(Photo taken in Clifton, Karachi area) It has been about three weeks since I moved to Karachi, and as I had been making plans to travel to interior Sindh, I had also been reflecting and thinking about my experience in Islamabad/KP. At times, especially the first week back to Karachi, I caught myself just sitting and staring at the wall or towards the breathtaking view of the sea outside from our apartment balcony.. Partly due to an intense exhaustion … partly an element of dismay, as I search for some understanding and answers to the many questions I came with, many of which I now know will not be answered…

I arrived in Karachi, last Friday, and today, I had my first meeting in Karachi. It was at the USAID premises of the US Consulate. It was a very fruitful meeting and different from the usual. It was a group interview, rather than an individual one. So that was a bit challenging, as I wasn’t used to it. But I enjoyed it nonetheless, although I feel you get more out of one on one meetings. It helps though to get a variety of different perspectives from different areas, in one sitting. I haven’t had much time to truly reflect on my experience in Islamabad since I got back to Karachi,…

I had my final two-day trip into Peshawar/KP at the end of the work week this past Thursday and Friday. My driver, Majid Bhai, stopped the car for me on the motorway so I can take a quick photo both ways right at the border with a sign that read “Welcome to Khyber PakhtunKhwa”, and then on the way back where the sign read “Goodbye, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa”.   After the “Goodbye,” I had to fight some tears. You sometimes forget how much you were able to accomplish and how much you had seen, when you think about what you couldn‘t do or what you couldn’t see. But I think I…

Today, after completing 4 interviews, I reached the 100th Dissertation interview, with a grand total of 101 interviews, which was my ultimate target. More is yet to come in Sindh. With this achievement, It is great to take just a moment to reflect on my time in Islamabad…which, with a few trips outside of Islamabad to Peshawar and Lahore, will total 3 months for this second field assessment. During this time, I have completed nearly 70 solid interviews and had more meetings in addition to that. I also got to immerse with the population. There is a lot to be proud of for what I was able to accomplish in…

Today (Sunday, Jan 6), I returned to Margala Hills finally! I rode up to Daman-e-Koh, stopped there for the view, enjoyed some moments with monkeys, some that almost attacked me, and then up to a little wooded park area before the entry into the Monal restaurant, the same place last year when I came with my Father.   I stopped there to see if my name was still on the rocks, I thought it was initially, but then realized it was spray paint with something else. So I wanted to continue my father’s tradition as he does with chalk, writing his names on the rocks of mountain areas during his travels.…

Today, in the morning (Saturday), I met with the COO of the Rural Support Program Network at the IRM Complex in Chak Sheyzad area of Islamabad. It was my final meeting at the Institute of Rural management and with a key stakeholder of the Rural Support Program Network. I am glad I was able to make it out here one last time, as my first field interview in Islamabad was here and several came soon after… My time at this place, for that reason especially, is quite special. I really enjoyed meeting everyone who worked or had been currently working for this RSP phenomenon… It was raining and I couldn’t…

Last year during my exploratory fieldwork in Karachi, I spent new years with family. This year, I spent my first new years ever in the not to exciting but still fascinating city of Islamabad. I wanted to do something special. I had quite the adventure on new years eve. Islamabad is not like other cities, within the city itself you won’t find an official process of setting up. Upon finally finding a place to sit and watch some fireworks in a new kind of night scene I haven’t encountered in Pakistan just yet, I realized I came to the wrong place. The Islamabad police shut down fireworks all over Islamabad…

On my *5th trip* into Peshawar, it was another two day trip that began this past Thursday, and returning Friday night. (Will post about the previous trips to Peshawar a little later, as I don’t want to get further behind in my fieldwork blog posts.) I had one interview the first day located at the CM Secretariat, and others canceled. So I had a late lunch at the PC in Peshawar and then asked the Concierge about some possible attractions to consider visiting for some “cultural immersion.” I decided to go to one of his suggestions called the “Qissa Khawani” Bazaar….                  …

  I am so behind on posting, and have been trying to find a way to catch up with blogging. I decided to go ahead and just blog on today’s events and then see if I can retroactively share about the events of the past month of December. Today was the Christmas holiday, but it was also Quaid-e-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah’s birthday today, so it’s a holiday here in Pakistan. Many people believe that if there was no Mohammad Ali Jinnah, there would be no Pakistan, so his birth is celebrated as a National holiday. It works out nicely for the Christians and others who celebrate Christmas in Pakistan. There…