Antoine Pagis: Around the world in search of an ‘ideal match’
Antoine Pagis, a 30-year-old Frenchman, is visiting Pakistan in his VW van fuelled by two desires: to explore the world and to find ‘Miss Right’.
Pagis has been on the road for two months, having decided on a world tour after waking up one morning fed-up with the drudgery of his daily life. He quit his job at a software company in his hometown of Montbrun les Bain, southeast France, and embarked on his dream trip. “I felt the need to feel alive,” he explained.
He also felt the nagging need to find his perfect match. Marriage and children are on his mind, and Pagis told The Express Tribune he seeks the one true love of his life — something to alert all single Francophile women in Pakistan.
What qualities is he looking for? “I’m a young man. Of course I want her to be beautiful, but it’s very important that she’s also smart,” he said.
Arriving in Karachi, he was pleased with what he saw. He said he was glad to discover that young and ‘modern-looking women’ exist in this part of the world. In Quetta, by contrast, he said he rarely saw women, except for elderly ones or children. (Complete news article)
KARACHI: Wary of a backlash from religious groups, the country’s federation is planning small steps at a time in a bid to promote women’s boxing.
After being asked by the International Amateur Boxing Association (AIBA) to start a women’s boxing programme in 1996, the plan failed due to protests by hardliners who opposed the idea of females gearing up to step in the ring.
However, after a lapse of almost 16 years, the Pakistan Boxing Federation (PBF) – facing the rage of conservative groups but surrounded by talented women – has decided to hold exhibition matches in April. (Complete news article)
the combined result of the structure absorbs humidity and the mass of the thick 60 centimeter bearing walls reduces the temperature of interior spaces by 8 degrees celsius during the 40 degree summer heat. local residents were able to build their new community facility by implementing appropriate construction technologies and skills which were already present within the village.
…the night guard comes around on his cycle with a loud whistle to scare away burglars. He goes through about a dozen or half a dozen streets. I’ve questioned my cousin about it but she can’t figure out the logistics either. Like, where does he come from and who pays him? The concept seems naive to me. Wouldn’t you just wait for him to pass and then carry on with your burglarizing? I want to know more.
Pakistani: It is an age old tradition of sub-continent. The night guard known as “Chowkidar” will make rounds on his bicycle or on foot (hitting a staff on ground to make noise along with whistling), hoping to instil a sense of someone present in any opportunist burglar. It used to work in the old simpler days, but now it is more like just a formality or a practice to comfort ones own self. They are paid by the housing societies or the plain good residents who find it still helpful, or people like myself who find it as an interesting tradition.
Passion can make you do crazy things. Boundaries cease to exist and a thin line divides passion and insanity.
The seventh Jhal Magsi Desert Challenge 2011, in a village put on the map by virtue of the event itself, had over 50 participants and the terrain – the mountains and sand – provided the perfect setting. But it’s not the sights of the village that induces the awe, it’s the extent to which the drivers go in order to conquer the terrain, the limits they cross and the hurdles they overcome, making the crowd go wild with every rev of the engine.
The journey to Jhal is annoying and frustrating but drivers still take part, bringing with them mechanics, navigators and guests, with equipment coming in from all parts of Pakistan. The obstacles exist in numbers, but so do the SUVs. Driven by passion, blessed with money and armed with the ‘bad boys’ of the road, the participants hope to enjoy every moment. (complete article)
Wondrous feats: One student’s journey from small-town Balochistan to Harvard University
Located on the outskirts of Quetta, is the barren valley of Mariabad where the Hazara lead slow-paced lives. These tribal people, living in narrow brick huts speckled along the rugged hillside, typically sell loose cloth, sweaters or tea for their livelihood.
Like most poor people, their aspirations rarely go beyond sustaining themselves in this underdeveloped nook of Balochistan. Many of them live and die in Mariabad — unaware of the complex concerns and tremendous pace of life in urban centres like Karachi and Lahore.
But one student — the son of a trader who sold Quaid-e-Azam style caps in Mariabad for a living — dared to tread a radically different path. Karrar Hussain Jaffar transcended the confines of an obscure town in Balochistan, where people rarely educate themselves beyond matriculation, to study at the prestigious Harvard University. His story — a narrative about the wondrous possibilities of equal educational opportunities — is truly inspirational. (for complete news click here and for an equally inspirational video of Karrar and LUMS NOP click here)
Ansar Burney does it again, helps free Sixteen Pakistanis working as slaves in Afghanistan set free
Chairman Ansar Burney Trust talking to the people who were released from a private jail in Afghanistan, at FC Balochistan Headquarters Quetta on Wednesday. – Online Photo
This blog aims at telling you the "truth" about Pakistan. Unfortunately, today the news emerging from Pakistan on the Western media are so much polarized that it gives a very unreal image of Pakistan.
At "What no one told you about Pakistan", we aim at telling you the real stories about Pakistan.
