Everyone knows that sudden travel plans are the best and the most enjoyable. Indeed, they are! I can assure you myself because I have gone through the experience myself.
And it proved to be a trip that I will remember forever.
Let me take you down the memory lane back in January 2020, right before Covid hit us all and turned our lives around.
My family is scattered all over Pakistan and we have an annual meetup which we cherish deeply. We make sure it is always so memorable that we look forward to it all year.
It was one of these meetups at my aunt’s house in Mardan near Peshawar. While having tea in the evening, we made a very random plan to go to Swat next morning.
It was so sudden and in the air that none of us thought it would come to pass. We thought the idea would eventually die out and would end up in smoke as we assumed that nobody would be able to get out of their cosy beds on a cold January morning.
Nevertheless, it turned out that we all stayed awake after Fajr and made sure that nobody dosed off again.
Eventually, we all got dressed, wrapped ourselves up in extra layers of clothing, and set out in the car for our journey.
It was a very exciting ride where we stopped on the way for some warm chai and fresh bhutta. We went up to the mountains and finally made our stop at the White Palace, which is an amazing destination.
The wind was freezing cold and we felt it down to our bones because, living in Karachi, we aren’t used to such weather but we still enjoyed every minute of it.
We were so excited and overwhelmed in the cold that we would breathe out just to see the mist coming out of our mouths.
We also witnessed our very first snowfall on the same day, which was breathtaking and beautiful.
Alhamdulilah, for being able to go on such a wonderful trip and also being able to enjoy it to the fullest without any fear of catching cold.
We ended the day with a delicious traditional Pakhtun dish called Dum-Pukht from a local Peshawari restaurant. I still thank Allah (SWT) from the bottom of my heart for these beautiful memories that we will all cherish forever!
Contributed by : Syeda Humna
