Postcard from Taxila - Orange Festival

Australian Photographer in Pakistan

Instagram @gaynor.shaw.photography

Every year in late February an orange festival is held in Taxila, Punjab.  February is at the end of the orange season and a festival seems like a great way to celebrate a wonderful harvest.  It was my first time at an orange festival and so apart from lots of oranges I didn’t know what to expect.  I should have known that oranges would play a role but that music, entertainment and food would be key. 

The festival started with horse dancing, a traditional way of celebrating success.  A double headed drum, a dhol, plays the main beat as the horse dances.  Another traditional form of entertainment is stone lifting, known locally as ‘watee’ or ‘gutti’ lifting.  The stones are made of solid granite, 80kg, 100kg and 120kg each. The stone is lifted in one fluid motion onto their shoulders and thrown behind them.  The program also included the less traditional entertainment of orange squeezing and musical chairs for adults. 

Taxila is a UNESCO world heritage site and is an area rich in tradition, culture and history. The orange festival was a great introduction to some unusual Pakistani traditions. 

Postcard from Karachi - Clifton Beach

Welcome to my first blog.  I am a photographer and I have recently arrived in Pakistan from Australia.  I’m living in Islamabad but I am hoping that I will have the opportunity to explore many different parts of the country.  One of the first places I was lucky enough to visit was Karachi.

 There is a big difference between my home town of Canberra, Australia and Karachi.  Canberra’s population is nearly 400,000 and is an inland city surrounding by the bush.  Karachi’s population is nearly 15 million and is next to the coast.  I was not ready for the noise, people, and yet more people!

 I was brought up next to the coast in Australia so one of the first places I wanted to visit was Clifton Beach.  Clifton beach is nothing like the beaches I grew up with.  The day I visited was in the middle of summer and the weather was very hot and humid.  The day was overcast and it was almost as if the sand matched the colour of the sea and the sky.  While the sand and sea were grey there was colour and movement everywhere else.  I have never been to a beach where there were so many camels (yes camels!), beach buggies, horses, and food vendors.  A fantastic opportunity for a photographer. 

 I will return to Karachi and would love to know if you live in Karachi or have recently visited and know of places that I should visit the next time I return.