Gilgit Serena Hotel

First impression&#8230;.<br><br>Easy customs!! <br><br>What a relief after disastrous China&#8230; We entered Pakistan via the Kunjerab pass at 12600km from Amsterdam and at a height of 4700m. At the highest point there was a porch with Chinese characters and nothing&#8230;.No sign with congratulation you made it! No name of the pass, no policemen, no customs, nothing. The only sign that we made it to the top was the fact that the road went down again ;-) That ...

From Karimabad the KKH passes through abundant terraced fields and fields of apricot, walnut and apple trees. About two hours on, we stopped for lunch at a viewing spot for the famous Mount Rakaposhi. At a height of 7788m, the views of this magnificent mountain were breathtaking.<br><br>The road trip from here to Gilgit is geologically and scenically fascinating. Once again we were travelling along a dusty rough KKH surrounded by huge grey-brown scree covered ...

Back at 'home' we just enjoyed our time there, spending more time with M, K and alsoMS. I had more shopping days with V, the boys played football in the park (women aren't allowed to play sports in public), we met lots of people for chai, I started wearing a salwar-kameez more often because the weather was getting warmer and it felt good to dress up a bit in something different. In fact it was funny because both m and k always wore western ...

We came back 'home' to Gilgit and really felt like we were getting to know the place - we had our favorite places to eat - the Tajistikan Inn that made great food that wasn't too greasy, and omlettes to order, and a little pakora place that always made fresh ones for us and gave us a little extra. We started to get to know the people too, and they seemed to get used to us being there. We had a bit of fun with some of the things in ...

We had many more days with the boys including a visit to Gakuch in the Gizhar valley ( I don't think googl can find it on the map). K had arranged for us to stay at his sister's house there while she visited his mum so the 6 of us went and spent a couple of nights in this little village. At night R and V cooked and we all huddled around the heat in the house. There was no glass in the windows so the ...

... but further along the road we were stopped by a landslide that had happened moments before. Everything was at a standstill and everyone was mucking in to clear the rocks with just the light from the buses headlamps. I watched but soon had to become first-aider for S who managed to gash a huge cut in his hand as he clashed rocks with another guy! The rest of the journey was not so dramatic but it was amazing to watch as the sun rose and the stunning landscape was revealed ...

... Gilgit. Lonely Planet advises travellers to avoid taking overnight buses along the Karakoram Highway because there have been some incidents of banditry, as the highway passes through some pretty lawless regions of Pakistan. So, whenever the bus stopped during the night, I peered worriedly out the window at the sinister looking figures lurking in the darkness. But, they were inevitably Indian army patrols ...

... t too testing but the drive up was another matter. It was by far the most dangerous and mentally challenging route I have ever undertaken! It lasted an hour and my entire body was as stiff as a board for 59 of those minutes. Seven of us including the driver were crammed into an open jeep with roll bars and canvas cover for support. There was no hope of surviving a crash, let alone a fall. The first 12 minutes were bearable as the rocky track wound steadily up from the ...

... carrying your own bag, sleeping bag and tent nothing at this altitude seemed easy, especially when felling like ****. From Gilgit we caught a local bus to the bridge where the jeep track to Fairy Meadows trailhead started, passing through a point where The Hindu Kush, Himalaya's and the KaraKoram Mountain ranges all met, the 3 mightiest mountain ranges on Earth! We then got a jeep up the legendary 4WD road ascending 1320meteres ...