Back trek to Mithramdan : Day 7 / Volleyball at Sokhtarabad

Volleyball, Sokhtarabad camp site, Pakistan
Originally uploaded by Ameer Hamza

After looking for some shots around I requested the police wallas and Naseer to re-start their game of volleyball. This, I must remind you, is a difficult thing to do under cold weather. The coldness can really hurt you in a game like volleyball. Nevertheless, they played it again and I got my photographs. This photograph is surely one of the those I always wanted with grand and beautiful mountains in the background and the players in superb action.

To Wakhan : Day 5 / Yak with Nasir, Sokhtarabad

Naseer with his Yak, Sokhtarabad, Pakistan
Originally uploaded by Ameer Hamza

Via Flickr:
In this region Yak is known locally as 'Khush Gao'. It is a stout, beautiful animal and perfectly suitable to live among the giant mountains and extremely harsh climate. It can walk on snow as easily as it does on rocky terrain, foraging high above summer pastures. Rich and middle class men keep them. Pictured here is Naseer, a local Wakhi-Ismaili with his Yak. He has around 60 goats and probably 5 Yak.

To Wakhan : Day 5 / Sokhtarabad

Mountains as seen from Sokhtarabad, Pakistan
Originally uploaded by Ameer Hamza

We had reached at our camp, damp and tired, at 9 PM. In fact it would be prudent to call it a stumble. And soon we heard the voice of our friend, Zahid Ali Khan (Known as ZAK in flickr and beyond) asking me and Adeel to join him and Danial for a much-needed dinner. It was raining so we went straight in the Kitchen camp. The bonfire there instantly saved our day and we happily munched on whatever we were offered (I think it was some sort of Lahori qorma). We ate our fill and then went to our camp, which was by now drenched from bottom to top. The bags were lying outside and we could not find out porters. It seemed that most of them had nothing to do with us. Our leader, Tanweer, was also not available for comment. So we opened our heavy, water-logged bags, got out our sleeping bags, which were also drenched, and slept. Or tried to. All night me and Adeel just tried to sleep. It was one of those nights which must be remembered for its usefulness as our teacher. We cursed Tanweer and his partner, Talat Saeed (also from Lahore) and slept.

I was the first to wake up and get out when the rains finally ceased sometime after 6 AM next morning. And this was the view I first saw from there. This frame was probably taken after sometime, after I had woken our chef, got some tea in stomach and then handled my Nikon D70s, dried it on fire and then the photography.