Living Like a King

Pakistan's alright if you live like a king. This I already knew in the back of my mind. In my previous life here, we lived modestly, but still received preferential treatment because of the colour of our skin and the fact that my dad was a doctor, a Sahib.

This is a ridiculous carry over from the Raj. Pakistan is independent, but the white man is still considered special. This saddens me.

Of course legitimate relationships can be developed between Pakistanis and foreigners. I marveled at my father's and mother's abilities to walk the line between sahib (and memsahib) and a local. Their language skills and cultural sensitivity were probably as well honed as any white person's.

Last night I was out with the family I'm staying with. They are essentially foreigners, well educated with significant experience living and working in Pakistan. We drove up to a chic cafe in one of the markets in Islamabad. The ubiquitous security guard (blue uniform and shotgun) opened our doors with a "Good evening Sahib". Up we went into the cool space, espresso machine steaming behind an ornate bar.

After dinner, one of the children in our party asked why his mother tipped the security guard, who with equal servitude had closed our car doors. "He's poor", his mom replied. "He doesn't look poor", shot back the child. "Anyone who stands outside and opens doors for other people as a job, is poor, honey." And we were gone into the night, just cool enough to allow us to turn off the A/C and open our windows.

Today we went to church, gliding through myriad security barriers in our sealed Land Cruiser. Bow, bow, open the gate, step back and sit down again in the hot sun.

People have lived here as foreigners but tried to avoid this kind of lifestyle as much as possible. I don't envy them. I don't think I could do it. So I'll go on living like a king and enjoying the diversity and rich culture of this country from my airy throne. I've got my escape plans all laid out. My passport, money and status pave the way for me while I'm here.
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NB. My limited experiences in the Northern Areas, the district of Pakistan where I will spend October and November, have been different than what I've described above. The people there seem more independent, more confident in their regional identities and more open.