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Pakistan is located in Southern Asia, and shares a border with India, Iran, Afghanistan, China and the Arabian Sea. It’s a land of hot dry deserts and arctic cold mountains. Civilizations have lived and died here since ancient times. The nation’s history is layered with the cultural detritus of the Aryun, Indus, Persian, Mauryan, Bactrian, Kushan and Mughal empires, just to name a few.

Currently the population of 165 million is dominated by Punjabis and Pashtuns, and 97% of the population is Muslim. The mountains of Pakistan are dramatic and daunting. The famous Khyber Pass is a break in the rock border with Afghanistan, where Alexander the Great entered Pakistan in 326 BC. K2, the world’s 2nd largest mountain, is here in Pakistan. Pakistan’s largest city is Karachi, located on the coast of the Arabian Sea. Its capital city is Islamabad, at the foot of the Margalla Hills. The Hunza River valley was the inspiration for the fictional land of Shangri-La. Lahore hosts Pakistan’s major artistic legacy, with bazaars, mosques, gardens, and ancient ruins. At this time political tensions eliminate Pakistan as a tourist destination for any Westerner without a death wish, but hopefully someday peace will return, Insha'allah.