PakLand: Day1 - Lahore

I was not really sure how should I feel when I first heard that I will be going to Pakistan for a full week ... but by the time I was boarding the flight - I got really excited. I mean, I probably see a lot of Pakistanis in Dubai, dutifully dubbed as the second Bombay/Karachi (depending on who do you want to please) ... but I was ready to see something new ... a new country, the actual culture ... and probably get my hands on some good merchandise on me way back!

1- PIA

Yup - Pakistan International Airline (i think!) ... is not really the next Emirates Airlines, but it was not as bad as I thought it would be. Maybe the stewardess had some issues communicating perfect english with me and nisreen (our marketing colleague) and maybe there were some loose screws on the plane stablizer, but hey: flight was empty, seats comfortable, and what tourists (like me!) thought of authentic paki food!

2- Lahore International Airport - the "Allama Iqbal International Airport" strikes you as a modern airport, the moment you set foot outside the plane and move towards the passport control. My colleage Qaiser, the country sales manager for Pak, made me eat my hat after I made fun of pak ... seeing this airport I was actually impressed. However, like a movie with a sweet record playing in the background, and then something suddenly stops it, making that annoying (ZzzzzzzZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzt) sound ... that is how I felt as soon as I saw passport control: definition of Chaos personified! Hundreds of Pakis packed (pun not intended) in the passport control hall, which is served by 6 or 7 passport control officers. The queues were not moving ... the queue for Foreign passports, was full of Pakis, the queue for women only had women and those who can be pushed in the middle ... chaos! I gave Qaiser the "I will make you eat that hat again buddy" look ... while he tried to squirm us into getting to one of the officers quickly. It was the kind of place, where you constantly look at your mobile phone, hoping that someone will call you and save you from this misery.

After what seemed like only 9 months, we finally got out of the airport ... with our bags intact ... we were on our way to the hotel!

3- Pearl Continental Hotel, Lahore - their 5 star hotel, it is actually a hotel with an attached shopping centre, turned out to be ok. Im sitting here in room 236, making sure that I have everything ready and set out for a crazy week ahead!

... a semi-hot shower, a good old book and some TV ... its time to hit the bed!