“Travel makes one modest. You see what a tiny place you occupy in the world.” – Gustave Flaubert
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| (Arriving at Karachi Cantonment Train Station) |
Day 11: Saturday, 19 September 2015
Route: Lahore - Karachi
Distance: 1,286 Km
Hotel: Mehran Hotel
Although the Karakoram Express boast the best train ride, having an experience travelling on the Shalimar Express was not that bad after all. Almost everyone woke up early, taking turn to use the washroom at the end of the carriage. To while away our time we either recite the Quran or listen to the music while waiting for breakfast to be served. There was a Bollywood movie playing on TV but nobody was watching. We had toast and tea for breakfast and try to catch the sunrise on the horizon of Pakistan countryside and the rest of the journey was spent napping till it was time to get ready for arrival.
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| (My bed at the top-most narrow bunk) |
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| (A man selling tid-bits along the narrow walkway) |
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| (Hyderabad Train Station) |
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| (Busy traffic at the intersection) |
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| (The homeless living in tents) |
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| (Arabic writings on the walls) |
When we arrived in Karachi Cantt Station, we were swarmed by porters who were ever ready to carry our heavy luggage for a small fee. From the Railway Station we were swiftly transported to Mehran Hotel for a buffet lunch and had a short rest before our afternoon activities.
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| (The Karachi Train Station) |
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| (View from the overhead bridge crossing the rail tracks) |
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| (Porters carrying heavy loads of luggage) |
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| (Waiting for our transport to the hotel) |
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| (The lobby of Mehran Hotel) |
This afternoon we were brought to the famed Tariq Road. It is located in the heart of Karachi and amongst the top shopping locales of Karachi. There are more than a thousand shops and showrooms in this area, selling jewellery, garments, cosmetics, foods, computers, and footwear. While the rest were looking for Saris and textile, we ended up buying some more kurtas of different types.
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| (Qingqi and motorbikes add to the congestion) |
When the sun began to set, we drove to the beach front and had grilled dory and French fries for dinner at Charcoal BBQ and Grill Restaurant. The food was not bad but no match to their neighbour Kolachi Restaurant which claimed to be better in food and service. Tonight the service was a bit slow as it was a Saturday night with thousands of guests waiting for their dinner to be served too.
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| (One of the many seaside restaurants) |
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