Based in Dubai, a Filipino footwear businessman – Wallei Bautista Trinidad recently visited Pakistan and is mesmerized by the absolute gem Pakistan is. He deals with creative design and product research and development in his company.
Wallei himself is a beautiful soul who may be a businessman by profession but is an adventurer at heart. He is a self-taught photographer and writer with a zest for travelling and meeting new people. Giving an interview to Jovago, he illuminated his reason to love travelling.
My beliefs and worldviews are challenged when I travel. From this you learn to have a deeper appreciation and understanding of the people and the place. It is a privilege of witnessing their way of life. Meeting people of different culture is like earning another soul.
Wallei has traveled around 10 different countries but most of these travel experiences were work-related and sponsored by his company. However, his trip to Pakistan was personal and financed by himself. He proclaimed his love for Pakistan and the multi-cultural experiences saying:
Pakistan is a piece of heaven. Its cities and provinces are slices worth visiting. Pakistan is rich with its culture, tradition and heritage and blessed with natural wealth mostly unexploited. A journey to Pakistan is like having glimpse of the world. Each province offers an identity different from each other in terms of natural interest, language and a hint of tradition united with warmth and hospitality. There is so much to be discovered in Pakistan.
Hospitality of Pakistani people is what dragged him here in the first place. Wallei was dubious coming here because of the horrific image about war, bombing and terrorism in Pakistan as created by media.
He was invited by his friend from Sikandarpur Village in Haripur – Umar, who promised him a wonderful experience and stay at his family’s place. Wallei said he grabbed the offer because
I want to know their way of living and do something I have not done in my life. It is all about discovering Pakistan and its people.
Staying in Pakistan he explored every landscape of Haripur declaring it as an ultimate less-spoken off, hidden jewel of the country. He describes his experience in Pakistan in three words as;
Amazingly delightful journey
This journey of his was elevated because of the mouth-watering cuisines of Pakistan. He fell in love when he took a bite of a perfectly cooked ‘chicken-tikka’. Well, who wouldn’t? Tikka is a supreme dish in Pakistan and a specialty at many places where chicken is thoroughly cooked over coal and steam.
Living in Pakistan, Wallei made numerous friends across the country and enjoyed the sincere company of many others. He describes his joy as
I just did not make an experience; I got a second family in Pakistan and made a lot of good friends. Pakistan is my second home away from home.
After visiting Pakistan his image about the country and the law and order situation here changed completely. Not only Wallei but his friends and family is also in awe of Pakistan after hearing the wonderful stories from him.
Pakistan is heaven. This is the thing that I will always say. Everyone was surprised seeing all my photos and most of my friends can’t believe that it was Pakistan. Those picturesque landscapes, jolly people, vibrant environment are the things that can be seen from all my photos.
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