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Pakistan encapsulates such variety that it is regretful that it is not top of every traveller's must-see list. Pakistan is enriched by friendly people and magnificent landscapes. Opportunity for adventure is as high as its mighty mountain ranges, with watersports, mountaineering and trekking all popular and rewarding activities. Coupled with this is a profound sense of cultural concoction, Pakistan once being home to several ancient civilisations, and witness to the rise and fall of dynasties.
In ancient times, the area that now comprises Pakistan marked the farthest reaches of the conquests of Alexander the Great. It was also the home of Buddhist Ghandaran culture. It was the independence of India in 1947 that catalysed Pakistan's nationhood. Under pressure from Indian Muslims, the British created a separate Muslim state. Originally, it consisted of two parts, East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) and West Pakistan (now a single unitary state).
Democracy failed to take root and Pakistan suffered military rule and civil war, eventually securing an independent Bangladesh and truncating Pakistan.
At the heart of the long-running Indo-Pakistan conflict is the status of Kashmir which, although it has a majority Muslim population, became part of India in 1947. The two sides have nearly come to war on several occasions. However, in early 2004, a 'road map' was agreed and tentative commitment to peace established.
Pakistan's topography is therefore as fractured and unsettled as its history.
01-Dec-2008