Lets tour Pakistan

Pakistan is situated between latitude 24 and 37 degrees North and longitude 62 and 75 degrees East. The country borders China in the north, Afghanistan in the North-West, Iran on the West, India on the East and the Arabian Sea in the South. The great mountains ranges of the Himalaya, the Karakoram and the Hindukush for the Pakistan’s northern highlands. The Punjab province is a flat, alluvial plain with five major rivers eventually joining the Indus River flowing south to the Arabian Sea. Sindh is beautified with the Thar Desert and the Rann of Kutch in the east and Kirthar range on the west. Baluchistan is an arid tableland, encircled by dry mountains.

Pakistan as a Tourist Destination

Pakistan is a special interest destination. Its main attractions include adventure tourism in the Northern Areas, cultural and archaeological tourism as found in Taxila, Moenjodaro, Harrappa, and early Muslim and Mughal heritage of Multan, Lahore, Thatta, Peshawar, Swat. Besides this, birds watching Jeep safaris, desert safaris, trekking and mountaineering are readily available tourist specialized products.

For centuries, the ancient Silk Road remained the main trading route between the South and the Central Asia. After the construction of the Karakoram Highway (KKH) along the same alignment, which joins Pakistan with the Chinese Muslim autonomous region of Xinjang, the ancient trade link has been revived. The KKH has provided a great opportunity for international travelers to explore the unspoiled natural beauty, unique culture and traditions of the Northern Pakistan together with other Silk Route destinations like China, Kirgizstan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

The first known inhabitants of the Pakistan region were believed to have been the Soanian-Homo erectus, which settled in the Soan Valley and Riwat almost 2 million years ago. Over the next several thousand years, the region developed into various civilizations like Mehrgarh, Gandhara and the Indus Valley Civilization. The region has also been apart of the Greek, Mongol, Persian, Turkic, Arab and British empires, giving Pakistan a rich and diverse history.

Takht Bahi ancient Buddhist Monastery is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated atop a 160 m high hill, about 80 km from Peshawar, off-the-road to Swat. It has sculptures in stone and stucco that indicate the highly developed skill of their creators, dating back to 2nd century AD.

The Indus Valley Civilization (IVC) was a Bronze Age civilization (3300–1300 BCE; mature period 2600–1900 BCE) that was located in what is now Pakistan and some parts of modern day eastern Iran, Afghanistan and small parts of India as well. Flourishing around the Indus River basin, the civilization primarily in Sindh and Punjab.

HISTORY OF PAKISTAN
BC
Soanian People 500,000
Mehrgarh Culture 7000–2800
Indus Valley Civilization 3300–1750
Vedic Civilization 2000–600
Indo-Greek Kingdom 250BC-11AD
Gandhara Civilization 200BC–1000AD
Indo-Scythian Kingdom 200BC–400AD

AD
Indo-Parthian Kingdom 21–130
Kushan Empire 60–135
Rai Dynasty 489–632
Umayyad Caliphate 661–750
Pala Empire 770–850
Ghaznavid Empire 963–1187
Mamluk dynasty 1206–1290
Khilji dynasty 1290–1320
Tughlaq dynasty 1320–1413
Sayyid dynasty 1414–1451
Lodhi dynasty 1451–1526
Mughal Empire 1526–1858
Durrani Empire 1747–1823
Sikh Confederacy 1733–1805
Sikh Empire 1799–1849
British Indian Empire 1849–1947
Dominion of Pakistan 1947-1956
Islamic Republic since 1956