Munaza Kazmi
Orange, the color of Autumn! Enough of watching in films, I planned to witness it with bare eyes. For that I packed my luggage and booked PIA for Gilgit previous weekend. Luckily, the weather was sunny, and my flight didn’t cancel since for Gilgit it was always a chance of coming home without boarding. However, it’s a business loss, and I look forward for some other aircraft companies for considering flying Gilgit.
Meanwhile, from the sky my eyes witnessed snow capped mountains, and coincidentally I was sitting on the left side, hence I watched the frozen Saif-ul-mallok, and the celebrated Nanga Purbat wearing a golden cloudy crown, a rare sight.
It was early morning flight, so aircraft landed around 08:30 am, welcomed by a bright beautiful northern morning. As soon as I got my luggage, I found the Shuttle car and went straight to Gilgit Serena Hotel. The road leading to my destinations was small but clean, with occasional show of military quarters and guest houses.
In less than 15 minutes I reached the hotel and checked in to my room, after breakfast. The hotel landscapes are marvelous, from garden and also my room’s balcony I could have a clear view of Rakaposhi, and other mountains.
However, on this visit I found the service quality of hotel declining, although for the benefit of society they hired some trainees but this drastically affecting the quality, along serious hygienic factor, moreover I found the food portion obviously smaller than before. What so ever the reason is but I belief such tactics can only ruin the reputation.
Photo by: Munaza Kazmi
Well, next day I commenced traveling further north towards Altit, a beautiful small village associated with 1,100 years fort and the spicy tales of Rajas, moreover there is a small dwelling of the past there, where people still live as 1,200 years before. Crossing some historical points, like legendary Old Silk Road and some major archeological rocks, along roadside trees turned golden, sending blessed bright lights.
And for that I took rent a car from the hotel with craziest and double standard driver ever, who after dropping me at the hotel took the car to the party of his friends who boozed and thrown in the car.
Fortunately, I reached Altit at noon, where I had a 3 night’s stay at Serena Altit Fort Residence, which is a beautiful hotel with amazing gardens that turned in the extraordinary orange with the coming of Autumn.
The manager of the hotel Mr. Abbas is a very nice man there, who allotted hotel’s best room to me, the Executive Room in Ameen House. In the hotel they have 2 types of residence, one the heritage rooms belong to the royal family that lived there in the past and some newly constructed huts.
Photo by: Munaza Kazmi
Since, it was 3 hour’s drive, my muscles felt stiff and I took some rest in my cozy room, where I was treated like the Rani of the house, here I found a personal touch in the service, the way of eyes and the genuine smiles.
Further, it is a community hotel, where every worker is local, they cook local food, in local ways, which is also delicious, but the way they serve wearing smiles on faces and love make it makes it more delicious, I still remember the beautiful lady in the kitchen who served me with love and compassion breakfast every morning, homemade butter, freshly cooked bread with aromatic eggs cooked in to curries, in the café overlooking the Hunza River and the amazing mountains.
Photo by: Munaza Kazmi
Besides, there’s a fort that I mentioned before namely Altit Fort, where I went every evening for the walk, watching some fluffy sheep playing in the Royal Garden.
Next day I started for Khunjerab National Park, as I changed my driver hence it was around 11:15 am, very late for travelling that far, because the travel distance is around 4 hours. The new driver was a gentleman, who called me Baji, this is a term we use in Pakistan for the utmost respect to a lady.
Khunjerab National Park is known for its majestic landscapes, crystal clear water channels, Ibex, Yaks and Snow Leopards, though, I visited Khunjerab earlier but my passion never fulfilled, and once again I said yes to the adventure ahead, even though I was feeling that am taking the risk, as you might know night travelling is always dangerous in mountains, leading to car crashes or turn turtle by a sudden show of wild animal on the highway or slippery turns. But I was going…..
Northern Autumn Part 2
Welcome back my dear gentle reader, in the previous part you got to know about my arrival in Gilgit where I celebrated birthday of Shah Rukh Khan, thanks to Gilgit Serena Hotel, who presented me with an adorable cake. and list of some adventures while transferring to Altit. In this final part I would be writing about my travels of Attabad, Khunjerab, Soust, and Hunza.
I started for Khunjerab National Park at 11:15am, again a beautiful bright morning welcoming my adventure, along the way I stopped at a Sacred Rock, the driver told me it’s some sign posts for the soldiers of Altit’s Raja. I don’t get any other detail.
My next stop was Attabad Lake, which was on an alarming state of drying up, and a crowd of constructions. For reaching the lake first I crossed Pakistan’s longest tunnel, around 3.5 kilometers in length, covered in a time of 15 minutes, moreover there was a sequence of tunnels coming over and over.
It’s a very good initiative by Pakistan’s government as before its construction people have had to travel by climbing the mountains. In a meanwhile I exchanged few dialogues with the driver as I wanted to know about the local people.
I would say it’s a genuine advice for travelers from my side, to wear modest clothes, as it offends the local community and their cultures, further as we respect the women of our society we should to their women as well. These people though are simple, but they too are one of us, our Pakistani brothers and sisters.
After Attabad, I reached Sost by crossing Hussaini Bridge, the dangerous of the world, Beriut Lake known for fluffy duckling and the celebrated Passu Cones, let me tell you my dear reader whenever I saw Passu Cones, I felt an energy, a powerful semi-human soul calling me from there. Maybe I just over imagine!
The car was going on 80 kilometers, slowing down on turns, where I found an undiscovered water channel and I couldn’t stop myself and asked driver to park the car then ran into the river, oh it was beyond words…the silvery clear water, the cool fresh breeze, the scenic view, with the colors of Autumn, like a fairy tale.
It was a minute’s drive after that I reached the check point of Khunjerab National Park, which is completely safe area guarded by Pakistan Army. Khunjerab National Park known for majestic landscapes, Snow Leopards, Ibex, Black Bears and wild birds, this park is a natural reserve where hunting is prohibited, hence it’s a safe haven for the wild.
For going to the top, where it is Pak China Boarder, known as Khunjerab Pass, further it required 2 hours, but they pass in minutes, since you would all be consumed in sightseeing. 
I reached there around 03:10 pm, where I took some photos, watched the wild Yaks, a distant sight of a Bear, and some green and black uniformed soldiers guarding the boarders in extreme cold, so that we can sleep in peace in our cozy houses.
At 03:30 pm I turned the car backward and rolling down rewinding the views, it took 4 hours to reach back to the hotel, and it was complete dark that is not a recommended time on road.
Hotel manager Mr. Abbas was kind enough to come all the way from office to the parking area to assist me back to the lobby, where warm kettle of tea and aromatic tasty samosas were waiting for me.
For the next day, I was compelled to cancel all my plans for sightseeing as I was caught by high fever, hence the day spent by watching the sheep from the balcony. Next day, after checking out from Serena Altit Residence, I traveled to Karimabad, another small community village known for the Baltit Fort on the hill top, where I checked in to Hunza Serena Hotel, the newly constructed luxurious hotel, of which later of I will write a full review.
There I met my friend Mr. Faisal, the Cluster Manager of Serena’s North, who was so kind to upgrade my room to the Kanwal Suite, the best thing about my suite was its view from the balcony, of the Karakorum, Lady Finger, and some of the gigantic snow-capped mountains whose name I have forgotten, beside in their cradle of these the UNESCO awarded Baltit Fort stands, moreover the sight of locals working in fields with the sound of some chubby buffalos down the hills.
Hunza was my last spot, but the unforgettable one, because it is the destination where I tried Nashasta, a desert of which my grandfather told me tales of his childhood, made by the Executive Chief Mr. Shahbaz.
In end I would say, People are wonderful, if You are wonderful, and it takes People to make someone’s journey the Memorable.
