- Hey, everyone, it's Mark Wiens, and I just wrapped up
a 16 day food and travel trip, but more than a trip,
it was an experience and a journey through Pakistan.
We began our journey in Lahore,
which is an amazing city of history and food,
before continuing on to Gujranwala, Chakwal,
Islamabod, Peshawar, and then after Peshawar,
we continued to the North.
The northern mountainous region of Gilgit-Baltistan,
which was incredibly beautiful, and from there
we continued on to Karachi.
There are three main ideas or concepts that really
stood out to me during my trip to Pakistan.
Number one, is the welcome and the hospitality of people,
and we were filming food video, so we were going
from restaurant to restaurant
and street food stall to street food stall,
but there was not one day that went by
during this trip to Pakistan, where we tried to pay
for the food, and one of the vendors would not
accept our payment.
They said it would dishonor them
if we paid them money for the food,
and so that was so heart-warming,
and every single day people would come up.
They would want to shake our hands,
they want to take a photo.
They would just want to welcome us to Pakistan
and say thank you for being here,
for traveling to Pakistan.
Number two is the food.
And of course we traveled to Pakistan for the food.
The food was unbelievable, from karachis to kabobs
to niharis to piyas and all the street food in between.
You'll find food everywhere and it's so rich,
it's so flavorful.
Food was incredible.
Finally, number three is the unbelievable landscapes
and the scenery of Pakistan.
Especially when you travel around
the Gilgit-Baltistan region.
The mountainous regions, the Karakoram Mountains
and the Himalayas.
We traveled all the way up to the Khunjerab Pass,
which is at 16,000 feet,
all the way down to Karachi at sea level.
And in between, you'll find deserts,
you'll find mountain valleys.
It's some of the most rugged, jagged mountain scenery
and glaciers I've ever seen in my life,
and I was amazed by the scenery of Pakistan.
I want to say a massive thank you to Ali
from Pakistan Travel Mart.
He organized our trip, he helped with everything.
We traveled with him we ate with him.
He's so much fun to hang out with
and without Ali, it wouldn't have been possible.
So, huge thank you to Ali
for making this entire trip happen.
And finally, I want to mention that Pakistan
hasn't always received the most positive impression,
and it has faced many struggles and conflicts,
but recently and then in the past few years,
Pakistan has made huge, major improvements
in safety and security.
And for what it's worth, I would mention
that on my 16 day trip,
and we traveled pretty extensively through
many regions of Pakistan, that not even on one occasion,
even in the major cities, even the remote destinations,
did I feel threatened or in danger.
And actually, it was the total opposite.
People just walking along the streets, random people,
they wanted to shake our hands. They wanted to say welcome.
They wanted to greet us.
They wanted to say thank you for visiting Pakistan.
So, I owe it to the people of Pakistan.
I'm so grateful for the opportunity that I had to visit.
It was privilege, and it was one of the most memorable,
one of the most unforgettable trips
that I've ever had in my life.
And one more thing. My new favorite pair of footwear.
Peshawari Chappals, with the thick soles.
(laughing) Okay, that's all. Thank you so much!
Pakistan, it was the trip of a lifetime.
- [Man] Hey, how are you? Nice to meet you!
- How are you? I was out walking earlier
in the morning, and I was thinking,
how can I welcome you to Pakistan?
- [Man] Thank you very much!
(lively music)