Initial Impressions

I find residents of Islamabad to be curious of visitors’ impressions.

Locals and expatriates alike ask about your enjoyment, adjustment, and realizations upon your initial encounter with Pakistan. Maybe it is simply concern for my well being, but I think it is also concern for people’s perceptive of their country and home.

I have been here for one week. I have been toured around and socialized by the International School. I have been handed transportation, meals, housing, and good will. The adjustment, even to the warm weather, has been relatively easy. [I never had AC in Ghana unless I was in a supervisor’s vehicle or the Peace Corps Headquarters, and here it seems ubiquitous (at least for expatriates)]

My life has been quite easy so far but that will change soon. The nightly dinner invitations are over. The planned social events will diminish, which is horror to a quiet, ungifted socialite like myself. School with all of its preparations will begin on the 15th of August. Life will soon be what I make of it, but some aspects of the “good life” will continue like my housing and house help.

I don’t think I can state my impressions well at this point. Partly because I am tired and allergies (but no stomach issues) kicked in last Thursday. Partly because I think I have seen only small video clips or sound bites of a profound place. In the latter case, it seems every large town has tremendous energy and subplots running at the same time. How do I capture that for you? A few hours yesterday shopping in Rawalpindi could extend into a book if I were to do it justice.

Here would be the cliff notes of my current perspective on Pakistan. I feel safe, but there are still moments that paranoia gets the better of me. I feel comfortable, but I feel distant from the average Pakistani. I have been told Islamabad is a quiet town, but I feel I will be quite busy during my stay here. Many opportunities ahead, in shallah.



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