Pakistan is a land of contrasts, of fertile plains, deserts, jungles and mountains, stretching from the port
metropolis of Karachi on the Arabian Sea to majestic Himalayan peaks that rear up against the Chinese border
in the far north. Here is a sample of the landscapes and the peoples who populate the 'land of the pure'.
Above: A herder drives his goats to market; and right, Pathans of the Black Mountain had lost everything after the earthquake; far right, top, a tribal chieftain; and below, a little mountain girl covers herself in the presence of a Westerner.
Below: boats ferry valuable supplies across the mighty River Indus.
Top, left: Mountain men take in the beauty of a spring day; top, right, girls peep from their village home; above, left, mother and child; centre, the dry heat of Balochistan, and above, right, the precious gift of education.
Below: Chatting with youngsters under the welcome shade of a
tree in a village in Kala Dhaka, the
Black Mountain.
From the lush mountains at its centre, to the arid plains sweeping westward towards the Sudanese border, then east into
the semi-tropical humidity of Red Sea coastline, Eritrea, like its peoples, is a land of contradictions. Here on the Horn of Africa
the threads of Arab, African and European cultures weave a rich tapestry of life under timeless skies dating back millennia.
Left and above: The highlands at the heart of the country
provide a relatively cool, lush and fertile landscape.
Above: Indefinite periods of military conscription are a major cause of migration. Right: A woman from the Arabic Rashaida tribe, whose settlements stretch from Eritrea into The Sudan.
Right: Shida Square, marking the long war of independence and (far right) a young woman tends to her goats on the parched plains.
Left: A traditional thatched dwelling in the shadow of the mountains and (above) Asmara, the country's capital.
