TRAVEL: SHADES OF WHITE
y parents’ generation talks of Murree as their choice holiday destination but for us younger lot, those are only legends. Increased commercialisation has taken much of Murree’s soul away and as my group of friends planned a vacation from Peshawar last January, Murree was immediately thrown out of consideration. Shogran and Siri Paye stood out for us — they are still largely untouched by crass commercialisation despite having a very vibrant tourist scene.
After doing some homework, we proceeded to Mansehra to head onwards. “Aao Gi Aao, Ghazikot, Lari Adda, Aao Gi [This bus for Ghazikot, Lari Adda come this way],” chanted a conductor at the bus stop on main Mansehra Road. It had rained a lot the night before we packed off to Mansehra but the city was merely a brief stopover for our journey onwards. We managed to get on a coach that was about to leave in the next five minutes.
Mansehra City is of course the hub of Mansehra District. The district is comprised of five tehsils: Mansehra, Balakot, Oghi, Baffa and Darband. Our destination was Shogran and then Siri Paye — both located in the Kaghan Valley of Mansehra District.
Getting to Shogran in winter can be a hassle but getting there is half the fun
To reach Shogran and then Siri Paye, you have to ride a coach that stops at Kewai, which is some 24 kilometres away from Balakot. The bus to Kewai passes through the picturesque town of Ghazikot, about 38 kilometres away from Mansehra. After a four-hour-long drive, the bus pulled up at Ghazikot. Despite it being cold and frosty there, we decided to stay there overnight.
But the morning brought another sight: as I peeked out of the window to see what the sky has brought this time round, it was beautifully blue, shining with the glint of sun rays and with a wreath of clouds to move with us. Our journey to Kewai was beginning in earnest.
We got on to another bus at Ghazikot’s Lari Adda and asked the conductor to drop us off at the main Kewai bazaar when we reached there. I tried to get some shut-eye on the way but the ride to Kewai was torturous. Perhaps fate wanted us to revel in nature’s beauty that was around us rather than sleeping.