Here I am in Lahore, feels like dark side of the moon as far as communications go.
I had a very easy crossing of the border, very quick got carnet (bike passport) stamped out of India and into Pakistan no problems. No one even bothered to check my luggage.
I have now been in Lahore for 2 days and must say that I'm pleasantly surprised, Lahore is probably the most liberal and cultural city in Pakistan. The locals are very friendly and I am often invited to sit down and have a cup of tea.
I'm staying in a hotel near, get this, Charing Cross! which is on The Mall (for my friends in England) and today being Sunday most of the shops are closed.... strange for a muslim country, normally closed on fridays.
The first major difference you notice after India is the food. Here it is meat with every thing and still have to say that the food is still one of the highlights of my trip. the other difference is that all food is eaten with out utensils so it's a bit hard for me as I'm a natural left hander.
I had a good wander through the old city this afternoon, very colourful and a lot of people about, masses of stalls set out selling everything imaginable, had a great time just sitting at a tea stall people watching. Re the tea, back home I never drink the stuff, hate it, but here it seems to be the drink to have in this heat (same as India). However I have lashed out today and brought myself a small jar of nescafe coffee.
News on other front not so good, it looks like I may not be able to do the KKH for reasons I won't go into here but needless to say I'm pretty p.......... with the situation. The information I am getting is very limited re routes I can take is vague and can't seem to get up to date info from other bikers. I have posted on website but it appears that few are here at the moment, I certainly haven't seen anyone else on a bike, in fact europeans are pretty thin on the ground although there are about 8 in this hotel (the main foreigner place).
I will have to make a plan tonight re route to take and will set off tomorrow, looks like this may be a quick trip through Pakistan. I had planned on at least 2 weeks but looks like it could be shorter.
Thanks for your emails of support.
Kia Kaha
(Maori, Be/Stay strong)