After a long time, I think
after one decade, we went for travel to up country. The reason was that two days
leaves which were of 25th December coming along with 12th Rabiul Aual coming on
24th December and both were accordingly on Thursday and Friday and saturday and
sunday also are treated as holiday. So, it was looking four big days vacation
and the coming monday was going to be added in this big vacation. So, my nephew
made a up country trip to avail these detailed "told" vacations. I was not
agreed with his plan as my young daughters are very little and find their relief
nowhere but in my laps. Usually, they keep clinging with me as long as they face
any discomfort. A true horrible picture was depicted before me that in the whole
travel I would have to lift them on my lap and I could imagine my waist
transforming into wooden raft. Anyway, from pressure of the people around me I
agreed to travel with them. We made reservation in train before the travel to
avoid any botheration in travel. At last the day came when we had to leave home
for travel. It was midnight when we woke up and prepared to children and got
them wore the clothes for saving them from chilly winds. It was 4:45 when we
left home in hired van which was two times returned back to home due to
forgetting some important things at home. I made me very tensed and when we
finally went for railway station we had only forty five minutes to pick the
train at City railway station. I forced many times to driver for increasing
speed. So, we reached before ten minutes train started. The train left at 5.35
and we have already set in our compartment and placed our luggages into it and
also covered it with bed sheets as to prevent it from invading of any strange
passengers. We had two compartments one of them was completely ours where in
second one, we had eighty percent possession. Train started to run and crossed
the city while sun was rising. It was a very good experience to see rising sun
from running train. When we become well-acquainted with the train then we opened
our breakfast boxes and distributed edible items to participants of this travel
and enjoyed it most and it was decided to take tea when we would reach to
Hyderabad. At Hyderabad, tea was taken and all of us were busy in looking
outside the sceneries were visible from the windows of train. I sat on the seat
having window in front of my niece’s one who had the same facility of window for
looking outside. I used to inform her about the crops which were coming in the
fields thereon. Doing such activities, at last we reached to our destination
which was Rawalpindi railway station. Where, my brother was to come and he was
late and taking that opportunity we went to wash our mouths and utilized the
washrooms and corrected our appearances and got fresh. About one hour passed, my
elder brother came along with van. We all sat in and went to rest house in
Islamabad. Where our two rooms were reserved and we decided to allocate one for
male members while remaining one was for female members. After keeping our
luggage, we were asked to come for lunch. After lunch, we got ready for going to
Monal- a picnic place in Islamabad over some height. The road leading to Monal
was full of very dangerous turnings. There, I realized that the driver should be
very experienced and attentive otherwise accident will take no time to happen.
Luckily, our driver had the both qualities and was driving dexterously on
steeper roads. Anyway, we reached there few minutes before sun set. The view of
Islamabad city from there was very beautiful. We felt there much cold as
compared to Islamabad's. There were restaurants looked hung in mountains and
giving a very pleasant look to their viewers. We took many pictures there and on
returning back went to Faisal Mosque. After seeing mosque, we went for dinner to
a restaurant and then got back to our rest house. Next day was Friday, when we
planned to go to Murree, at the way of Murree, we changed our plan and went to
see Patriata. First we took our breakfast there. Then we arranged tickets for
chair lifts. But we did not dare to stand on queue and returned our tickets as
there were more than three hundred people waiting for their ride in the queue.
Had we ridden on lift chairs then we would have consumed our whole day there.
So, we picked the way of Murree. But alas, there was no snow in Murree, which we
had travelled for. The participants of our tour were little bit disappointed,
but I was thanking to Allah, and known it good as my little children might have
suffered from cold. So, for killing the time, we searched for a reasonable
restaurant to have our lunch and some fellows headed for window shopping. I also
asked prices of dry fruits. But, their quality and price could not satisfy me
and I refrained of shopping and used to enjoy looking shops there. After having
couple of hours in said activities, we returned back to Islamabad. The coming
day was our last day of journey. We had to pick train at 5:00. So, we rose early
and got prepared and went to see Lok Wirsa. A great surprise enveloped me when I
entered in its building. As it was looking like a fairy land where we had
entered in. In the exterior part of premises, were modals of anciently used
ships, being art-piece trucks, bull carts, primitive wooden doors with artisan
work etc. While in building there were wax modals defining some historical
events which were related to our history like Allama Iqbal's performing prayer
in Qurtuba Mosque, Qaid-e-Azam attending first assembly session and his
attending in inaugurating ceremony of State Bank and like same were placed
there. Along with them, there were cultures of some countries like, Turkey,
Saudi Arabia China were presented in shape of modals. Our hearts did not want to
leave that place so quickly but we didn't have much time and we had to go to
Pakistan Monument which was made at the place of Shakar Pirhyan. This is a
circled building having a large floor fenced by walls from where Islamabad
city’s buildings look easily. The visitors were busy in snatching photos of
sceneries which were visible around that round wall and taking the benefit of
its large roof, my daughters started running wildly and I was following them to
letting them have any harm in case of falling on roof. The people walking there
enjoyed very much that scene of chasing. After sometime we moved to a building
which was made as some kind of museum, and was full of modals and pictures about
independence movement, culture and geography of Pakistan. It was very
informative especially for children. I made my elder daughter catch attention
about the details of the pictures thereupon. She also showed great interest in
these pictorial informations and I also motivated her to write an essay about
whatever she had seen there. Two schools had also brought their students there
on study trip as the students were being recognized by their uniforms. Looking
those things, time spent so quickly that we had to leave that place hurriedly.
We rushed to our hotel and decided to have lunch from the hotel near the station
as to save time which was going to shrink quickly. So, we searched a hotel and
ordered for lunch in near of railway station. But much time passed and lunch
could be served to us then we ordered to pack the food and run for catching the
train. The train was ready to start and said good-bye to my elder brother whom
had to pick the plane for reaching Karachi. Anyway, we repeated all activities
which once I had noted about the travel of coming to Islamabad. At last, we
reached to our destination at next day night at 10:00 p.m. which was promised
arrival time of our train at Karachi Cant. Station where my elder brother was
there again to receive us and we reached to our home and our pleasure trip ended
happily.