My journey to Peshawar certainly deserves a mention aboard the prestigious Deawoo express (pronounced ‘Devo’ in Pakistan). Each bus has it’s own armed guard (with a friendly smile) who frisks you as you board (even if you go to the toilet off the bus, you are still re-frisked). Then you’re videoed so they have a video of everyone on board and the bus leaves. After saying prayers, the bus hostess informs you about your journey, delivers your headphones for your personal radio and offers you Sprite or Coke and then a meal. You then kick back on a complimentary pillow in a seat big enough to have a dance party in and enjoy the ‘Chronicles of Riddick’ (2004 Blockbuster) and the best thing is you can actually get some sleep!

Peshawar belonged to that same bag of misconceptions that Pakistan once had. Luckily I didn’t see any gun wielding mujadeen or Taliban selling heroin on the street corner. That doesn’t mean that they don’t exist but the frontier town certainly wasn’t as bad as I had expected it to be in England.

Dr. Shahabat first shocked me with, “hello, my son, welcome to Peshawar,” when I rang him from the bus terminal and he freely took his day off to show me around. Peshawar is full of people like him, truly friendly and good hearted to the core. He reminded me of that uncle you have as a kid who always gives you a warm smile and a slap on the back. He belonged to the pashtun tribe who form a substantial part of Pakistan’s population. They speak their own language and live by the three concepts of Pashtunwali of revenge (the right to blood feuds), respect and hospitality. There is nothing more important to a Pashtun than his honour. In Pashtun tradition, even if you worst enemy asks for shelter, you must give it under the pretext of pashtunwali. Yet it was also the Pashtuns who gave birth to the feared Mujaheddin!.

As we drove to Brooke?€?s clinic we stopped quickly at the horse market on route. Although it was still early around 7am, 2 or 3 horse traders still ambled over to greet us with big toothy pan-stained smiles. The trading area was like two wide open squares surrounded on two sides by horse stables. It was a dusty place and the horses didn?€?t notice us much as we trooped around. There were only maybe 25 to 30 horses stabled up because the main horse market is held on Fridays. The Lahore rumour mill was running wrong. Nevertheless it was a good reconnaissance mission as I got to see Pakistani horses and seek advice on buying the most suitable horses for my trip to China. Mostly Afghani horses come out top.

My horse must be tough, compact and broad chested with strong legs and a good temperament. Afghani horses are known for their strength and tenacity and are used in all conditions in the mountains of Afghanistan. My horse must be patient and docile around many people since a foreigner on a horse seems to attract a lot of attention. They must also have a flare that Brookes no nonsense. Even though Rosie was supremely good natured she wouldn?€?t let any crowd get too close as she would give them a quick warning kick - particularly useful when the crowd got too friendly.

We also saw a horse that was certainly beautiful but definitely not suited to my ride. Raja (king) was stabled apart from the other horses at the end of the stables.. As the trader lifted back the curtain, Raja reared on his back legs and pawed the air. His neck was beautifully arched but there wasn?€?t any way he was going to let me even pat him. Raja was a warhorse from the Pakistani military remount depot at Mona in the Punjab. He was priced at 100,000 rupees (almost ??1000) which is 20 times less than his cost would be in England. WE spent the rest of the day looking around Peshawar and talking to other traders and friends of the Brooke who knew horses. The Friday horse market certainly seems a good place to check out Afghani horses and assess suitable mounts for my ride.

Peshawar is a true frontier town with that edge of raw energy appeal I?€?d expected. Ironically Peshawar means ‘city of flowers,’ but it’s situated at the head of the main marching route of every major empire to conquer South Asia over the Khyber pass for the past 2500 years. Alexander the great’s legions stayed here before pushing over the Indus and the Moguls swept through in 1556 to set up the famous Mogul empire. Even the Russians considered invading by this route during the political battles of the Great Game of the 19th Century. The town has a slightly rough around the edges feel but the people are it?€?s true heart where their warmth and generosity shines through. Horses and donkeys are in every way a deep part of the psyche here as in Lahore. Horses share a kindred spirit with the people here which wasn’t more apparent than at an Afghani village we visited. Most afghans lived in small squat mud squares seamlessly connected with a big open area at the front for grazing horses. Dr. Shahabat knew a trader there called Habib who regularly dealt with horses from Afghanistan. Habib was actually off on a smuggling mission and didn’t have any suitable horses although some were clearly Afghani horse breeds. He was causally taking six horses over the mountainous border into Afghanistan to sell in Mazar-e-Sherif. Apparently during the Afghan war tens of thousands of Afghan horses came across the border into Pakistan and one could easily find one for 10-15,000 rupees. Now there is an insatiable demand for horses in Afghanistan and prices now start from 25,000.

Habib agreed to ask some of his friends to keep a look out and we left to tour the rest of Brooke’s clinics Brooke is well integrated here, from the brick kilns to the fruit markets they have a presence. We made arrangements to return on Thursday when I would spend some time looking at Afghani horses before maybe buying on Friday. In the meantime, Dr. Shahabat agreed to hunt for potential horses.

The following morning I met with ActionAid at their office in Lahore. They wanted to come to the border to meet me, but I hadn’t been able to contact them from India. ActionAid has four major offices in Pakistan and works in 15 major different sites dealing with different issues from child rights to water rights. Education is a staple priority at each site as it underscores every communities development. ActionAid have pledged their full support to R4E (Riding for Education) in Pakistan.

This first week was basically about meeting all the people in Pakistan I’d been in contact with for the past 3 months. I met with the Daily times, The News and all the other great people who had helped make arrangements for my arrival in Pakistan.

ActionAid sponsors a lot of organisations around the country who further their own goals. In Lahore they sponsor a Gypsy school organisation called Godh. Gypsies often live at the bottom of the social ladder in most societies and the same is true in Pakistan. A khana badosh (gypsy) child shares no hopes and dreams as a more advantaged child might so Godh builds schools to give them the chance they deserve. Godh means “lap of the mother” and I visited one of their schools in a gypsy camp west of the city.

The pollution clogged the landscape giving a grim setting to the gypsy’s home. The school was located in a converted gypsy tent, but the kids seemed happy to see us and stood up respectfully as we entered. Apart from the looks, the kids acted like they were in a proper school and that?€?s the most important thing. If they believe they can learn, then they will do. Godh has made the use of its resources well and has invested in good teachers, books and a blackboard which is all they needed. The student’s parents were so poor that they feed themselves by begging at other surrounding villages for rice. I pray these students can escape their niche in life and make the most of the new opportunity Godh is giving them.