Life in Lahore - from the Eyes of an ex- Khi-ite (with apologies to Lahorites ;) )

 Folk sayings like "Laur Laur ae" (Lahore is Lahore) and "jinne Laur nai wekhiya o te jamiya nai" (the one who hasn't seen Lahore has not been born yet) are quite true. Realizing this fact after 22 years of my "unborn" life I decided to move in Lahore permanently to get born.

Though Karachi is a backbone of the country and a metro city, Lahore is also not less than Karachi in any way. We all know that archaeological sites are of great importance to any country and a source of cultural and historical heritage. Lahore therefore is a very important city. It is the only city which preserves and provides a natural habitat for extinct and unique species of public transport (chinchi rickshaw and Taanga* (horse-cart)).Chinchi and Taanga both give you double joy in a single ticket. Taanga besides dropping you at your destination has a duty of decorating your roads with beautiful dung cakes (yes, no fear if you forget your path, just follow the dung cakes ;)) whereas Chinchi gives you so many jerks while traveling, and make you feel as if you are traveling in the crevices of the moon. I reckon this modern invention can help the scientists for the massage of bone and bone marrow patients*. Just make the patient sit in chinchi and lets him enjoy the ride. Within one ride he will be perfectly okay. Na hon gi haddiyan or na ho ga dard :D

The most important thing of chinchi rickshaw is its driver. Just look at his thick, long moustaches with round ends which have grown healthy by the regular massage of chinchi oil. Look at his chest which is full of pride. Seems he is aware of the fact that he owns a magical vehicle. He sits on it with so much proud as if he is not over a chinchi rickshaw but over a Spanish Bull which he has defeated and occupied after a long, unforgettable bull fight ;)

You also don't need to worry if you get lost on the roads of Lahore. Just wave to a person and a lively-at-heart lahori-iet will come to solve your problem. He will explain you all so beautifully that you will prefer being lost rather that reaching at your target. Once we had to face similar situation and when my dad asked him the way, what he explained was, is here:

"sajjey jao,tey khabbey jao,nair(nehar)aa jawe gi.bus nair de naal naal lang jao,aender pass(under pass) a jawe ga,onoo chad dowo fir ainj muro,tey oonj muro, ley wai tussi puhanch gayo,ab menu ijazt". As soon as he stopped speaking this unfamiliar weird language my dad thanked him and waved at another person to give our luck a second try ;)

The canal of Lahore is in resemblance with the sea in Karachi. As at the beach of Karachi many birds migrate from the different parts of the world and stay for breeding. In Lahore too, different breeds of Lahor-ites migrate from their homes to canal and hibernate in it till the summers are over. You might have heard the phrase "Goat and lion drinking water from the same pond", but here Lahor-iets have set a brand new example. Just observe the brotherhood between the mankind and the animalkind in this canal. You will find both the species floating together. Sometimes it will be a man over a buffalo and the other times it will be a buffalo over a man, enjoying swimming in the cold icy water of canal. From looking at the distance it is difficult to recognize whether it's a "Sanda" (a big buffalo) or a "Banda" (a man)taking bath in the canal.

Seems that Lahore also respect miniature art. Especially in Lahore, miniature art has also made its way into buildings. In Karachi my eyes were habitual of seeing sky-rocketing buildings but here I realized the importance of miniature art. Who in khi is unfamiliar with the restaurant Salt n Pepper? It also has a "Bon-Si" branch in Lahore. I used to feel proud on the huge,amazing makro in Karachi. When I visited Lahore's tiny-mini-mani-o-Makro I had to accept that Lahori ites possess some taste for art. Yes, here you lose khi walo ;)

Honestly speaking Lahore is one of the big and famous cities of Pakistan. No city is less or more important. Fun and humor is a part of every Lahori-ite and they love to spread smiles on every face! Thanks for bearing this ;)

DISCLAIMER:
1. This article contains a bit of exaggeration at some places just for the sake of humor. Author neither intends to target any ethnic group nor does she try to hurt anyone's personal emotions or feelings. Any claim regarding this shall not be accepted.

2. This sign (*) mentions the point of exaggeration.

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