A visit to the currently on going Ramazan International Fair 2006 can provide families with a good evening out after iftaari. Crowds are high while brands ranging from Qarshi, Super National, Canon, Citibank, Venus Carpets, PakSuzuki, Shandy, Bake Parlor, Young’s, Haleeb, Sufi, Tapal, Nurpur, Lakson Tobacco all are on display at unique stalls. All this only for an entry ticket of Rs. 30/person.

The Venue; Expo Centre, Fortress Stadium, has been tasfully colored with lights at night.

Both ground and first floors are teaming with displays of general products of interior decoration, kitchen stuff, handicrafts etc.
(more…)

Too much of historical emails now. Lets talk about today (like they say: Aaj ki baat karain, Amex ki baat karain). Its very humid in Lahore these days. Though ACs work fine during these days but if you get to move out or have to spend some time travelling with or without AC, its pretty hectic. Speaking to a Big Departmental store rep, I’ve come to know that oil control hair and face treatments are on high sales these days. I wonder why our body feel so chipchip (oily) during this season? What is the connection?

On a second note, which treatments do you guys use or recommend these days?

And how that lead me to Defense’s Itwaar Bazaar today. Not too long ago, I was struggling to find bruise-free tomatoes in HKB’s fresh food aisle when I heard mention of a sunday bazaar. These women praising the plumpness,taste, and most importantly affordable rate of ‘tamaterr’ to be found at the Itwaar Bazaar got me curious. Then just the other day, I was driving by LUMS when I sighted a blue sign, with an arrow no less pointing me in that particular direction. Being a seasoned salad preparer (an expert if I dare say myself), there is an abnormal amount of importance attached to the variety of greens I have available. I , no rather my fridge, lacked lettuce and tomatoes and with brunch attendees confirmed, I skipped out to get some quick. There was that sign again, and this time I veered the car that-a-way.
(more…)

Anrkali is one of the few crowded places I love. When you go there in the evening, finding a proper parking place is nothing short of a bravado. Two days ago, having not found a proper parking place we rammed into FC College hostel (in front of King Edward College on the Nila Gombud side) and parked at the hostel’s place. When the gatekeeper came up to ask we purported to meet a hostelite and made up a name. Khurram Gardezi! :D Uncommon and hard to spot, unless unlucky is your middle name. “There’s Khurram Shaukat and Khurram Saleem but no Khurram Gardezi”. “Do you have a phone or is there a PCO around?” Go to Anarkali, shop around (not for long though) and get back. We thought we faked it with success, but here comes the reply, “fir tussi dasya nai kay park he karni aay!” There you go dude!

Lahore/Pakistan’s first McDonald’s on Main Boulevard, Gulberg with Pakistan’s first women-only shopping plaza nearing completion.

Exhibition of classic & modern home/office furniture, interiors in different designs at Kalamkaar, 19-K.M. Ferozpur Road Lahore – 54760.

From 1st April to15th April 2006
Timings: 11:00am to 6:30pm

Siddiq Trade Centre is on its way to becoming Lahore’ ultimate mall with quite a lot of designer, high-scale shops including Men’s Store, Oxford University Press, Amir Adnan, FnkAsia etc.

The centre has a grand central lobby with a mechanical clown climbing a rope to the ceiling all the time.

For some reason, maybe because I’m the “outsider” here, the boring talk about the stuff that people who live here tend to take for granted seems to be left to me by default. It’s ok though, I’ve been one of those monument-haunting, camera-weilding people-who-hate-being-called-tourists here long enough :)

Source: http://www.travel-culture.com/au/lahore-bazaar.jpg
Anarkali was one of the first places that I wanted to see the moment I landed in Lahore. It’s not just a gigantic sprawling shopping mall-type place. It’s more like an entire village of twisting alleys and shops and stalls. For those who are familiar with Karachi – this place is a rabi center, a zainab market, a hyderi and several tariq roads (i guess sans than rabi center :p) all bunched together in a happy dirty festival.

(It’s weird how many places here resemble sprawling festivals that spring to life every single day like strangeold and reliable whirring machines – food street, anarkali, liberty, minigolf…)
That’s an oldish picture though – you don’t see nearly as many horsecarts around as you do in that picture.
(more…)