistically significant. 

Pakistan's journey to eradicate polio has been the centre of attention globally both from other states but also charities and NGO's including organisations like the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation which has focused a significant amount of resources and attention globally, to eradicating polio and you can bet that Pakistan is very much on their radar. 

If you speak to people in Pakistan who have children with polio, there are a couple of things you're likely to hear. Firstly, that the presence of polio is an American conspiracy, secondly, that the vaccine doesn't work, or perhaps most troubling of all, that it's God's will. All of these objections can be managed with appropriate education and learning in order to teach people the reality of how vaccines work, but also how (as a Muslim majority country), it is not God's will for you to allow your children to become sick.

The conspiracy theory one is more difficult however - Pakistanis have not forgotten that American intelligence agencies used the ruse of a health clinic providing vaccinations to children during the hunt for Osama bin Laden. Unfortunately, getting the population past this is a colossal task; the distrust and skepticism caused by that sole incident has had severe repercussions and sadly, in some parts of Pakistan, the fear remains that such clinics are all fake and that parents making use of them may be inadvertently be subjecting their children to something much worse. 

In other areas, and I'm thinking particularly of broader healthcare coverage, certain areas in Pakistan are making great strides, not least of all in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where the PTI led administration has made affordable healthcare a reality for many poor Pakistanis thanks to insurance coverage. Tackling polio needn't therefore be a showstopper, yet it seems that this disease, and specifically this disease, is tied up with so many negative connotations in large swathes of the country that addressing this may take longer than is advisable. 

The children don't have long. Once polio sets in, it sets in. I can only hope that the government of Pakistan begins to take a far more proactive approach than it has in the past to address this. A generation of children cannot be allowed to suffer as a result of ignorance or misguided notions, however instilled they may be.