I don't see the point of these protests...

I've figured out how to add links and pictures to my blog posts, yay! Now my task is to figure out how to have the links open up in a new window. SKINNY, can you please help? yalla. Having a blog is going to be fun.

I'm a little anxious about how we are going to get from Islamabad (port of arrival) to Abbottabad (home) after 9pm, local time, this Saturday. It is going to take us another 2-3 hour drive to get home. That's not the problem, though. We've done it countless times before. The problem is the insane protests that are happening in Islamabad/Rawalpindi, causing the capital region to have barricades erected around it. I'll be ticked off if I have to spend a night in Islamabad, after having travelled for a gizzilion hours, just because security forces have barricaded the city from the entrance of protesters. I hope that doesn't mean no one can leave the city. I'm sorry, but what's a protest (in this case, and especially when it's not peaceful) going to achieve anyways?

Protesters defy ban to reach Islamabad

On my way to Pakistan...

So, I'm finally about to embark on my journey to Abbottabad, Pakistan, after nearly 3 years. Unlike my trips before, I have little excitement while setting out on this one. I am about to enter the Earthquake stricken region of Northern Pakistan. I am well aware that news clips and reports from family have not prepared me for what I will experience when there.

Upon reaching Abbottabad, the first thing we will do will be to assess the damage to our own familial home and property.

From Abbottabad, the plan is to visit Balakot, Muzaffarabad and other nearby cities and villages with my cousins to distribute clothes, zakat, money, and anything else that we can carry. We will also work with local schools, hospitals and non profit organizations when able to... most probably SUNGI, the Pakistan Red Crescent Society (associated with the ICRC and the IFRC), etc.

Stay tuned for photos, blog posts and personal reflections... (that is, once I get an internet connection set up over there)

Make dua (ie. pray for me!). I have heard that earthquakes have been an almost daily occurrence since October 8, 2005 in this region.