Police operation Quetta

Police operation Quetta

by | Aug 2, 2022

Police operation Quetta

After a good night sleep, except for the mosque waking us up too early we wake up. While having chapatti and cay as breakfast we talk a bit with the police officers. 

Quetta, the dangerous city of Beluchistan

They are all very kind and very curious. One is from Afghanistan and actually thinks that the Taliban take over is a good thing. “No murder was registered since they are in power” he tells us believing that to be true. I beg to differ but no need to start a discussion over this. I just tell him I really want to go there. “Then go! It’s safe, it’s good”. When I tell him it’s a bit too hot for me now to wear a burqa he laughs. 

Afterwards we walk over to other police officers who are taking us to the NOC office. We get into their car, two armed men next to us. Everyone seems relaxed and the guns are not ready to shoot so it’ll all be okay. Then at a very crowded traffic junction we have to move from one car to the other, all under the protection of three armed officers. We need to be quick they tell us. Now we sit at the back of a car with two armed officer behind us. They look more serious than the previous ones but still, no gun ready to shoot. 

Quetta, Pakistan

Quetta, also spelled Kwatah, city, district, and division of Balochistan province, Pakistan. The name is a variation of kwatkot, a Pashto word meaning “fort,” and the city is still locally known by its ancient name of Shāl or Shālkot.

Commanding the Bolān and Khojak passes, Quetta was occupied by the British in 1876; a residency was founded by Sir Robert Sandeman, and the town developed around its strongly garrisoned army station.

We are allowed to travel through Beluchistan

After a while we arrive at the NOC office. An armed officer brings us to the office where we have to give our documents. The idea is that this will give us the protection we need in Beluchistan. They’ll send a paper throughout the area to all the police stops and road blocks so they know we are coming. It is obliged by the government that tourists travel through the area safely. We haven’t experienced any danger, or felt like we were in some kind of danger but they won’t provide this for nothing. They say it takes 30 minutes to 4 hours for the NOC to finish. I feel sorry for the armed police officer who has to wait here with us. But as far as I can see all is going quite quick and we’ll be on our way soon. Inshallah.

We will be escorted out of Beluchistan by police officers, afterwards we are on our own. Something we long for already. We will be travelling to Peshawar. “A good road, and good choice to go this way” they tell us. Which makes us happy. When a country has this many incredible sites to see but we have limited time we always experience a fear of missing out. But you can do only as much in one month. 

Prints are made and we have signed that we follow the rules of Baluchistan no matter what. No idea what the rules are precisely but alright. And we’re done. 10 minutes!!! 

Buying a simcard

When I started to travel on my own back in 2001 (I was 16 years), I had a phone with the game ‘snake’ on it. Internet was still something you did on a computer and not on the phone. My Nokia 3210 gave my parents a save feeling (I could be reached) and me a way to kill time (love snake). I travelled to Tsjech Republic and Southern Africa without that phone because it made no sense to have it with me. “I will send an email when I find an Internet cafe” I told my parents. And when I arrived abroad I would go to an Internet cafe, pay some dollars and have 30 minutes of internet which I used to update my blog and email my family. Then I left and lost was the connection. Nowadays we travel to a country and a couple of things are our priority: changing money and getting a local SIMcard with data on it. We spend almost more time updating our friends and family (you!) than exploring 😉 No kidding, but sometimes it feels like that. That’s why we take time offline more and more often. But yeah, so after the necessities of informing the whole Baluchistan force of our being here we moved to the phone office.

It took about 30 minutes to get the SIMcard but apparently it takes two hours for the card to work. Registering takes a while here. Just like printing a receipt. At the immigration office at the border it took an hour to print Yuri’s visum and now it takes 15 minutes to print our receipt – no exaggeration here! 

So, done! When you read this you know we made it work. Afterwards we went to get some cash. Finally we can withdrawal money from the bank again. Although, we thought so. When we enter our card and pincode suddenly the machine shuts down: oh no! “Don’t worry, electricity is off it will get back on soon and you’ll get your card”. So we wait, and indeed – as soon as the power gets back on we get our card back. No money though. At the next bank it all works but… they only want to give us 20k rupees, which is about €85,-. Not enough to survive on. When we left Iran we also left cheap gasoline behind. From €3,- a tank to €40,- a tank… 

Leaving Quetta

Back to the police station. Another round of paperwork and filling our watertank and off we go. We are very happy we stayed at the police station. The hotel was probably fine as well but here we could experience the police culture, meet some nice people, drive with them around town and fill our water tank. And now it’s time to go. One escort takes us to another, that one changes as well and after only three estafette changes we are out of the city and onto the road to Peshawar. And what happens on this road will be for another blog. 

Love, Milene & Yuri

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The escort from Taftan to Quetta, Pakistan.

The escort from Taftan to Quetta, Pakistan.

by | Aug 2, 2022

The escort from Taftan to Quetta, Pakistan.

It’s easy to get out of Iran, it’s even easy to get into Iran, compared to Pakistan that is. My oh my.. ok, some mistakes from our side. Yuri requested a visa only for him, so at the border we needed to fix another visa for me.

Welcome to Pakistan

Which took about a day, but it normally takes up to 10 days so we can’t complain. But then, after crossing… the first office wants to see our documents (all of them). Passport, ETA (visa request), carnet de passage. He writes everything down in this big book and takes photos. After a selfie we’re done. Then, next office. Again all the paper work, including the writing and the photos. But here we get a stamp in our passports. We are requested to drive further to the gate and from there will be escorted to the Levies station for the night. The levies are the ones who will protect us the coming days when we drive to Quetta and from there out of Beluchistan. 

The gate stays closed. First we need to give all of our documents, take photos, incl a photo of us in front of the van. Move to another office, again all the documents this time including our invitation letters and Iranian visas. Then we are allowed to follow the first Levie we meet. We enter the Levie compound but have to move out again. Time for some more stamps and document sharing. This time it’s about our carnet de passage. So after five offices who seem to all be doing the same job; taking photos of our documents, writing down the information of our documents, taking photos and giving us permission to move 3 meters further, we finally arrive at the Levies station.

“Hello, you stay here tonight”, he says with a Kalashnikov around his neck showing us a room that feels like an oven and looks like a dusty closet. “Sit here, documents please” says another. Here we go again. Luckily this one didn’t take so long. After a while two gentlemen arrive and request our passports and visas again. They take a photo and wish us a good journey. And I wonder, what are they going to do with the information they gathered? We saw the countless maps with paperwork dating back to 2016. There is still no computer system in which they save the information of our documents so how will they know in Islamabad that the Levies in Taftan agreed to our stay in Beluchistan? And maybe an even better question: why would they care? 

We just go through this idiotic bureaucracy and take it as it comes. It’s not a day to stress or worry about anything. It’s too hot and the day has been too long anyway. Thus, we end the day being bored in the compound, eating with the Levies and trying to sleep in the oven with no airco and no bed. Truthfully, sleeping in Alexine is like sleeping in a 3 star hotel compared to this room. Let’s remember this moment 😉

Terrorism in Pakistan

There’s a high threat of terrorism and sectarian violence throughout the country. The main terrorist threat comes from Tehrik-e Taleban Pakistan (TTP), an umbrella organisation of groups primarily based in the former Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). Daesh (ISIL) is also active. While both groups’ activities are primarily directed against the Pakistani state, they have in the past stated an intent to launch attacks on western interests. TTP and Daesh conduct attacks throughout Pakistan.

Previous methods of attack have included grenades, shootings, bombings and suicide bombs.

Etappe 1: Taftan – Nok kundi

After an amazing shower!! Ok it was nothing special but having water run down our bodies after a very sweaty night is just amazing. Cooling down and feeling somewhat clean again the dream. So the night was horribly warm and we changed in the middle of the night from the oven to Alexine which was a good decision. Then in the morning it started raining. Raining!! So we danced of course. What else should we do after months of no rain, not even a drop. 

And at 8 precisely it was time to leave. We drove behind a vehicle with two Levies in it. One a commander who had his best days of duty behind him but was still very kind. And even though I wonder if he would hit a target if needed he wouldn’t be afraid to die im sure. So there we go! First our Levies need some petrol which doesn’t really look like a proper station but hey they painted shell on it so it must be alright. And I can’t tell you how amazing it feels to have the wind go through my hair and cool down my arms because I’m wearing a T-shirt and no headscarf anymore. Oh my, the freedom! 

For two hours we drive behind the car. The landscape a desert like plain with Afghani mountains on the left side and Iranian mountains on the right. In the middle Pakistan. Empty and deserted. Except for some abandoned buildings and train wagons that are scattered around the area. Beside the quite good tarmac road are little sand hills and the sky is full with clouds. Trucks with the most colourful ornaments dangling from every corner of it pass us. Beautiful and impressive! Just don’t want to be hit by one but they look amazing. And that’s it. The first etappe of the 635km trip to Quetta is uneventful and relaxed. 

In Nok kundi we say goodbye to our Levies and hello to our new Levies. We hand over our documents again which are copied by hand and drink tea with the Levies. It’s getting hot so taking it slow is key to survival. And we are in no hurry, if the Levies are not – we are not. 

On the wall in the office hangs a photo of men with a sack over their heads and lot of guns in front. The levies are posing next to the men. I’m asking who they are and what they did. “They’re just thieves” the commissioner replies. He worked for 26 years at the Taftan border and is now working here for 1 year before retiring. He looks forward to that moment. “I want to be free in my head” he tells me. It’s a tough job as they only have one day off per week. All the other days they work as police officers in the travelling area of Pakistan. Travelling area means the area from Taftan to Quetta alongside the Afghanistan border. “Normally it can be a bit dangerous because not everywhere the border is protected. And the Taliban focusses on people from the USA. Just like other terrorist groups operating in the area. They don’t know if your Dutch or German or English. They just see you’re a tourist so you’re a target. But the army is in full force at the border now, because of the overtake.” We talk a bit about life as a Levies in Beluchistan, about the Taliban and the pressure of its force into Pakistan. He seems a bit tired, done with his service as a levie. He wants to be with his wife, kids and grandchildren. He wants to see Iran, India and other parts of Pakistan. He wants to be relaxed and free. And I understand him. 26 years, 6 days a week and only 10 – 15 days of holiday a year. I would’ve gone crazy a long time ago. 

Etappe 2: Nok kundi – Dalbandin

My turn to drive! To the delight of the Levies. A woman driving is apparently funny. A women with an opinion about that not so much so I of course tell them that women are as good a driver as any. They stop laughing. Better show, not tell I guess. Ok, so after establishing that we move. Through the town of speed bumps. The higher the better apparently. And we hoped saying goodbye to Iran would also mean saying goodbye to these ridiculous speed bumps but no. After conquering them all there is the endless desert again. The one road through it and nothing but mirages alongside it. And that goes on for hundreds of kilometers. Here and there a dromedaris emerges from the mirage and it looks like some palmtrees in the far distance but they could be little branches as well. 

For a while we see nothing but emptiness but then some trucks and cars appear and it seems there is live on this planet! In the far distance the contours of huge sharp rocks appear and we even cross some tiny villages. I almost hit a goat that found it wise to cross the road from behind one of those colourful trucks. Luckily – for both – we didn’t and continued to live long and prosperous. Well, that’s to be seen. 

Alright, so nothing interesting happened. Alexine is doing great. The sun is shining, it’s quite hot but Alexine keeps her head cool. We can even drive 80km/h for most of the journey. And that journey takes 2.5 hours and 175km. We arrive in Dalbandin where we have to refuel Alexine. “Pakistani or Iran fuel?” They ask. We are surprised by the question and ask for the best one. Of course the men reply with Pakistani gasikube. As if we would expect anything else. A full tank (38 liters now) costs us 9.100 Pakistani rupees. That’s about €38,- thus €35,- more expensive then what we paid for in Iran. Ai… but it’s still €45,- cheaper than in the Netherlands, so all is good. 

To our surprise we are not staying in Dalbandin – which all the blogs online told us. We continue our journey for at least 200km’s to Nuskhi. Will we reach Quetta today already? That would be a surprise to us. Quetta is still some 325 km’s away, that’s about 4.5 hours as Alexine drives. Probably not, but we’ll see. The only thing clear of this escort to Quetta is that it all isn’t clear and no one seems to know much. So we take it as it comes and continue the road. 

Etappe 3: Dalbandin – Nuskhi

With a full tank, somewhat renewed energy and a lack of water we follow the road which crosses the sand dunes as a snake. But snakes we don’t see, dromedaris we do see. And many! Walking graciously through the hot sand that matches their skin colour. We follow the levies on a safe distance and try to enjoy the landscape as much as possible. It is hot though, very hot. 

312 km’s to Quetta. Will we really reach there today? What made the Levies change their usual schedule? The stop in Dalbandin at a hotel no one wants to stay in. To continue the next day for the remaining part. To make it a two day expedition, instead of a one day race? We don’t know, but the furthest we get today the better. We only have one month in Pakistan and don’t want to spend it in hotel compounds, which we are not allowed to leave. 

About half way (80 km’s from Nuskhi) we have a switch of guards. And what kind of switch. Until now we have followed vehicles that disappointed us a bit, with only one armed men in them. Not the type of escort we expected. But now we’ve got 5 men of which 3 are armed. They are smiling and relax when we drink tea. They wonder why we have a dragon toy (John Snowdonia as he’s from Mount Snowdonia in Wales) in the car but no kids. Well, can’t explain that. I love teddy bears? 

As soon as we finish the tea we continue our journey. It is 16:15h and we’ve got a lot more km’s to go still so ready to move on. Three men in the back of the car, gunned. Two men in front and off we go. Is this because danger is more near? The border is close to where we are, we can see Afghanistan. But danger seems to be far away, a darkness in the distance. Not tangible and not worrying. Like a spider waiting for someone to enter it’s web. I just hope we don’t drive into anyones web. The people we see wave at us happily. When they smile I can see they use too much sugar in the tea but their eyes are filled with twinkles. We feel like VIP’s driving through a landscape so special that people are not allowed to enter it. And it is beautiful!

The sandy dunes have made place for razor sharp rocks and more and more settlements are visible. There’s also a lot more traffic and the road conditions worsen. The trucks are moving as quick as turtles although I think a turtle might move quicker. And we, we are racing through the scenery like a bunch of cheetahs. It’s challenging and tiresome but as said before we have to get somewhere today. Where exactly that is, is still a mystery to us. 

Etappe 4: Nuskhi – Quetta

And there we are, in the middle of … not Nuskhi but this is the Nuskhi stop anyway. The guarded levies leave us here with the police. And the police seems to have things organised a bit more modern. Instead of writing down our names, visa code and country they just take photos of our documents. And then we wait… Some men stop to check out Alexine and everyone passing looks at us mesmerised. Some remind themselves to be kind and wave, others just stare. It’s windy, a bit humid but finally not so hot. We have to wait for other police officers who will hopefully escort us to Quetta and then we’re done with this racing escort through Baluchistan. Well, almost. We haven’t reached the border of the province yet so until then we will be escorted. Not sure where we’ll sleep tonight but hopefully it’s a bit better than where we were yesterday. At least it’s a lot less hot here which makes us so grateful! Finally… 

And the people… oh my are they photogenic! Wow! The women so colourfully clothed with beautiful brown skin. And the men with big beards, sometimes beautifully white, turbans and beautiful eyes. My photographers heart is often skipping a beat. But as we are following our escort we have no time to stop and shoot, so moving on… We’ll be in Pakistan for a month so enough time to photograph 😉

100 meters further, no 15km, we stop again at a military stop. We wait for the police to pick us up to go to Quetta. It’s getting late already (19:00) but the police apparently is in no hurry because it takes ages for them to come. In the meantime we are the attraction at the military stop. Everyone stares at us, waves, shouts whatever. And the military has a lot of fun with it. They carry G3 guns and are mainly searching for people of the BLA terrorist group. 

While they poke with their stick in all the baggage of trucks and busses that pass we are waiting not so patiently for our escort to arrive. I see so many different people crossing and scenes that I have never seen. Children in a cage in the back of a car with a lock on it. People in, on top and at the back of the minivan (incl luggage and drums). And again the most colourful trucks packed with so much stuff it could fill a second truck. 

I’m not sure if the police and army are great friends. It seems the army is greater in force and number. And the military men surely feel powerful. Not because they are anything more than the kind police officer that’s escorting us but because they have a bigger gun. That’s it with men. It needs to be big, bigger, biggest. Only then can they feel invincible. Makes me laugh and cry at the same time. It’s this behaviour that’s ruining the world. Whether it’s bar fights, wars or climate change. Men won’t change… it’s in their nature. But alright. Back to our stop! It’s a circus, really. And I’m starting to believe we are the main act. But for us it’s them. The busses, trucks, cars, motorcycles. All filled with people, too many people, and overloaded with stuff. It’s good that there are no bridges here. 

Waiting is exhausting and we still have 140km to go. It’s gonna be driving at night and we’re already tired of the not so great sleep we had last night. It’s my turn to drive and my eyes are drying up already. Wish they’ll be here soon. It’s not that they didn’t know we are coming. We started at 8 this morning and apparently it was the plan all along to get us to Quetta as quick as possible. Well, let’s get on with it then, right? 

And there we went. Escorted by the police. The police going as quick as they can and quicker than we can go (now they’re in a hurry?(. Suddenly we left the desert plain and entered the mountains. Bend after bend we race after the police and lots of other traffic. It is difficult to follow but we manage until the Levies take over again. In an estafette like race they switched 3, 4, 5 times. Quick and smooth. One car stops and another takes over. It feels like we’re in a movie scene. Police taking over the levies and vice versa and then even the anti terrorist force takes over and brings us another 30 km’s further. This is how far Marco Polo travelled on camel everyday. 30 to 40km’s. We are now nearing the 635km’s in one day. What a change, what a difference, what a benefit we have thanks to Karl Benz, who invented the first motorwagon.

Last etappe: Quetta

We are almost there. 50km’s and we are in Quetta, but… there is a but. A man on a bike is also moving to Quetta but apparently there is no car for him. They ask us if we can take him but as much as we want to we can’t. A bike, the traveller and a guard, extra in Alexine isn’t working. We have to take care of our lady and with the racing that we are doing. Besides; we have no place for a bike and two men.

So there we are, stranded in the middle of … I have no idea. It’s pitch black around us. 

Yuri makes a guard come in our van so at least we can continue the trip to Quetta. Oh yeah! Sorry for the other traveller but Alexine goes first and driving the winding roads and hilly countryside with so much extra weight isn’t happening. So there we go, guard in the van, Kalashnikov present and on our way to Quetta. It’s 21:15h and we’ve been on the road for 13 hours now. 

Again, 30km’s before Quetta we get another guard in Alexine. And suddenly she doesn’t want to start. She doesn’t give an inch, nothing. But luckily the Levies are with a lot of guys and they give her a push. The last bit of the journey. We are all very tired. Yuri, me and of course Alexine. So it’s really time to end this day, to give Alexine and our own eyes a rest. 

At our next and hopefully last estafette location we are reunited with the traveller on bike. Apparently he wanted to go from Pakistan to Iran but had no authority to cycle this road, did it anyway and was caught after 100km’s. A very stupid thing to do in our opinion. 

And then there’s the last km’s into Quetta, we have to drive behind traveller on his bike!!!! We’ve been on the road for 14,5 hours now and have to drive at cycle speed because there is no car to escort the traveller on bike back to Quetta! Of course that makes us a bit pissed. We want to go to our resting place as soon as possible. But let’s not complain, we’re almost there and we will probably – whatever the heat – sleep very well tonight! 

In the end he just had to cycle a short while. We were waited for by the police not to far ahead. They are taking over from the Levies in Quetta. Now the police estafette starts. For very short trips the police escorts us to the next and the next and the next. It seems endless, just like the dusty streets of Quetta. It’s late but life is bustling here. Everywhere are food stalls, half built buildings and people. People in cars, on bikes, motorcycles, tuctucs. Trucks squeezing themselves in the tiniest empty spots. And us following the police close by. The police are with more men than the Levies. Two gunned men are standing on the back of the car, always watching us and everyone around us. One is signalling every motorcycle to move away from our car, hand on the gun always ready to shoot. 

It feels like ages before we drive up to the hotel where the tourist on bike (by now we know he’s from Russia) is staying. We don’t want to stay here as we heard you can also stay at the police station in your van and that’s exactly what we want to do. So after dropping off the Russian we change officers one last time and end up at the police station. 

00:23h

We’re here. At the police station of Quetta in bed. After 16 hours we made it, not in 3 or 2 days as we were told but in 1 day. Wow! Good for us because we only have one month in Pakistan, but it was a tough day. No more words now, I’m going to sleep. Bye!

Love, Milene & Yuri

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All about the Kalash people of Pakistan

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In 2015 Milene bought Alexine from a Frenchman. In the years to come we only fixed little things. Nothing major, nothing big. Going on a big trip overly prepared is boring, right?

On our way to Kalash Valley

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Wherever we go I always try to document a local tribe, nomads or people who hold on to their traditions and culture while the world is changing. Pakistan has both.

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The crossing from Iran into Pakistan

The crossing from Iran into Pakistan

by | Aug 1, 2022

The crossing; from Iran into Pakistan

I’m sitting in Alexine while I feel someone stares at me. It’s the Afghan man who has been imprisoned for no reason clear to me and I dare not to ask. His hands hold the bars while his beard tastes the freedom behind his jail cell. 

Signing our lives over to the Levies of Pakistan

We are at the Pakistan levies of Taftan. We have just signed over our lives to the levies who are supposed to safely guide us through Baluchistan and out of Baluchistan as quick as possible. The area is marked red on every map our government has made of the area. Tribal issues, kidnappings and human trafficking. And to make sure tourists are reaching the rest of Pakistan safely the government has given the levies the task of guarding them. 

With a Kalashnikov around his shoulder he walks over the compound, looking quite content with the situation. He laughs and his big yellow ring on his finger blings eventhough the sun has disappeared. Which is a blessing for us. Even though it’s still too hot. It’s mainly the humidity that makes life here unbearable. But not for the levies that is keeping us safe, guarding the Afghan man and talks to his wife on loudspeaker at the same time. I’m intrigued with these people. Who are they? Why are they levies? What is a Levie anyway? 

The Levies of Pakistan

The Levies force was established in 1859 in the Malakand area during British rule, and later expanded to Dir, Bajaur and Orakzai agencies.

The Pakistan Levies, also called the Federal Levies, are paramilitary law enforcement organizations in Pakistan that have a primary mission of providing law enforcement, providing assistance to the police in maintaining law and order, and conducting internal security operations below the federal level.

Do you have kids? Why not? Problem?

He is also curious. Asking if we have kids. Shocked at our answer. He tells us he has seven. Had I must write, because three have died. 

The Afghan guy shouts and gets out of his cell. He has to pray he says. And so he gets out of his cell and starts praying. The levies are joking, I only hear the word Taliban. Their laughing shows he’s no real danger but still. Is it already funny what’s happening at neighbouring Afghanistan to laugh about this? I took off my headscarf the moment I got in this compound but the women in Afghanistan cannot. They have to wear burqas in this heat. They aren’t allowed to go to school, to work, to be human. There is no time to joke. And it makes me wonder even more why this guy is in jail here. Here, where tourists should be protected from the dangers of Baluchistan. I just signed over my life to these men and it doesn’t seem they take it that serious. So maybe I shouldn’t either. I just go with the flow and hand out cookies instead. Like I did at the musical in primary school. I didn’t like the singing or being the center of attention so instead I handed out cookies on stage. My best friend Nena, was the same but handed out needles instead 😉  (the musical was about a hospital so the needles were legit).

Back to the compound where we’re at. We’re not allowed to go out, no bazar to visit or local food from the neighbouring cafe. Instead, sweating and making friends with this curious group of Levies. 

Women are for reproduction

Alexine is surrounded by cars not even half her age but in quite the bad condition. That’ll be fun tomorrow. We will drive in columns to a city called Dalbadin. It’s not too far but will take about six hours anyway. Mainly because we have so many stops along the way. The next day we’ll drive to Quetta. Again, not the farthest we’ve ever driven but they say it takes up to 12 hours. So we have to get ready to a couple of loooong days. Meaning I’m checking the engine of Alexine. Luckily I do it now because I find her oil level is a bit low. Time to add some. Besides some things were losen because of the bumpy Iranian roads. I love it, working on Alexine. And in an environment like this it feels a bit surreal. 

Men with turbans, beards and perahan tunban (clothing), some having a gun hanging over their shoulder and me, a woman from the Netherlands in clothes way to colourful for the occasion with her hands dirty in the engine of her car. These worlds couldn’t be farther apart from each other, yet they cross. It’s good that they see women can do stuff too. Whether it’s cooking, giving birth or fixing the engine of a car. The whole border crossing people talked to Yuri, not to me. When they talked to me they only asked if I was his wife and if we have children. Ugh. But okay, I’m in a different world now where women are downgraded to reproduction machines. And yeah, not all women. There are incredibly strong and brave women fighting for equality and actually showing it is possible. I salute those women and will share some of their stories along the way because we are going to meet some of them! 

We are in Pakistan! 

It’s getting more crowded at the compound. More beards walk around speaking loud and quick. Some pay the Afghan man a visit in his jail cell. I’m not sure why exactly. Do they know him or is it because they don’t often catch a guy like him. Anyway, he’s still there and there seems to be no hatred between the levies and the prisoner.

One of the levies is cleaning veggies. Not sure if they cook for us, this is a whole unknowing adventure. We honestly and absolutely have no idea what we’re up for. I didn’t read too much about it because I don’t often find blogs a good source. How ironic right? 😉 No that’s actually why we never write as if we know it all, we just share our experience through a journal. But that means that sometimes we have no clue what we got ourselves into. Like now. We are in Pakistan. Not part of the plan. And we didn’t even plan that much anyway. The only thing we know is that we want to get out of the heat as soon as possible and into the mountains as quickly as we can. So we drive north, to the Himalaya. Never thought Alexine would see those giants, but she will! And we will 😍 

But first we have to go through days of escort through Baluchistan. Getting used to a new language, money and customs. Oh and food, but we are eager to taste Pakistani food. We were a bit disappointed by Iranian / Persian cuisine so hope it’ll be better here. Writing about food, I haven’t eaten anything today yet. Just drinking water, and sweating. That’s what the heat does to you. 

The Afghan man is not the only one staring at me. The levies as well and I wonder if I took off my headscarf too early. But it’s just too freaking hot. I ignore them and continue working on Alexine. And while I say that the Afghan man gets chocolate and water and smiles as if he’s a little kid. This man can’t be Taliban right? Well if he is I hope we won’t find out. We leave in only 12 hours and I’m too tired for anything to happen. I’m sure we’re gonna be okay. Everyone seems relaxed and so are we! 

Love, Milene & Yuri

Check our latest blogs

The Silk Road to China

The Silk Road to China

April 2021 we set out on an adventure. With a 45 year old Volkswagen T2 can we would be driving the Silk Road to China.

All about the Kalash people of Pakistan

All about the Kalash people of Pakistan

In 2015 Milene bought Alexine from a Frenchman. In the years to come we only fixed little things. Nothing major, nothing big. Going on a big trip overly prepared is boring, right?

On our way to Kalash Valley

On our way to Kalash Valley

Wherever we go I always try to document a local tribe, nomads or people who hold on to their traditions and culture while the world is changing. Pakistan has both.

We're also on Instagram!

check it out

Stuck at the border

Stuck at the border

by | Jul 24, 2022

Stuck at the border

While I’m sitting in the airconditioned hall of the Iranian border Yuri walks towards the other side and finds himself in no man’s land. What seemed to be going so easily yesterday has been the longest border crossing ever. Mainly due to our own fault. Instead of applying for two visums we applied for one with me, Milene, as Yuri’s spouse. Can say a lot about that and I hope later we can laugh it off but at the moment I’m just angry. 

Crossing borders should be so much easier.

Angry because I didn’t check the application. Angry because we applied one month ago and only got the refusal today – on the day we want to cross. Angry because these things always happen to us and we don’t learn anything. But then again, I can be angry only at myself. The customs are clear and if we did everything right we would’ve crossed into Pakistan by now. Which is a privilege we are well aware of. But still.

Crossing borders should be so much easier. It should be accessible to all and visums? Really? If it wasn’t for the barbed wire, the military with machine guns in high towers and the huge country flags waving proudly in the wind I wouldn’t even know Iran ended and Pakistan began here. There is no line drawn in the earth saying one persons belongs here and the other there. The only walls the earth knows are the mountains which are almost impossible to climb. The only borders nature has are that of wild rivers, deep seas and impenetrable forests. And they ask for courage not visums to cross them. 

Men with guns

The police officers walking around here are kind and helpful yet they love their power. At Beluchi’s crossing the border they don’t show the kindness they show me. Instead their smile turns into a serious face and their gentle voice into a strong somewhat screaming one. The military officer who waved at us, telling our van looks great, is now showing off how to use his Ak 47. Safety off, pointing in the far distance and checking out if we’re looking at him. I’m not, not really. I think he is pathetic. Any man with a gun is pathetic.

The idea that we need guns to kill, to protect, to show power is in my eyes as ridiculous as these made up borders. I understand very well in what kind of world we live and sometimes I wished I had a gun with me (to protect of course). But if none of us had guns wouldn’t a fight be more equal? Israeli and Turkish drones show up above Armenian soldiers who can’t do anything about it but hide and wait for it to hit. Russian warplanes drop bombs on Syrian villages because of a war they don’t want. Black people are killed by police officers because black people look scary and police officers have guns. Children walk into schools, malls and where not killing tens of people because they have mental health issues.

I got a gun to my head once and I will never forget that moment. I wasn’t scared, wasn’t even trembling. But I was shocked. The boy in front of me was younger and smaller than me. I could pick a fight with him and might be able to win. But this gun, this dangerous piece of metal between us, changes my possibilities dramatically. It makes me the definite loser of an unequal fight. I’m on the wrong side of it and can’t win a fight like this. De boeren in South Africa know. They killed thousands of Zulu and are proud of it. “We were outnumbered with 2.000 people” they told me. But it was the boeren who had the guns and the Zulus who had but courage. With courage you win over a heart but not a war. Bloedrivier was the outcome, a river normally as orange as the ground now turned red of Zulu blood. Proud of killing people. It’s foreign to me and hopefully will always be. 

We have two options

But back to the border of Iran/Pakistan. So, while I was sitting in the coolness of the building Yuri heard that our visa got declined and we have to apply again. Within two hours you’ll have a reply from us, the man on the phone explained to Yuri. Or, we go back to Zahedan (45 minutes drive), arrange our visum at the consulate and try again. So, I situated myself contemplating about gun violence and abuse while Yuri is applying for our visa again. Let’s hope it works this time. In the meantime I’m checking out life at the border. 

A lot is being renovated here. Trucks come and go although from Pakistan to Iran it’s busy. From Iran to Pakistan only a few trucks make it through. No idea why because yesterday afternoon it was insanely busy. Workers are walking around, passengers on foot make their way through the terminal with their homes stuck inside heavy suitcases. It’s 35 degrees but feels like 45 due to the high humidity. Not a great place to carry your home on your shoulder. Or to run. Some people are actually running around. Men dresses in wide trousers with wide hemd over it. It looks comfy but still too hot to run. The only thing that distinguishes the men from one another is the colour of their eyes and clothes. Brown, blue, black, grey, white. Like happy colours are banned from the wardrobe of men. And while the women dress in the most colourful clothes I’ve seen in a while they cover it up with full black hijabs. The colour of their pants only be seen around their ankles. A pity because these dresses scream to be shown. As do the hair of the women but that’s another story I guess. I’m wearing my hijab in a somewhat African way. Up! Which means the hot wind can touch my neck and cool me down through the sweat that’s dripping everywhere. Even without doing anything we sweat. And without having had a shower for days you can imagine how we feel. But hey, who cares right? Nature smells. 

The privilege of whining about crossing borders

Not here btw. This place is concrete. Smells are mainly of the new placed tarmac, the waste everywhere and the dogs who run around like a pack of wolves. They even howl at night. Oh the night here was insane. So hot that after 5 minutes we felt like sleeping in a water bed. We had to get out of the van every 40 minutes to cool down. Opened up whatever could be open. But of course because we are in an Islamic country I had to either cover myself or we had to cover the van. So we covered the van because after suffering one heatstroke I’m not desiring another. It was a tough night. Hot and noisy. And for what? Because we can’t enter Pakistan today either. This is definitely our hottest and longest border crossing every. But again, entirely our own fault.

And now we have to deal with the consequences; stress, heat, waiting, patience. Besides all that we are still not in good shape. I haven’t eaten anything yet and even the amount of water I drink is not nearly enough but it’s all I can manage right now. Feeling a bit faint and without energy is making this all a tad more difficult. But we’ll get there. We are from The Netherlands travelling in a 45 year old Volkswagen van so everyone is kind and happy. And that’s a privilege only a few are able to experience. So yeah, I’m whining about things I shouldn’t be whining about actually. Especially because I know so many people with horrible border crossing stories.

From running from shooting Turkish border patrol to being beaten by Croatian police officers. From tossing babies over a wired fence to almost drowning while a boat collapsed on the Mediterranean Sea. All people who sought safety elsewhere because their home became uninhabited. I’m just a traveller, no need to cross borders but pure out of free will and fun. But the way I look, the country I’m born, the emblem on my passport open gates to me that stay closed for those who really need to cross. And while I’m stuck in limbo on a border where everyone is kind to me and I’m sure I’ll be leaving behind me within days, they are stuck in limbo for months, years even. So what am I complaining about right? 

More and more Pakistani travellers with beautiful coloured clothes (the women – without hijab) are entering the passenger terminal. It makes me wonder more and more about the country that lies in front of me. Of which for now I can only see the flag and the gate that keeps us out. Inshallah it opens up soon, for us the way into another world. One without obliged hijab but with a police escort of 2 days. Another adventure we can’t wait to head into.

We’ll enter there were our insurance doesn’t work anymore, where our government says one really shouldn’t go and that same government won’t help us if anything happens. Not our first time, and probably not our last. Life is full of dangers, sometimes it’s crossing a part of land owned by a violent tribe, other times it’s across the street from the home you grew up in. Danger is everywhere and it makes life a lot more excited. Just like death. Without it, life would just be a loop of the same things everyday. Without death there wouldn’t be life, like there wouldn’t be happiness without sadness and no peace without war. Is that why we have guns? So we can have peace as well? Food for thought. 

See you on the other side, hopefully. 

Love, Milene & Yuri

Check our latest blogs

The Silk Road to China

The Silk Road to China

April 2021 we set out on an adventure. With a 45 year old Volkswagen T2 can we would be driving the Silk Road to China.

All about the Kalash people of Pakistan

All about the Kalash people of Pakistan

In 2015 Milene bought Alexine from a Frenchman. In the years to come we only fixed little things. Nothing major, nothing big. Going on a big trip overly prepared is boring, right?

On our way to Kalash Valley

On our way to Kalash Valley

Wherever we go I always try to document a local tribe, nomads or people who hold on to their traditions and culture while the world is changing. Pakistan has both.

We're also on Instagram!

check it out

On our way to Pakistan

On our way to Pakistan

by | Jul 24, 2022

On our way to Pakistan

I’ve been away to Brazil and coming back to Iran means adjusting. And that adjusting isn’t going so well. The heat is impossible to bear at the moment so I soon fall ill to a heatstroke, or something like that. Without much energy but the need to leave Iran we say our goodbyes to Isfahan and hit the road again. In a few days we will be travelling from Isfahan to the Taftan border via some oasis to take a rest. And that rest is very much needed as we soon find out. 

Goodbye Isfahan!

I have to adjust. From wearing short sleeves and feeling my hair dance in the wind to a headscarf that keeps all the heat on my head. And that’s a problem because it is so hot. But everything gets used to. And driving Alexine through these mars like landscapes is one of those things I can never and always get used to at the same time. But today, more than on any other day, I realise I won’t see these landscapes again. The coloured mountains, the sand playing in the wind, the heat dancing at the tarmac. A sight soon only visible in my memories. We’re driving East again. After working in Brazil I, Milene, came back with a new hunger of exploring. Feeling more alive than ever, revival! We left Isfahan for good, with tears in our hearts for saying goodbye to new made friends. But all good things come to an end and Iran is one of those things.

Tired and a little sick in Naeen

Though it hasn’t all be wonderful overhere. Like the food. Yuri got food poisoning on our last night in Isfahan. Resulting in staying another night. But then it really was time to go. And now we find ourselves again in an oasis. The desert landscape that we drove through seems endless. The sanddunes and Rocky Mountains never ending. And while Yuri tried to sleep in the back of the van I tried to stay awake while singing the longs out of my body. An expression that probably doesn’t mean anything in English but sounds right. 

We were in Naeen last night and it was a fabulous time. Very short but memorable as well. We met a young man who showed us around. From the ancient city walls to the pistachio gardens and from the biggest water reservoir to the old bazar. We also got to enter a shrine with more mirrors than I’ve ever seen in my life, so much for vanity. And we ended with a saffron camel milk ice cream of €1.5 each. Way to expensive but very tasty nonetheless. However great the city, our night sleep was taken to the test with youngsters showing off on motorbikes, children betting on how long they could stay awake, screaming, and cars turning up and leaving for no apparent reason. We were parked near the mosque at the dead end of a street. Well, those Iranians don’t only create the creative lane but they also create lanes at dead end streets. I’ve got no idea how, but however I often marvel the things they create in ancient Persia, this isn’t one of them.

On the road again..

So with just a few minutes (that’s how we feel today) of sleep we hit the road in the direction of Tabaz. We did visit an underground weaver before leaving. A very nice and cool place where men loom beautiful carpets. But our enegerylevel was low and it was hard to have a conversation so we left the loomer to work and continued our trip.

 I had so much energy that I skipped the gas station and drove 75km’s on a somewhat empty tank. While normally I panic a bit when this happens this time I just continued driving a steady 80km/h. We made it though. 

And after refuelling Alexine, I felt I had refuelled myself a bit as well. Yuri still coping with the food poisoning aftermath wasn’t so lucky. Though he was lucky to listen to me singing with James Hetfield (Metallica) and Sharon den Adel (Within Temptation). My mood at the moment. 

After three hours of yawning and singing – still can’t manage them at the same time though, we arrived at the oasis. Palmtrees surrounded by sandy coloured mountains and a qanat where we parked Alexine and went for a foot bath. To be eaten up by fish the moment our feet touched the water. A habit we are growing to be font of. 

Just now a lone jackal past us, looking interested in his snack for tonight. But that means it won’t be silence tonight as well, though I prefer the sound of jackal to those motorcycles. Tomorrow we will move to another oasis and then it’s two days of endless roads and hopefully a quick border crossing cause we are heading to Pakistan!! 

Ciao for now. 

Love, Milene & Yuri

ps. unfortunately for us the next days we started feeling worse. The only thing we could do was sleep and drink water. But we had to move to the border so as tired as we were and as horrible as we felt we had to continue. While Yuri regained his appetite at some point I was still living on water alone for a week. The heat became unbearable. We made it though.

Check our latest blogs

The Silk Road to China

The Silk Road to China

April 2021 we set out on an adventure. With a 45 year old Volkswagen T2 can we would be driving the Silk Road to China.

All about the Kalash people of Pakistan

All about the Kalash people of Pakistan

In 2015 Milene bought Alexine from a Frenchman. In the years to come we only fixed little things. Nothing major, nothing big. Going on a big trip overly prepared is boring, right?

On our way to Kalash Valley

On our way to Kalash Valley

Wherever we go I always try to document a local tribe, nomads or people who hold on to their traditions and culture while the world is changing. Pakistan has both.

We're also on Instagram!

check it out

It has been a bit quiet lately…

It has been a bit quiet lately…

by | Jul 17, 2022

It's been a bit quiet lately...

It has been a bit quiet here but it’s not that we haven’t done anything spectacular. 

 

But where I often have too many words I can’t seem to find any now. Maybe it helps if I dip my feet in ice cold water because it’s so hot here. It’s almost 6 o’clock and still 44 degrees Celcius. But it’s alright, the wind is blowing and we are near the water. So yeah, let’s head back to, wow, many weeks ago. 

Ancient explorings

Alexine was fixed in Shiraz so it was time for us to get into exploring mode again. This we did by visiting an ancient site that I have dreamt about since I was a young girl dying to become an explorer. I saw myself in the shoes of Livingstone and Darwin exploring ancient sites and discovering new biological systems. Or, mostly I saw myself as Indiana Jones and Lara Croft, finding and protecting ancient artefacts while saving the planet from a wrath the earth has never seen. Many of those adventures took place in the Middle East where most of ancient civilisations buried their treasures.

One of those places was of course the capital of New Years; Persepolis! And I would finally meet my imagination, see what I’ve only seen in dreams and walk through where many of my stories took place. And above all that we would do this with 3D glasses(!!). We took a guide with us: Yashin, so we would learn more about the place than we would by reading … well nothing because however important the site, they forgot good English information bulletins. 

Persepolis

I’m not sure if I should really explain what Persepolis is all about, there are plenty of sites that can inform you about this amazing site. The site where you’ll find many Zoroastrian signs, where cultures came together as friends not enemies and where everyone celebrated Nowruz (New Year).

A day in amazement, in happiness, in awe. I saw stories come to life and wow was it cool to see it all through 3D glasses. They show the place as it used to be, in colour and grandeur. Amazing! 

Staying with the nomads

So yeah, that was it. That was Shiraz. Time to head into the mountains where the Nomads are. Cause when you follow the nomads you’re sure to be in the right place. Hot but with a breeze in the day and refreshing at night. So we headed into the mountains where waterfalls became our showers, green a normal scenery and nomads roamed as if there are no settlements. We met a couple of amazing families. One being a goat shepherd and the other a beekeeping family. Of course we got ourselves some delicious goat cheese and honey! Great combo as well. Although communication is challenging we did have a lovely time. Shared some nice moments and photos. Even Instagram 😁 I love semi modern nomads. They pick the best of both worlds.

Anyway, after staying with the nomads for a while we moved deeper into the mountains. Had Alexine wander through amazing scenery. The mountains kept coming. From incredibly bare and dry to green and lush. We slept at the top of a gorge overlooking the valley with water as blue as Alexine is, and at a hill while having the horizon filled with the same hills until a mountain stopped the waving scenery. Colours merged into eachother like a silk carpet from Kashan. 

The hanging gardens of Babylon

We didn’t only drive, we also stayed near what looked like the hanging gardens of Babylon but instead were the Koolchap waterfalls. An incredible place where I felt comfortable enough to bathe in bikini. Something that is illegal here but this place was abandoned so I took a shot. It wasn’t as abandoned as we thought it was. Fish came nibbling at our feet the moment we jumped in it. Craps moved away wherever we stepped and we even saw a snake bathing. Nothing to be worried about and none of these animals would call in the police so I had some wonderful chilling days here. Finally some good old nature bathing. 

Being in nature we understood we needed this so much. Iran is a great country to explore and it’s huge! But sometimes it feels like you’re travelling from city to city with some nice stops in between but that’s about it. We do love cities and the culture and architecture it shows us. But, in nature we relax, in nature we thrive. And our battery recharges. And this was much needed.

Recharching …

Just like now. While I’m sitting with my feet in the qanat watching palmtrees moving in the wind and Yuri sleeping in his chair. Recharging is as much part of our journey as is exploring. And that we do in nature. 

So we felt almost reborn when we entered Isfahan again. Our round trip through Iran had come to an end. I would soon fly to Brazil for a job and Yuri would stay behind. Little did we know that this week would be so heavy on both of us. For Yuri it was mainly staying in Isfahan for a whole week, meeting people, fixing the roof rack of Alexine and getting our Pakistan visum. For me it was the change of culture and temperature in Brazil and of course working. 

But, we are on the road again. That will be for another blog. Let’s first look at the past weeks shall we? 

Love, Milene & Yuri

Some photos

Check our latest blogs

The Silk Road to China

The Silk Road to China

April 2021 we set out on an adventure. With a 45 year old Volkswagen T2 can we would be driving the Silk Road to China.

All about the Kalash people of Pakistan

All about the Kalash people of Pakistan

In 2015 Milene bought Alexine from a Frenchman. In the years to come we only fixed little things. Nothing major, nothing big. Going on a big trip overly prepared is boring, right?

On our way to Kalash Valley

On our way to Kalash Valley

Wherever we go I always try to document a local tribe, nomads or people who hold on to their traditions and culture while the world is changing. Pakistan has both.

We're also on Instagram!

check it out