I am trying to finish my accounts as I have a debrief with my boss (Marc Leaderman) in the morning at 11AM. Looking into the street of Copenhagen with the recent flooding (well - all in context- nothing like mudslides in Pakistan) it all seems a bit far away although it is right in front of my bedroom window. I want to reflect on the recent trip I led in the Wakhan - it may actually help my head arrive in Denmark as it is still tucked away looking into the Pamirs from Sarhad e Borghil- the end of the road.
Travelling to a remote part of the world where tourism is virtually non-existent - being a guest is what one becomes rather that a tourist or even a traveller. It also comes with a responsibility as no matter which angle you see it from - you do become a representative of your own world as well as of other future visitors.
A visit to the Wakhan is not something which you just wake up one morning and decide to do - it is a journey where just being there is the destination. It comes with a price tag of hard work, dusty mattresses and challenging driving (and drivers) but this is offset by the immense beauty of the region and a real chance to see a world which is at the tipping point of change. Undoubtedly change will come one day and one of the things which will hopefully add to the positive economic development of the area is tourism. In the Wakhan there is currently a real attempt to ensure that the local people (i.e. the Wakhi, the Kyrgyz and the people in Ishkashim) are the main beneficiaries of tourism.
This is the 4th year that Wild Frontiers have been running trips to the Wakhan Corridor and I am fortunate to have been allowed to be responsible for implementing last year's recce of the Wakhan Pamir Adventure and this year's follow up trip. This year's trip was a success BUT it has taken several years of hard graft from everyone (office, local contacts, clients and trip leaders) to reach this point. It was by no means an easy trip. Nothing in Wakhan comes easy - I think one just increases knowledge on how to get things done and one’s tolerance level also shifts.
I plan to return next year with WF - not only because of my work as a guide/tour leader, but because Wakhan is not just a place you go to, tick the box and leave behind. It is a place where continuous and conducive working relationships with guides, drivers, agents, homestay owners and their families, horse association owners, head masters and teachers - will make a positive difference to people’s lives. For all of my 9 years working as a tourleader, these trips are by far the ones where the commercial sector can offer a chance to local people to tap into the bowl and benefit from us coming to their lands.
Bismillah, our oldest driver who also has the status of khalifa, is a soft tempered and mild man with hardly any English. He has one of those faces and characters which remains in your mind embraced by warm memories (and no! I did not fancy him- just in case someone in the office should get funny ideas). One day whilst on the trip, we stopped before crossing a river and he took off his ring from his right hand and put it on my hand and said ' thank you for coming here and I appreciate the way you work with us'.
Now I sit here in Copenhagen looking at the bronze ring with a bright red stone (glued on with superglue and not very straight) - but it is an invaluable symbol of why it has taken so long to get to this level of success on the road in the Wakhan. Not because of me - but because of continuous persistence from everyone's side that the presence of tourism in Wakhan is a positive thing (which needs a lot of work still), that momentary friendships can help create cross cultural understanding and finally that I can be labelled Khanum Mette (Mrs Mette) and not Mr Mette and still get the job done.
If you have thought of visiting the Wakhan- do it soon. Things will change as more companies are starting to run trips there and things will inevitably change (not necessary for the worse though). I have uploaded videos and photos on my FB page - please do have a look, it is open to everyone.
It will still be a while before the imprint in my head of the Hindu Kush with yellow fields, the huge fast flowing Panj River, the blue sky and the end of the road will disappear when I close my eyes. A huge part of me hopes it never will.
Finally, I would like to thank all the people from the trip from Dushanbe to Sarhad and back again and of course the WF guests who put up with it all - Andy, Jenny, Kristina, Heather, Dimiter, Gerald, Stephen, Jenny & Peter, Teresa and Richard.
