Islamabad in the summertime is hot! Even cows seek refuge

St Thomas Church; Islamabad

Despite being overcrowded in the back of this truck, we get friendly waves from the locals

There's a fruit stand on every corner...

Robby poses with our Lonely Planet guidebook and Nelles Pakistan map

Hmmm, donkey ride or tuk tuk?

Our jeep zoomed by numerous modes of transport...donkey cart being the most common

Local boys playing an impromptu game of soccer

The mangoes in Pakistan are super sweet, a must for mango-lovers!

Lots of villagers gathered down by the river to jump in and cool off from the summer time heat

Fresh watermelons for sale

A typical street scene with fruit vendors galore

A low rider is a whimsical way to travel the countryside

Immediately after Becky took this picture, the three amigos broke out into huge smiles and friendly waves

This goat was tethered to the back of the truck...looks like someone is eating fresh goat tonight!

A look down the Malakand Pass

Becky sits next to our Jalalabad waiter at this Bat Khela restaurant

Robby and Saeed prepare to dig into our delicious Afghan lunch

Remnants of the 1st Century AD Buddhist ruins of Chatpat

A fisherman tries his luck; Bat Khela

The Buddhist relics have been moved to the nearby Chakdara Museum for safe keeping

The Chatpat ruins remind us a lot of the Buddhist ruins of Takht Bhai

Hamid, Sadik and Robby; Chatpat Ruins

Its a smiling contest! Becky poses with the boys of Chakdarra

A beautiful portrait of a friendly Chakdarra boy

The boys are enthralled when Becky shows them their image on her camera's LCD monitor

Once the boys get over their initial shyness, they quickly become camera hounds and we happily oblige

We are invited as guests to a Chakdarra villager's house and the neighborhood boys peer in with curiosity

The Chakdarra neighborhood is very laid back and we enjoy our visit to the Chatpat ruins

A young girl peers out at us while hiding behind her brother

Robby joins the boys for a quick game of cricket; Chakdarra

The boys are reluctant to see us go and beg us endlessly to stay the night

We had to keep on going to stay on schedule, and stayed overnight here at the Dir Hotel

The view of Dir's bazaar as seen from the Dir Hotel

The bazaar is a colorful and lively affair and we enjoy our stroll around town

Becky quickly notices that in Dir, the men do all the shopping...not a woman in sight!

These types of knives are a sample of Dir's local handicraft specialty

Robby quickly gets asked to take a photo with some friendly locals; Dir

A boy being pushed in a cart whistles loudly as we take a photo of a typical Dir bazaar scene

Fresh vegetables catch our eye as they are sold off the back of this truck

We ended up buying fresh apricots and mangoes from the Dir bazaar

Immediately outside the Dir Hotel, we were lured by the wafts of delicious smelling meat being grilled

Robby contemplated buying a pakol (a round shaped cap made out of a coarse woolen cloth) to match his shalwar kameez

Two boys give us a curious stare down as we wander the Dir bazaar

When we finally departed Dir and headed up North towards Kalash, we saw lots of boys dipping in the frigid river to cool down

Fantastic views abound around every corner...good thing our jeep flaps were up so we could snap away!

A local farmer takes a break from working the fields

A 4x4 jeep is the only way to go when exploring Northern Pakistan

We couldn't resist a photo at this scenic stop

This village dug into the mountainside caught out eye

View looking back towards Dir at the Lowari Pass

Becky befriends a young girl at the top of the Lowari Pass

The weather is surprisingly chilly in the height of the summer at the 3118m Lowari Pass

The Lowari Pass is a forested pass between Dir and Chitral that is only open a few months each year (typically from June - Oct)

How brave! After looking at all the switchbacks in the road, we would never volunteer to sit on the roof top of this packed jeep

A snapshot of the road leading down towards Chitral (as seen from the top of the Lowari Pass)

Another view of the zig-zag road

Becky poses before some axe-wielding workers who carve out ice blocks to sell in Chitral

"Heave-Ho"...this huge block of packed snow is carved out and loaded onto an awaiting truck

A truck full of lumber zooms by this snow covered ravine; near Lowari Pass

We passed by numerous "Foreigner Checkpoints" where we had to register our passport and visa information

Once we descended from the Lowari Pass, the temperatures soared skyward again

The Royal Naghar Fort & Garden is definitely worth a stop...say hello to the super friendly Prince Salahuddin or his two sons, Faisal or Ghazi

Distant view of the Royal Naghar Fort, which belongs to the former rulers of Chitral

To reach the Naghar Fort, you have to cross over this bridge

Becky, Prince Faisal and Robby strike a pose overlooking the Chitral River

We really wanted to spend the night here at the lovely Naghar Fort...what a view!

Robby and his new found friend, a security guard at Birir Valley

To reach the 3 Kalasha Valleys, we had to cross this bridge

Upon entering the Birir Valley, we were struck at the local dress of the Kalasha women. Here a woman walks her goats by the riverside

Becky has to cross the river to get to our homestay at the Kalash Guest House

Hamid, our Kalash host, Saeed and Robby enjoy a simple (and tasty) dinner; Birir Valley Kalash Guest House

Robby demonstrates how to climb up the homemade ladder; Birir Valley

Becky and Saeed on their morning hike around Birir Valley

We meet the friendly water canal caretaker who is up early fixing several leaks in the canal (due to this morning's heavy rainfall)

Becky dons a shalwar kameez while hiking around Birir valley

Saeed jogs alongside the water canal to catch up with us; Birir Valley

If these grapes were ripe, we would definitely have had a nibble or two!

Becky struggled to cross over this makeshift barrier in her shalwar kameez (which is actually a very practical and comfortable outfit, even in the middle of the summer)

A young Kalasha woman smiles after being shown her image on our camera's display

We promised to send this nice Kalasha family a photo of themselves once we returned back home

Detail of an ornate headdress similar to those that all Kalasha girls and women wear

A Kalasha woman works the field (keep in mind it is in the middle of the summer and she is dressed from head to toe in black!)

Portrait of a Kalasha girl; Birir Valley

This cow was completely unfazed at our presence, simply walking on past Robby along the narrow trail

The Kalasha women have the Phool festival to look forward to (held only in Birir Valley, this marks the end of walnut and grape harvest in late Sept)

Becky holds out a pair of delicious mulberries...what a treat

We saw plenty of super cute kids during our short hike through Birir Valley

Birir is the most traditional of the three Kalasha Valleys, with most homes built of a mixture of stone, wood, and mud

Almost near the end of our hike through Birir

We get a chance to meet the man who baked the na'an we ate at dinner last night

This wooden bridge leads to the Kalash Guest House, our homestay lodgings

Donkeys are a vital mode of transport in the Kalasha Valleys

Saeed and Robby take a breather on a Birir Valley bridge

Our Kalasha host (an excellent cook by the way!)

We enjoyed our brief visit to Birir Valley and would definitely return again

Birir's village well is a well trafficked area (the Kalash Guest house's outhouse is in the background)

Robby shows our Kalash hosts their images on his camera display

We join our Birir hosts for a group photo

Detail of a Kalasha woman drawing water from the well

This young woman asked Becky to take her photo, with a pot of water carefully balanced atop her head

A final goodbye view of Birir Valley

A Kalasha boy struggles to lead his stubborn goats

View of our drive towards Bumboret Valley

Close up of a colorfully clad donkey

The donkey transported the caretaker of a Bumboret mosque to work

Becky meets with the mosque's caretaker

The Kalasha are non-Muslim, but many have converted and mosques such as this one are sprouting up all over the Kalasha Valleys

The Kalasha make good use of their water resources, channeling it to a watermill to grind flour

Portrait of a man sitting in the corner of a Bumboret mosque

Becky meets a Kalasha village elder whose image has appeared in numerous Kalasha postcards

Bumboret is the most touristy of the Kalasha Valleys, with souvenir stands displaying traditional items for sale

Only non-Muslims wear the traditional Kalasha outfits. Kalasha who have converted to Islam adopt the more commonly seen shalwar kameez and headscarf

This is the village square of Bumboret where dancing festivities are held

One size fits all! Becky is dressed from head to toe in a traditional Kalasha outfit

The ornate shell headdress is the finishing touch that sits atop the headband

And voila! At a quick glance, Becky could blend in here

Yup, we've completely dressed in the local fashion!

Entrance to the "Jestakhan", a typical Kalasha temple dedicated to Jestak, the protector of the family. Marriages and funerals take place here

This beautiful Kalasha woman had clusters of three dots tattooed on her forehead and cheeks

The Kalaha tribe are believed to be descendents of Alexander the Great's army

Its apricot harvest time, and this woman is hard at work collecting and drying apricots

Becky got a warm hug from this Kalasha lady after buying a trinket from her store

The "Kalasadur" or Kalasha Cultural Center, sponsored by the Hellenic Aid Ministry of Foreign Affairs, is a must see in Bumboret Valley

The Kalasha museum showcases typical Kalasha dwellings, costumes, artifacts, and photographs...two thumbs up!

We found the children of the Kalasha Valleys to be very happy and friendly

Rumbur Valley is a nice compromise to the traditional Birir and touristy Bumboret. We actually enjoyed this valley the most!

Saeed and Robby hiked up to this male-only Kalasha sacred altar

Meanwhile, Becky found herself surrounded by Kalasha girls who were as curious about Becky as she was about them

We quickly were invited as guests to a Kalasha family's dwelling

And spend the afternoon fielding and asking questions about each other's lives

You can easily see why Rumbur was our favorite valley...the cultural interaction was quite extraordinary

We noticed that from the time a baby has hair long enough to braid, it is parted to the front and braided in this manner

All Kalasha females have long, braided hair and we loved spending time getting to know this family

Robby became quite popular once the children realized they could see themselves on his digital display

We strolled through Rumbur Valley and found everyone to be extremely friendly

As long as you ask for permission beforehand, taking photos is usually granted with a smile

These children stopped Robby on our hike around Rumbur Valley to ask for a photo. We normally expect begging for money to follow suit, but to our surprise, in Kalasha Valley there were absolutely no strings attached

We definitely have to agree that the features of the Kalasha people could easily have come from Alexander the Great's troops

Trekking around Rumbur Valley was a lot of fun, with beautiful vistas all around

This young Kalasha girl captured Robby's heart

A parting view of our wonderful Kalasha Valley trip

View of Rumbur Valley at sunset

Postcard perfect...stay at the lovely Ingineer Khan's guesthouse if you overnight at Rumbur Valley

Main entrance to the mehtars' palace-fortress, aka "Chitral Fort"

Adjacent to Chitral Fort is the stunning Shahi Masjid

Another angle of Chitral's prettiest mosque, which was built by Mehtar Shuja ul-Mulk

We had to ask the caretaker if we could enter and stroll around the Chitral fort, but permission was readily granted

One of Chitral Fort's watch towers which faces the river. Descendants of the royal family still live in Chitral Fort

Chitral fort oozes historical charm and we are glad we paid a brief visit to one of Chitral's must sees!

We asked Zia to take a photo of us before the entrance portal of Shahi Masjid; Chitral

View of the Kana River; Besham

You'd think the driver of this overloaded vehicle would be driving slowly but think again! These guys just zoomed right past us

We didn't see too many men carrying wares for sale on top of their head, so this guy caught our eye

We were glued to the passing scenery as we drove from Besham back to Islamabad. Blink and you'll miss something!

Most of the KKH mosques were quite small and inconspicuous, so this large one grabbed our attention

Another fruit market...all the fruit we tried in Pakistan was absolutely fantastic

Wonder if that is real gold?

A cattle market drew hundreds (maybe thousands) of potential buyers and sellers

It was controlled chaos as hundreds of cattle were led to the market

Potential buyers check out the goods at the cattle market

Typical market scene along the KKH...we noticed the temperatures rising the further south we drove

After seeing all this yummy fresh fruit for sale, we knew we had to stop to get some

An old man effortlessly carries a huge bundle on his back

The fresh mango and banana juices didn't last long!

Entrance to the juice stand...two thumbs up

We didn't see too many horse drawn carriages on the KKH

En route from Besham to Islamabad, we decided to detour to Murree, a summer retreat area. This fresh fruit/vegetable stand caught Becky's eye

Murree in the Summer is very popular with Pakistani tourists...and there are lots of colorful items for sale

Want a new rug? Just pull over and admire the vast selection

Colorful scarves for sale; Murree roadside

Roasted chicken for sale; Murree

Fresh meat for sale in Murree

The Holy Trinity Church stands in the background of a busy pedestrian street; Murree

Pure Honey for sale (delicious by the way); Murree road side

Hmmm, chicken or goat? Take your pick at this butcher's store

The British developed their summer retreats up in Murree and it still retains a colonial feel. This is a snapshot of Birdwood Hall

Fresh chicken stands are popular throughout Murree

The cows apparently know this is a no parking zone as they lazily lounge nearby

Murree in the summertime has a carnival like feel and is a great place to people watch

The Colonial Lockwood Hotel has some rooms dating back to the 1890s

Dried fruit stand; Murree

A snapshot of the "mall", Murree's main street in town

We saw lots of uncovered women in Murree, which has a laid back and relaxed holiday resort feel to it

Jan and Robby decide to have another fresh mango fruit drink; Murree

The first donor kebab stand we saw in Pakistan was in Murree!

Umm, your choices are chicken or chicken...what would you like?

Robby earns expert marksmanship when he hits every single balloon on his first attempt; Murree

Friends for life: Saeed, Zia, Robby, and Hamid who all ensured we had the best trip to Pakistan, ever!

Vertical Explorers gets rave reviews from us in organizing our trip! Here we pose with our second jeep, second driver (Jan), and second guide (Zia) outside of Usmania, our Rawalpindi hotel

Saeed and our driver join us for a delicious meal at Meikong restaurant (we were craving Chinese food after 3 weeks in Pakistan!)