Tomorrow I'm heading off to 'Skardu' in the far north-east 'Baltistan' region of Pakistan. The bus journey there from Islamabad is expected to take about 24 hours. Yes 24 hours! The buses to the Northern Areas are run by NATCO (Northern Areas Transport Company) and I will be travelling on the 'VIP Express Service'. What this means is that I will get my own seat (i.e. I won't be expected to share it with another smelly person!) and we won't be picking up itinerant passengers (we'll see about that one). The express service still takes 24 hours though and it costs RS 1,400 (10 quid). I'm expecting some dodgy driving as we traverse some of the most hair-raising, brutal, and breath-taking scenery on planet earth.
(Click maps below for location)
