A spring festival with the Kalash tribe, who are believed by some to be descendants of the troops of Alexander the Great, promises a rich cultural experience for the adventurous traveller, writes
SHANE BRADY
TODAY, FOREIGN tourists are about as likely to visit Pakistan as they were to visit Cambodia 30 years ago. Ask someone who has never visited Pakistan what they think the place is like and they will probably tell you that it is a hotbed of terrorism, extremism and anti-Western sentiment, where you are about as likely to be kidnapped and beheaded as you are to find a restaurant that serves a good steak.
A combination of a deteriorating security situation, bad press and increasingly alarmist government travel warnings, has meant that only the most hardcore of travellers will even consider visiting Pakistan. But it wasn’t always this way. Back in the 1990s, Pakistan was home to a burgeoning tourism sector, with trekkers, mountain climbers, paragliders and polo fans flocking to Pakistan’s spectacular northern areas.
Northern Pakistan, sitting atop a geopolitical and geographic fault line, is a special place where three major mountain ranges – the Hindu Kush, the Karakorum and the Himalayas – meet, and where small mountain principalities, like Chitral and Hunza, have for hundreds of years navigated their way through the ebb and flow of the empires played out along Pakistan’s untamed frontier.
However, the 9/11 attacks, which were carried out not by Pakistanis or by Afghans, but by Arab terrorists, decimated Pakistan’s tourism sector, sending visitor numbers through the floor and putting many tour companies out of business. Those companies which remain face an uphill struggle to convince foreign tourists that Pakistan is a safe place to visit.
Unfortunately, the May 2nd raid by US special forces on a compound in Abbottabad, in which the alleged mastermind of the 9/11 attacks, Osama Bin Laden, was reportedly killed, could mark the death knell of Pakistan’s tourism industry. Many who were planning to visit northern Pakistan have cancelled due to fears of reprisals against foreigners. So I was apprehensive about travelling north so soon after Bin Laden’s death but was assured by friends in the area that it was safe to visit.
My plan was to attend the Joshi festival, a spring festival celebrated by members of the Kalash tribe who reside in the remote Kalash valleys of Chitral district. The Kalash are a distinct ethnic group who are believed by some to be descendants of the troops of Alexander the Great. The cultural and religious practices of the Kalash are unique in Pakistan. They sacrifice animals on ceremonial alters and erect totem poles in ceremonial grounds on the upper valley slopes. They make their own alcohol, mostly from apricots, and the women wear distinct costumes consisting of black dresses decorated with Day-Glo floral and ethnic patterns and sea-shells, and long, colourful headdresses adorned with shells, coins and brightly coloured feathers. Ever since my first visit to Pakistan, I had wanted to experience a Kalash festival first hand.
MY TRIP BEGAN in Islamabad, from where I caught a flight to Chitral. I had been planning to travel by road, but the route would have taken me through Malakand Division of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, where military operations are taking place, and reliable sources had indicated that it would be better to avoid travelling through the area by road, if possible.
In Chitral I had to register at the Foreigner Registration Office next to the local police station. While waiting to be registered, I read the charts on the wall detailing the numbers and nationalities of foreign tourists over the past decade or so. The figures spoke for themselves, with several thousand registered in 2000 and 2001, dropping to a few hundred in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks.
Unfortunately, in the past year, the police have begun to insist that foreign visitors to Chitral be accompanied at all times by an armed policeman. I was travelling with a group of friends, including another foreigner, so we were assigned two armed guards, who accompanied us around the city. Initially, their presence was disconcerting, but I got used to it and my guard turned out to be a pretty good guide, taking us to see a polo match.
The following day we headed for the Kalash valley of Rumbur, reluctantly accepting a police escort. I had been to the Kalash valleys a number of times previously, without an escort. The area has always been considered safe for tourists, and is still safe enough, but the Chitral police force has decided to leave nothing to chance, and for this festival, the police presence was somewhat overbearing.
Visiting Rumbur is like travelling into the distant, pre-historic past. At the time of my visit, there was no electricity in the valley, since the hydro-electric turbines were badly damaged in last year’s floods, and at the time of writing, there are no landlines, let alone mobile phone services, in the valley.
The Kalash live almost entirely off the land, herding goats, growing wheat and harvesting an abundance of fruits and nuts. Upon arrival we were directed to a home-stay, run by a local teacher, named Engineer Khan, and his family. The accommodation was basic, but comfortable, and the hospitality of the host family was exceptional.
On the first day of the festival, we climbed a steep stairway, up to the ceremonial ground, where the locals had gathered to celebrate the arrival of spring. We watched as groups of brightly dressed women, arms linked, danced in circles around the male drummers who beat out an entrancing rhythm on their goatskin drums.
The atmosphere was somewhat tempered by the large police presence, but both the locals and the tourists kept their spirits high, aided by the local apricot moonshine known as Tara.We were told that this was just a warm-up, and sure enough, the following day’s festivities were even more euphoric and intense.
As the sun began its descent in the late afternoon of the second day, the Kalash men climbed further up the valley, to a sacrificial alter overlooking the ceremonial grounds. Local shamans prayed around a juniper fire, and chunks of goats’ cheese were distributed from goatskins, to be eaten with wholewheat bread as a collective ceremonial meal. The Kalash have something of a siege mentality when it comes to their non-Kalash Pakistani cousins, so only non-Muslim men are allowed to participate in this part of the ceremony.
Shortly afterwards, we returned to the ceremonial ground, but as the festivities were about to reach a climax, we were told that only Kalash people could be present from that point on. We were directed to leave and to climb on top of a building overlooking the grounds. However, we were obviously not far enough away, and to drive their point home, some of the Kalash men began to fling rocks at the onlookers, sending both armed police and tourists scattering for cover. Once the final ceremony was completed, we joined the revellers on the descent back to the valley.
Overall, the festival was magical and euphoric, and our enjoyment of this unique event far outweighed the inconvenience of being surrounded by dozens of mostly courteous, but sometimes menacing armed police.
The following morning we made our way back to Chitral city, where my friend and tour guide, Ehshan, arranged a night of traditional Chitrali music and dance, to offset our negative experiences with the police. We were guests of honour, and after around half a dozen dance performances by our local hosts, it was our turn to dance. Thankfully, we had imbibed sufficient amounts of moonshine to dampen our inhibitions, and if the reaction of our hosts, including our police escorts, was anything to go by, our enthusiastic (if jerky and poorly coordinated) attempts at dancing, exceeded their expectations.
Chitral has so much to offer, and the hospitality of the Chitrali and Kalash people, combined with the rich cultural experiences the area has to offer, will keep you coming back for more. I only hope that, like Cambodia, peace will come with the passage of time, allowing the revival of the area’s tourist industry and putting this unique location back on the path to prosperity.
Northern Pakistan where to . . .
Go
An all-inclusive package with a tour operator is probably the best option for people who are visiting the country for the first time, as everything – domestic flights, hotels, meals and transport – is arranged. The tour company will also help with visa arrangements by writing a letter of invitation, if necessary. Try Karakorum Nature and Discovery Pakistan (kndp-travel.com), and Travelpak (travelpak.co.uk).
The cost of the package described (left) with Karakorum Nature and Discovery Pakistan is around €695 (excluding international flights) per person for a group of five. This includes domestic flights, meals, accommodation and transport for seven days in Pakistan. A flight from Dublin costs around €970 via Abu Dhabi with Etihad. Emirates fly to Pakistan, via Dubai, from the UK. Pakistan International Airlines fly direct to Islamabad from the UK.
You could also travel independently. This is cheaper, but will involve more ground work. Islamabad’s five-star hotels (the Marriott and the Serena) are dear so stay at one of the city’s comfortable guesthouses, which charge from €20 to €40 per room per night. Try the Grand Mansion (thegrandmansion.com).
Stay
In Chitral, the most popular hotel is the Hindukush Heights Hotel (hindukush.com.pk). It made the Tatler 101 Best Hotels in the World list for 2010. Single rooms are around €52 per night and doubles about €62 per night. The Hindukush Heights can arrange trips around Chitral, including a trip to the Kalash festivals.
The budget conscious should try the Tirichmir View Hotel, which is in the centre of Chitral and offers comfortable rooms for less than €20 per night.
In Rumbur, the most popular guesthouse is Saifullah Jan’s Guesthouse. Here, you’ll pay between €8 and €15 for a double room. Another option is Engineer Khan’s Homestay, where you pay around €8 for a room which accommodates two to three people. Engineer Khan’s family can also prepare meals at a very reasonable price.
Visa
A single entry visa for Pakistan, available from the Pakistani embassy in Dublin, costs €72.
When to visit
The best time to visit Pakistan’s northern areas is between May and September. Snow is an issue for the rest of the year