My first day in Karachi was full of surprises, warmness of people I never knew, and moments that I did not expect to witness. Everything happened, starting with looking for a Pakistani cricket t-shirt to the first barber shave in my life and I discovered that Karachi is very long.
I began my day with searching for a transportation mean to the market. Though I barely managed to book a car through ride-hailing services, I had to result to taking a cab instead. I paid the driver 200 rupees, which was slightly more than the internet fare offered, though I was completely okay with that and chose to support the local cab driver.
The market was big and very vibrant and my goal was to find a cricket t-shirt. Nevertheless, I kept getting distracted by the friendly and hospitable people around me.
At one moment the group of locals invited me to join for a cup of tea. I could not refuse, and I immediately was served with sweet milk tea made by locals. I tried to pay in cash, but they would not accept my money.
I have always been impressed by people’s willingness to support each other. One local even accompanied me to give me directions to another area of the market where I could find cricket jerseys. Eventually, I discovered the shop that was selling shirts of the national cricket team Pakistan and bought one for an amount of 1500 rupees. It felt like a perfect souvenir from my first day in the country.
Another thing that was striking was the presence of security throughout Karachi. I saw armed guards and policemen in various spots like five-star hotels. Several buildings had high walls and checkpoints. While it was a totally different picture than I was used to seeing in Germany, the people I met from the local community indicated that Karachi is a safe place for visitors.
After spending hours in the market, I decided to get a traditional barber shaving in Karachi. It turned out that it was easy enough to find the barber shop, as many locals gave me directions to do that. The barber asked for an amount of 250 rupees and offered an incredibly smooth shave.
The shave itself was performed excellently. There was nothing painful occurring during the process. After completing the shave, the barber applied some aftershave and some more products to keep my skin feel fresh.
The salon was bigger than it seemed at first, as one could see that there were more barber chairs upstairs. Before leaving the salon, I thanked the barbers for a good experience and examined the streets around Burns Road once again.
What made my first day in Karachi special was not only the food and markets, but the people too. The people were very friendly, always willing to help and welcoming, which made it easier for me to find my way in the new city.
With several weeks further staying in Pakistan planned, I could hardly wait for new adventures in Karachi and the rest of the country.
