Islamabad:
Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, lies against the backdrop of the ever-green Margalla Hills at the northern edge of Potohar Plateau. The name Islamabad (City of Islam, or City of Peace) was carefully chosen to reflect Pakistan's ideology. It was coined by a Pakistani teacher during the Government of Ayub Khan. Islamabad is located 8 miles north of Rawalpindi's city center. In contrast to its twin city Rawalpindi, Islamabad pictures a lushfully green and peaceful atmosphere. It is a city of wide tree-lined streets, large houses, elegant public buildings and well organized bazaars. Sidewalks are shaded and safe behind rows of flaming jacaranda and hibiscus trees. Beautiful parks filled with Roses, jasmine and bougainvillea add to the beauty of this dreamland.

Rawalpindi:
Rawalpindi (1,700 feet) is divided into an old city and and a new city or contonment (called cantt.) that are separated by rail road tracks. The new city was developed when the British began settling in 'Pindi during the last century and built a completely new town with colonial buildings and wider streets next to the existing city with its bazaars and galis. Originally Rawalpindi was a village of Rawals, a tribe of Yogis. In Rawalpindi Cantt. Several inexpensive hotels are offering good packages for economy travelers. There are many bazaars in the Rawalpindi region the Raja Bazaar, Saddar Bazaar and Commercial Bazaar (Market) are some nice shopping areas. The Liaquat Bagh 'Liaquat Gardens' is a nice picinc spot for tourists. The Bara Market near the Liaquat Bagh is an all time favorite amongst tourists coming to Rawalpindi. It has a lively atmosphere and with many beautiful architectures and colors of life it is a wonderful tourist hideout.

Lahore:
Situated on the east bank of the River Ravi, the wonderful city of Lahore adds to the charisma of Pakistan. Legend traces its origin to Loh, the son of Rama Chandra, the hero of the Ramayana, but history records that it began as a dependency of the 8th century AD Hindu ruler, Lalitiditya. In the early 11th century it came under Muslim rule and evolved as a center of Islamic culture and learning as well as trade and commerce. In the 13th century it was depopulated and razed to the ground by the Tartar-Mongol hordes of Genghis Khan. Lahore was a cultural and intellectual center during the Moghul and British eras. Such atmosphere still pervades, but it is the diversity and contrast of the different sections of Lahore, which makes it the most eventfully interesting part of Pakistan.

Karachi:
Pakistan's cosmopolitan city Karachi, is located on the eastern coast of the Arabian Sea. It is the capital of the province of Sind and the former capital of Pakistan. With a population of nearly 10 million (which is rising rapidly), Karachi is undoubtedly the largest city of Pakistan accommodating people from all regions and religions. Being the largest and the most populous city of Pakistan, Karachi presents an interesting and colorful combination of the old and new traditions. The narrow twisted lanes and alleys of the old city throb with life along-side the wide metalled roads and elegant modern buildings. Within the city, one may find talented artisans with age-old skills producing handicrafts of exquisite beauty.

Peshawar:
About 172 kms west of Rawalpindi/ Islamabad lies the ancient and legendary city of proud Pathans, Peshawar. Peshawar, the capital city of North-West Frontier Province, is a frontier town and the meeting place of the sub-continent and Central Asia. It is a place where ancient traditions jostle with those of today, where the bazaars in the old city have changed very little in the past hundred years except to become the neighbor of a modern university, some modern hotels, several international banks and one of the best museums in Pakistan.

Hyderabad:
Hyderabad is a city, district and division in the Sind province. The city is an administrative headquarters lying on the most northern hill of the Ganjo Takkar ridge just east of the River Indus. Being the third largest city of Pakistan, Hyderabad is a communication center, connected by rail with Peshawar and Karachi. Founded in 1768 on the site of the ancient town of Nirun-Kot by Ghulam Shah Kalhora, the saintly ruler of Sind, it was named after the prophet Mohammed's son-in-law, Ali, also known as Haidar. It remained the capital of Sind under the Talpur rulers who succeeded the Kalhoras till 1843 when, after the nearby battles of Miani and Dabo, it surrendered to the British, the capital was then transferred to Karachi.

Quetta:
Quetta (or sometimes-spelled kwatah), is the provincial capital of Baluchistan. The city is still locally known by its ancient name of Shal or Shalkot. It is the divisional and district Headquarters and is considered to be an important marketing and communications center located at the north end of the Shal valley about 1692 metres above sea level. It is the southern most point in a long line of frontier posts and within the system of strategic roads and railways near the Northwest (Afghanistan) border. Commanding the Bolan and Khojak passes, the British occupied Quetta in 1876 and it is there that a residency was founded by Sir Robert Sandeman. Slowly and Gradually the town developed around its strongly crowded army station. Incorporated as a municipality in 1896, its Army commands and Staff College was opened in 1907. A violent earthquake partially destroyed the city in May 1935, with a loss of 20000 lives. Being the market center for western Afghanistan, eastern Iran, and part of Central Asia, Quetta's industry includes; cotton mills, sulphur refinery, coke briquetting plants, a thermal power station, and fruit canneries. The city is the site of a geophysical institute, the geological survey of Pakistan, Sandeman Library, and two government colleges affiliated with the University of Peshawar. In 1970, with the creation of the University of Baluchistan a new wave of educational experience started for the residents of Quetta.

Multan:
Multan is located in the southern central province of Punjab. It is developed east of the Chenab River about 966 km from Karachi. Multan, is aptly known as the 'City of Pirs and Shrines', a city enriched with bazaars, mosques, shrines and superbly designed tombs. A circular road around the rampart gives access to the city through thirteen gates. Some of the imposing structures of these gates are still preserved. In the bazaars of the Old City one can still come across tiny shops where craftsmen can be seen busily turning out master-pieces in copper, brass, silver and textiles in traditional fashion.

Muzaffarabad:
Situated at the confluence of the Jhelum and Neelum rivers and surrounded by majestic mountains, Muzaffarabad looks like a walled paradise. It is the administrative capital of Azad Kashmir. Behind the Secretariat to the east is a road climbing above the town from where one can walk upto Pir Chinasi located at 2,900 meters with breathtaking views of the Jhelum Valley and high mountain peaks just above the Neelum towards the North. From the cool on the Abbottabad Road, you can walk along the ridge looking over the Jhelum and Kunhar rivers.           Faisalabad    
Faisalabad, formerly known as Lyallpur, is situated about 80 miles from Lahore. Being the nucleus of the textile industry in the area, Faisalabad is aptly known as the Manchester of Pakistan. It is, a city and division of the Punjab province connected by air, rail and road with Multan and Lahore and by air with Lahore and Karachi. Founded in 1890, Lyallpur was named after Sir Charles James Lyall, the lieutenant governor of Punjab from 1887 to 1892. On September 1st 1997, it was re-named Faisalabad to perpetuate the memory of King Faisal of Saudi Arabia. Before 1947, Faisalabad was a small beautiful town, but the rapid growth has affected its looks. In 1947, Faisalabad had a population of 71,000 and within four years it had gone upto 4,21,000. Today, its population is well over 11,00,000.

Hunza Valley:
Visitors to Hunza are deeply overwhelmed by the rugged charm and the fragrant breeze singing through graceful trees and the lushious green attractively carpeted fields all set against a background of snow-covered mountains. Situated at an elevation of 2,438 metres, Hunza Valley's tourist season peaks from May to October. The temperature in May is 27 C maximum and 14 C minimum. While the October temperatures range from: 10 C maximum to 0 C minimum.

Karakoram Highway:
The Karakoram Highway or KKH in short, is the greatest wonder of modern Pakistan. It is one of the most spectacular roads in the world connecting Pakistan to China. It twists through three great mountain ranges - the Himalayas, Karakoram and Pamir -following one of the ancient silk routes along the valleys of the Indus, Gilgit and Hunza rivers to the Chinese border at the Khunjerab Pass. It then crosses the high Central Asian plateau before winding down through the Pamirs to Kashgar, at the Western edge of the Taklamakan Desert. By this route, Chinese silks, ceramics, lacquer-work, bronze, iron, fur and spices traveled west, while the wool, linen, ivory, gold, silver, precious and semi-precious stones, asbestos and glass of South Asia And the West traveled east.                

Khunjerab Pass:
The Khunjerab Pass, at 4,733 meters (15,528 feet), is reputedly the highest metalled, border-crossing in the world. Visitors are greeted with a red sign announcing 'China, drive right', and another green sign saying 'Pakistan, drive left'. A monument declares that the highway was opened in 1982 and indulges in a bit of hyperbole by saying that the pass, is at 16,000 feet (4,875 meters). On May 1, 1986, the Khunjerab was opened to foreigners for travel between Hunza and Kashgar in Sinkiang Province. Since then, Sost has been the customs, health and immigration checkpoint on the Pakistan side and the place where people depart for or arrive from China, even though it is 54 miles from the pass.