27-02-2008

Sunday 24-02-2008 ready to take off for India,but first we had to fill diesel on and even to do so we had to ask permeation and bring a brucutu along, and then the goodbye to every one

.First stop a soldier at a table taking a look at ours passports feeling out a big book,futher on a second stop and a second soldier doing the same thing, then entrance in a office to feel out formulas, and a long talk to explain about our first visit.

And then to custom showing the carnet, but first a look at the BB they wanted to see the chassis number and the motor number, ok then we have to lift it up, finally they desisted.

And now to the stamp in the carnet, and seeing me nervous he started to find something wrong, it could be falls, he must analyze it together with his boss, I rally passed a bad moment, but he finally put the stamp on and we took off to the freedom in India, and not long away found a place to lunch at the roadside

Only 30 km away the golden temple was waiting for us, to find the way was not easy in a hell of a traffic, but we found it, and here we are now inside at a good parking place, and best near to an internet café. A very good place to start the next step of our journey, the entrance to China

Yesterday I got in contact with the office in China known all the way back from Sao Paulo, they wanted 6500 Euros and 2 months to prepare the documents and I gave my ok and asked a firm to scan my documents to them, had a telephone contact with my cosine in Demark.

Staying at this place shows an other world, with pilgrims all around and strange singing.

Text to Photos

No 1 First stop I freedom

No 2 Ready to enter the temple

No 3-4 and 5Inside the temple

No 6 polishing the rail

No 7 here we parked 3 nights

No 8 The golden temple in the middle of an artificial lake

No 9 We on a richau

No 10 A typical street

.

22-03-2008
Ten days passed and what days. For one whole day the taxi man and I walked from bank to an other speaking with the functionaries asking how to open a bank account with ten thousand dollars and from that make a bank guarantee to the Pakistan club. A lot of speaking but no positive result .As a foreigner I should get a permit ion from the Pakistan Bank and that would take a fortnight. By the end nothing.
The Brazilian club had to help, and after a lot of talk per telephone, the difference of 8 hours put it that way that calling at 3 a clock in the afternoon here I got my friends early in the morning and begged them to convince the manager there a Mrs Fabiana to send another fax to Mr Shaik, but even that turned out to be difficult, they faxed it ok but it did not turned up at Mr Shaik s office here.Finaly my friend Wang succeeded, just to heare that it was all wrong it had to be changed. And the faxing continues to go wrong. Wang resolved to forward it with a massager it came ok but still wrong, what they wanted very clear was that the AAB gave a full economic grantee in words.
Yesterday I managed to speak to Mrs Fabianas secretay and I passed word after word how the fax should be written.
And all this took time and we discovered that we had stayed overtime here in Pakistan, and therefore we had to go to Lahore to have our visa put in order, pay a fine, another run to Lahore with our taxi driver who has been a fantastic help, and so has his brother been, and what a surprise coming back this afternoon, his brother could tell us that Mr Shaik had told us to come to morrow morning to get our carnet, now suddenly everything forgotten only happiness .
After to morrow morning we take of to India

No 1 and 2 Primitive brick factory near the border


No 3 and here I am with the drivers brother who brought the news: we are free to go to India.

Last time I road:hapy end to a hard time,and now I can say:hapy end not at all.
When the fax from Brazil finally came through, it was not at all what the organization here wanted, the man here informed them back by fax how he wanted the text, and yesterday my contact in Brazil Mr. Wang could tell by phone that they would not do anything like that. There should be an economical security of 10000 $ and even that I promised to cover it with a similar amount deposed in there account in Brazil, they broke there promise. And we are back to zero, and more than 10 days lost as prisoners here at the border. Hard specially thinking of all the cold nights we passed.
As you remembered I found the name of the club in Sao Paulo written in the FIA hand book here in Pakistan at the Automobile Organizaton, and on the phone Mrs.Fabiana from the Brazilian club confirmed that they supplied the Carnet de passage in Sao Paulo, therefore they should know everything about this document
Now the club here offered the carnet if I could get a bank guarantee, and first I entered in contact with my bank in Luxembourg but also here the answered was no, they had no idea how to make such a thing.
I offered to put 10000$ in there hands, but also here a no they want a bank guaranty.
To day is Sunday, but tomorrow we will go to Lahore find an international bank to find out how a bank guaranty can be arranged.

Photos
No 1 The plantation near the border
No 2 Boy with hi aniamal
No 3 Bird near our BB
No 4 The mosque at the border
No 5 Our friend taxi driver

We took off from Islamabad early in the morning, with the brugutu no 3.The 370 km down the motor road went smooth, but from there to the border was a mess ,the brogutu had to ask the way several times and there was two horrible villages to pas, but we arrived at time before the border closed, and what an arrival the TV was there to make a reportage and the boss would show efficiency , and a car from Brazil was just what he wanted.
We slept in there yard, a very clean place differently from the other yards.
Next morning we took of for India hoping to get in, but not a chance, we where turned back in order to arrange a Carnet, there should be a possibility with Automobile club in Lahore.Here they informed that there was a club in Sao Paulo connected with FIA in Paris strange to get this information here in Lahore, so much I have looked for such one in Sao Paulo, but it was there with telephone number and E mail.And I was informed if I could get in contact with them and have them to fax to the Pakistan club an order they here could supply an carnet. I had to get in contact with Brazil with the club and my friends there. The promised to help, but informed that they had no internet and no international telephone.
Internet and telephone was in Lahore 25 km on a horrible road a road I had to go several times, sometimes with motor richau and when I got contact taxi who have helped other persons in the same situation, and suddenly he could tell that his mobiltelefone could call international and even cheap.to shortened the story yesterday I got through to the brazil club they have got my E mail have tried to fax to the club here, but until now not got thru, I could informe that Lahore has problems with frequents black outs.
The happy end of an horrible week

Photos
No 1 -2 -3-4 on the road to the Waghner border
No 5Entrance to India, we came only hereto.
No 6On the way to the daily festival
No 7Th feminine populism
No 8 The border gate
No9 The Indian populismNo 10 At the cust
No10 At the costum yard with my taxi driver he is a father to ten children