Forgot to mention that in Yazd we visited a mosque and we were fascinated by the Zoroastrian Fire Temple which has a fire that has been burning for over 1500 years! In Kerman discovered an Anglican church (St. Andrews) which has now closed down and people did not want us to visit, but we managed to get some photos!
Due to the threat of the Taliban, we have had a heavy armed escort since Kerman. Travelled on the 14th to the ancient Citadel of Bam where 15,000 people died a few years age in a huge earth quake. The Citadel is now being rebuilt, a stark reminder of how the world we live in is so fragile.
Then on the 15th to Zahedan. On the 16th over the border into Pakistan and miles of desert road to Quetta. This was an 18 hour journey and does not include the 2 hour crossing of the Iran/Pakistan border. We had mangoes in Quetta, and the highlight of having a tuk-tuk ride home from a restaurant.
A long hot journey to Sukkur on the 18th where we went on a trip around the city on horse pulled rickshaws. Poor horses, with limps and so badly treated. But we were welcomed like royalty. We went to a Hindu Temple in the middle of the Indus River and people went wild with such a welcome for us. The Hindus are a minority group here and treated as outcasts, so for us to visit was a great honour to them. The Priest later phoned our guide to apologise for the children’s behaviour! Oh yes, last night at Sukkur the local TV station turned up.
Today, 19th June, we arrived in Multan in the Punjab with dancers and drums playing for us. We had 40 Elite Police of the Punjab escort us and they are now outside the hotel with guns at the ready. Tonight we visited a local mosque and met loads of people all wanting to shake hands and have their photos taken. I met 3 lads on the way home and they asked if I was a Christian and they told me they were also Christians. I was amazed! I was also asked what my job was tonight at the local mosque. After I told the questioner, his reply was "But are you a Muslim?" I think he realised his mistake and smiled later asking for a photograph.
Pakistan has insulted all the senses, the colour and smell and the poverty. Everything is all so much but the welcome has been amazing. We also get frequent power cuts so things are still a bit difficult.
Life is busy and the world full of amazing and kind people!!
Love to all.
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