This post is about alternative, cheaper and earthquake resistant housing for Pakistan. At ATP we’ve covered alternative building styles before when S.A.J. Shirazi wrote about using mud to build homes. A couple of my friends recently pointed out to me an earthquake resistant straw bale housing style that was practised in Pakistan (and also other countries) after the devastating earthquake of 2005. This project was started in Pakistan by a non-profit group called Pakistan Straw Bale and Appropriate building (PAKSBAB). These houses were built for the poor by using straw, an agricultural by-product, compressed and tied into bales, as building blocks.
Following photo shows a straw-bale house under construction in Pakistan. Photo credits: PAKSBAB.
Suggest a better title, if you can. This is how it was titled when we found it on the web.
The background (building, mountain, qanaat, and loudspeaker) does suggest that the caption was right in saying that this was in Pakistan. Probably a gymnast display at a fair or some such event.
What do you say? Impressive, odd, funny… or all of the above, and more?
More than that, if you know more about this picture, or about such events, do please share. I have always thought that someone should collect and organize mela performers into a roving troupe… not as much to send abroad to touyr, but to tour in Pakistan itself. I think it will make a profit, but more than that could help us all know ourselves, and our Pakistaniat, better.
Today, let us listen to the Pakistan National Anthem one more time. Not just ‘hear’ it. But actually listen to it. The words, with its heavy Persian influence, may be difficult for some. But the meaning is not. Nor should the passion.
We have written about the history of the anthem (including about Prof. Jagan Nath Azad, the creator of Pakistan’s first national anthem) before. And we hope to write about it again, including how this current national anthem came to be.
But today, on Pakistan Day, let us sit back, take a minute, to listen and to concentrate. To concentrate on the promise and on the prayer that is Pakistan’s national anthem.
While All Things Pakistan has remained alive and online, it has been dormant since June 11, 2011 - when, on the blog's 5th anniversary, we decided that it was time to move on. We have been heartened by your messages and the fact that a steady traffic has continued to enjoy the archived content on ATP.
While the blog itself will remain dormant, we are now beginning to add occasional (but infrequent) new material by the original authors of the blog, mostly to archive what they may now publish elsewhere. We will also be updating older posts to make sure that new readers who stumble onto this site still find it useful.
We hope you will continue to find ATP a useful venue to reflect upon and express your Pakistaniat. - Editors
