Fly in Economy to survive a plane crash

I love travelling and mostly do it by driving as it provides me ample opportunities to explore lands, meet people and of course take photos, which is ardent a hobby as my passion for travelling. My recent Schengen countries tour in car was really exciting, interesting and memorable.

But what about air travel? Well air travel is only an option when flying 'very' long distance flights. But I try to avoid flying for many reasons, specially the safety fears. Recently there have been a number of air crashes in the East Asia with no clues as to what went wrong.

AS for the safety fears, I read an interesting and informative article in the Daily Mail which suggests that travelling in economy class is much safer than travelling in the hi-fi elite first and business classes. 

In case of crash, mostly the front of the fuselage is damaged/destroyed - leaving most of the economy class intact

The articles proves that in many air crashes, that take on ground and not on sea, the forward portion of the fuselage gets destroyed and mostly leaving the rear of the fuselage intact where the economy class passengers travel.

However, surviving a crash is not enough. According to experts, surviving he initial impact isn't everything. Passengers are then at risk of fire and smoke inhalation as well as water in the case of a water landing, meaning often the best way to save yourself is to exit the plane as quickly as possible. This means one has to be physically active, in good shape and fit enough to exit the plane as soon as possible.

And there is yet one more thing: Knowing the exit points of the aircraft - something we ignore while the attendants are demonstarting the flight safety means. If one knows where exactly is the nearest safety exit, one can move swiftly and exit rather than trying to wonder where the exit could be, specially in case of night crashes when it is dark inside.

Remember: Those in premium class might enjoy fine food and service, but it's safer to fly economy!!

Read more about how to survive a crash at Daily Mail
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Facebook and Pakistan

Of all the social media networks, Facebook has over the years emerged as the most powerful social media not only around the world but in Pakistan too. Each day a ton of information is uploaded by various groups and individuals from Pakistan that are not only amazing and beautiful, but are awe inspiring as well. These photos and accompanying information indeed serves as a well treasured source to introduce the beauty and natural trove of Pakistan to the world.

Today, while I was scanning through the Facebook, some of the photos and information caught my attention and I thought of sharing these on my blog so as to project the natural wealth and beauty of Pakistan to my readers around the world.

To start with is the photo above of the Mataltan Village, Swat, shared by Colors of Pakistan (Picture Credits : Mujahed Qasmi). This group has been sharing stunning and eye catching photos of various parts of Pakistan and is source which is worth appreciating.

Head Taunsa on River Indus at Kot Addu (Sada Apna Punjab)

Sada Apna Punjab (Translation: Our Very Own Punjab) is another group where you may find exclusive photos of the province of Punjab. Each photo share here is the true reflection of the people and land of the Punjab province and their lifestyle. 

The above photo is about the special 'halwas' one comes across in Punjab, specially Lahore during winters. These sweets are enormously rich in oil, sugar, milk and dry fruits, beside the main ingredients. In the above photo, one can see two large open pans with Gajar ka Halwa (made of carrots) and Daal ka Halwa (made form grams) is the specialty of Lahore. One should not miss eating these when visiting Lahore.

Lahore, the City of Garden is yet another rich group about the culture, history and its glorious past and present of the city of Lahore. I have always been attracted by their photo sharing which go back to as old as the city of the Lahore itself is. This is one my favourite groups and despite being a born Lahorite, I am amazed to find so much about Lahore that I had not known before. 

Above: Badshahi Mosque, Lahore (1915-1919 Bottom: The 1st Inniskilling (Royal Irish infantry regiment) marching through street of Lahore c. 1947

The two photos above are rare in the sense that the photo of Badshahi Mosque is almost a century old. And the photo below shows marching of the British soldiers most probably just before the partition as the troops were leaving Lahore on the eve of end of the British Empire in the Indian sub continent.

The information shared by Lahore, the City of Garden, about Princess Bamba Sutherland, the eldest daughter of Maharaja Daleep Singh, who chose to settle down in Lahore in the then posh locality of Model Town, is worth mentioning. She named her house as Gulzar, which had a complete one canal of land dedicated to her garden of roses. Here she married Dr David Waters Sutherland who was Principal of the King Edward Medical College, Lahore (now Medical University).

Princess Bamba inherited a vast collection of paintings, art objects, historical documents and royal orders from her father and kept these in safe custody at Lahore. After her death, her art trove caretaker Pir Karim Bakhsh Supra handed over her art trove that consisted of 18 oil paintings, 14 water colours, 22 ivory paintings, 17 photographs, 10 metallic objects and seven miscellaneous articles, are known as ‘The Princess Bamba Collection’ to the Department of Archaeology, Government of Pakistan, for preservation as a national asset. 

She quietly slipped into its soil on March 10, 1957, almost unknown and unwept.

I do not know what became of the ‘The Princess Bamba Collection’, but the information shared by the group is of enormous historical value, which we may not have known otherwise but through Facebook.

I will continue to share information about Pakistan as shared through Facebook by individuals and groups to let my readers outside Pakistan know about the inherent beauty and love in time.

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Yak (Cow with a Skirt) Safari in Pakistan

Yak in Pakistan's northern areas [Photo Credit: Heavenly Beauty of Pakistan]

You may laugh out at the title of the post - but Yak with hits heavy hanging coat is just like a cow with a skirt to protect herself form the harsh winters where this huge and majestic animal belongs to.

Yak, which is closely related to the African buffalo, the American bison, and the European bison, is found on the rooftop of the world - an area spread from Tibet, Nepal, India  Pakistan's northern areas, Xinjiang region of China and Wakhan corridor of Afghanistan, where snow governs the mountains almost the year round. With temperatures generally ranging in the sub-zero bracket, no animal can survive the rigors of the weather and harshness of the terrain but Yaks.

Living on altitude between 4,000 and 6,000 meters (13,000 to 19,600 ft), Yak is considered an endangered species.

Yaks in Pakistan’s Himalayas  [Photo Credit: BucketRipper/Coen Wubbles]

In Pakistan, yaks are found in the Himalayan and Karakoram mountain ranges. Their large herds are found in the Shimshal valley in the Khunjrab National Park, an area northeast of Gilgit bordering China. Beside these are found in Passu, Nagir and Baltistan. Yaks are also found in the Broghil Valley, Chitral. Shimshal is ideal breeding ground of the yaks as it is located at an altitude of 3, 108 metres.

Yaks in Pakistan [Photo Credit: Basharat Ali]

Yak is an excellent beast of burden and transportation in the snow frozen areas - it is its capacity to live in these hostile sub zero environment that Chinese historians argue that without yaks, human civilization would not have survived in the remote mountainous regions on the world's rooftop.

Yaks at Khunjrab Pass on Pak-China border of north Pakistan, at 4700 m from sea level. [Photo Credit: Imran the Trekker / Flickr]

Beside being called Cow in the Skirt, yak is also known as the mountain ship the same way camel is called the desert ship. 

Yak Safari in Shimshal Valley [Photo Credit: ActiveTours Pakistan]

The people of the northern areas of Pakistan have engaged yaks in promoting tourism in the area in what is called the 'Yak Safari.' Every year tourists go to the the yak-specific areas to enjoy this unique and different safari. Many tour operators provide well planned tours to the northern areas, which include a daily Yak Safari to various places in the Shimshal valley.

Now a few words about Yak itself:

Yaks, due to their heavy fur, are only adapted to high altitudes, and cannot sustain themselves at altitudes lower than 10,000 feet. even its blood cells are naturally designed for high altitudes - half the size of the cattle and three times more in number - this specialty allows increases blood capacity to carry more oxygen. The heavy fur coat can sustain the animal in temperatures as harsh and severe as -40 Celsius.

A Yak in Broghil Valley, Chitral [Photo Credit: Native Pakistan]

Yak grazes on grass, herbs and lichens. In winters it would eat poor coarse grass, leaves and twigs. Since water is generally scarce at these altitude, a thirty yak chews the frozen snow as a substitute for water. As for grass, yaks will dig in the snow until they find grass to eat. Sometimes a yak will dig a yard down in the snow until grass appears.

Yak is a life life to people where it is found. Its every part of the body is made use of when it is killed so as not to waste it away as killing of a yak deliberately is almost a sin in Tibet.

A masterpiece shot of Yak birth, Tibet China [Photo Credit: Kari Liabat / Flicker]

The killed yak's horns are used for draining blood and cutting meat, beside being used as decorations. The head of a yak is dried and served at New Year's celebrations. The fur of a yak, which can grow to be two feet long on the torso, is used to make ropes, clothing, slings, sacks, and even tents. Yak fur tents are warmer than canvas tents and hold up much better under intense winds. The yak fur allows smoke inside the tent to escape, while the oils in the fur keeps water from penetrating inside. Underneath the fur is wool which is used for clothing and boots. Even the tail of the yak has been used as healing aids.

Climbing with yaks in Mount Everest [Photo Credit: FR2DAY]

The milk of a yak (female yak is called 'dri' in local Tibetan language) contains twice as much fat as the milk from normal domestic cows. The yak milk is  golden in color and is rarely drunk. Instead is used for yogurt and butter. The yak butter is used  in tea, as a face lotion, and as fuel for lamps. Yak-butter tea is steadily consumed by Tibetan nomads—up to 40 cups a day. This consists of black tea churned with yak-butter instead of milk—definitely an acquired taste.

All Photos above have been duly attributed to the source
Tours Operators in Pakistan for Yak Safari: | Hunza Guides | Active Tours |

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Investing in Pakistan

Caroline Jaine, a UK based writer, artist and film-maker with a background in media strategy,training and diplomacy, pens down many reasons for doing business with Pakistan in her recent post. She says, "Against the context of flooding, terrorism and corruption, it might seem a strange and somewhat misplaced time to be writing about the benefits of economic investment in Pakistan. But those who know me as a writer, will know my attempts to wring out inspiring news stories and splash a spotlight on a side to life that is uplifting, but no less real."

Read full story how Caroline justifies here assertions.

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Money Bag October

This year October has 5 Mondays, 5 Saturdays and 5 Sundays. This happens once every 823 years. This is called money bags. Send this information to friends and money will arrive within 4 days, according to Chinese Feng Shui. The one who does not copy, will be without money. GOOD LUCK EVERYONE !

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16 facts about Sleep you may not have known before

Via: Psychology Degree

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Guide to food safety

More Health and Fitness News & Tips at Greatist.</div>

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10 easiest tips to lose weight quickly (Ah!!)

Who else will be more worried than me to lose weight as the weighing machine goes wonky when I step over it and doesn't know when and how to stop? Well I do try but nothing much really works. So I sat and tried to find some easy and quicky ways to reduce weight. Well the ten steps herein under are repetition of many guidelines given and seen before by weighing machine enemies like me, but even for the sake of repetition I am repeating these for myself and all like me – may be something works.

1. Eat small meals five times a day. Each meal should contain proteins, fibres– but no more 300-400 calories per serving and be low in fat.
2. No fried foods – we very innocently eat up French fries as appetizers, whereas these when counted in calories equal a hearty meal. At McDonald’s their large French fries portion is almost 500 calories.
3. Say no to saturated and trans saturated fats. Remember tarns saturated fats are linked with elevation of heart related diseases too besides inching your belly outwards.
4. Eat lots of water – some say eight glasses per day and some say half your body weight in ounces. There is no limit in fact – drink (water) as much as you can.
5. Be a vegetarian and start liking vegetables, specially fresh ones like carrots, tomatoes besides all greens and all vegetables.
6. Stay away from foods that have added sugar including all types of sodas and drinks as we innocently gulp more calories than our daily recommended intake. Also avoid things made with refined sugar.
7. Avoid foods that contain CGF (Concentrated Glucose-Fructose). Doctors warn of CGF as the worst form of glucose ever. Too much fructose can create a metabolic disaster in your body as 30% of it gets converted into fats, a research says.
8. Plan and go for light exercise at least FOUR days a week – I don’t go out even for a single day (:
9. Switch over to high protein meals right within one hour of a workout – but resist eating too much of meat. Take chick peas, egg whites, quinoa or beans rather than meat except chicken breast (my favourite) or the white meat portions of the poultry, besides fish. But again remember the portion matter – no re than 60 grams of protein per day.
10. And last of all – don’t eat anything between 2 hours of going to sleep at night. Eat all you want to (while remaining in limits) before 9 PM, if you normally sleep at 11 PM. This would allow enough time for your stomach to digest what you ate.

If I do all this, I am “expected” to shed away 2-3 pounds per day – wouldn’t you?

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Workout Nutrition - complete guide for your better health

More Health and Fitness News & Tips at Greatist.</div>

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24 Funniest ways to DIE !!

Here are 24 funniest ways to die !! I wonder what could have been the 25th which has been omitted??

Produced by Life Insurance Finder – Via: Only Infographic

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Useful and handy information that you must know

Old women of the family usually know many secrets, we call "totkay" that provide simple solutions to common household problems. The following information is almost like that - the only difference is that we are now banking more on expensive sprays and methods to rid us from rodents and other problems, rather than relying on age old tested simple and inexpensive solutions.

See for yourself if you did not know before !!

Ants Problem : Ants hate cucumbers. Keep the skin of cucumbers near the place or ant hole.

To get pure and clean ice : Boil water first before freezing.

To make the mirror shine : Clean with spirit

To remove chewing gum from clothes : Keep the cloth in the freezer for an hour.

To whiten white clothes : Soak white clothes in hot water with a slice of lemon for 10 minutes

To give a shine to hair : Add one teaspoon of vinegar to hair, then wash hair.

To get maximum juice out of lemons : Soak lemons in hot water for one hour, and then juice them.

To avoid smell of cabbage while cooking : Keep a piece of bread on the cabbage in the vesselwhile cooking.

To rid the smell of fish from your hands : Wash your hands with a little apple vinegar.

To avoid tears while cutting onions : Chew gum.

To boil potatoes quickly : Skin one potato from one side only before boiling.

To boil eggs quickly : Add salt to the water and boil.

To remove ink from clothes : Put toothpaste on the ink spots generously and let it dry completely, then wash.

To skin sweet potatoes quickly : Soak in cold water immediately after boiling.

To get rid of mice or rats : sprinkle black pepper in places where you find mice or rats. They will run away.

SALT USES .. YOU MAY HAVE NOT KNOWN BEFORE

1. If you drop a whole egg on the floor, pour salt all over the egg, let it sit for a while, then use dustpan, the egg will come right up, without all that mess.

2. Soak stained hankies in salt water before washing.

3. Sprinkle salt on your shelves to keep ants away.

4. Soak fish in salt water before descaling; the scales will come off easier.

5. Put a few grains of rice in your saltshaker for easier pouring.

6. Add salt to green salads to prevent wilting.

7. Test the freshness of eggs in a cup of salt water; fresh eggs sink; bad ones float.

8. Add a little salt to your boiling water when cooking eggs; a cracked egg will stay in its shell this way.

9. A tiny pinch of salt with egg whites makes them beat up fluffier.

10. Soak wrinkled apples in a mildly salted water solution to perk them up.

11. Rub salt on your pancake griddle and your flapjacks won't stick.

12. Soak toothbrushes in salt water before you first use them; they will last longer.

13. Use salt to clean your discoloured coffee pot.

14. Mix salt with turpentine to whiten your bathtub and toilet bowl.

Tag: | Information | Life |
Source: Funzug

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A retreat to remember - Wagha border (between Pakistan and India)

This is a clip of the retreat or the flag lowering ceremony at Wagha Border near Lahore on Pak-India border. If one happens to be in Lahore, must not miss this - because this is an evening to remember.


I shot this clip while visiting the border. The ceremony attracts large crowds from both sides of the border, for whom this is an outing, a picnic and morale boosting event. As the event progresses, so do the emotions and applause from both sides to cheer their soldiers presenting one of the most spectacular show on earth.

I have shared this video at YouTube with screen name jalalspages

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Did you know these about sleep?

Via: Psychology Degree

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Better grades using Social Media

++ Click to Enlarge Image ++

Via:MastersinEducation.org – Via: Only Infographic

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How to prevent cancer for free - a public service message

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Image Source: Lung Cancer Causes.org – Via: Only Infographic

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Facts about people who Lie - and how to stop them

Ever wondered why people lie? Or I should say why do WE lie? The qualifying statement is inserted as almost everyone lies in varying degrees almost everyday. But there are some who lie as a habit, swearing to be telling the truth and yet telling lies without any hesitation or remorse or the felling of being guilty of doing so.

For those who are habitual, here is a step by step methodology to stop them telling a lie. Try it, it may help. Please scroll down till the end for "better results."

How To Spot A Liar by Forensic Psychology

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An insight of Pakistan

Pakistan, a country of South Asia, located on the seashores of the Arabian Sea, and on the mouth of the Persian Gulf, the most frequented route of the world oil trade. With its deep rooted roots stretched as far back as 7000-9000 BC of Mehrgarh Civilization, followed by the Indus Valley Civilization and the Gandhara.

Pakistan inherits a rich cultural heritage from the civilizations that once abound in the areas that are Pakistan today. Pakistan is also a showcase of architectural trove of the ancient civilizations, the Mughal, Victorian, Muslim and modern world. The following video says it all.

The opening musical score by music maestro Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan sums up the beauty and natural treasure of Pakistan, in which the opening lyrics says, “How beautiful the God has made you, I wish I keep on looking at you forever.”

Do visit Pakistan – you will cherish your memories forever.


Related Reference: Pakistanpaedia - A mini Pedia of Pakistan

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Space shuttle Discovery lands for the last time

It was an incredible moment for people of NASA and all those present at the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, USA to watch the final approach of the space shuttle Discovery on the runway and landing for the last time after completing its 39th space mission, with Steven Lindsey at its control. From now on, this awesome machine will find a resting place in some museum and will become just another flying machine for the people to watch.

Discovery flew out of the earth’s orbit and flew quietly into the fathomless space for almost 27 years on 39 missions. As the six astronauts finally exited the space shuttle for the last time after a 13 days adventure in the space, the air around the shuttle with its engines finally switched off for ever was emotional, teary and sad. While for the people of NASA it was a great achievement to fly this machine for the last 27 years, it was difficult for many to control their tears to say goodbye to Discovery forever.

What did Discovery achieve, the time would tell. But the greatest feat this machine accomplished was the deploying of the Hubble Space Telescope. The April 1990 adventure provided the scientists and astronomers a great edge to gaze deep into the space, find new stars and milky-ways and provide some of the most spectacular photos of the space one could have never dreamt of before.

Although Discovery remained operational for 27 years, it actually spent complete one year on its 39 space missions or 365 days to be precise. It travelled 148 million miles and carried 246 astronauts on-board.

The year 2011 will also be the final year of the flying of space shuttles as the remaining two space shuttles Endeavour and Endeavour will also say good bye to the space later this year. With the grounding of the remaining two space shuttles, NASA’s 30 years space shuttle programme will also come to an end.

Video source: NASA

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Body Mass Index Calculator for weight watchers

Poodwaddle.com

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Conquering Everest – the dream of two Pakistani brothers

Mt Everest – or Mt Chomolungma as the Chinese called it or still Mt Sagarmatha in the native Nepali language, the world’s highest peak, is the dream of mountain climbers from across the world. This just over 2 feet (from 29,000 feet) top attracts lot of climbers and is very popular as it does not pose phenomenal technical climbing difficulty as compared to the Pakistani K2 (the second highest after Everest) and Nanga Parbat, both over 8,000 metres. Perhaps the only thing that obstructs the climbers is the weather, which turns so severe that many attempts have to be abandoned and aborted.

Now joining the other mountaineers, two Pakistan brothers, Hassan and Sadiq from the Gilgit Baltistan province have decided to venture the Everest. They are planning to leave this month and are doing it with high spirits and emotions. The government of Pakistan has approved Rs. 6.2 million for the expedition. We pray everything goes well and the duo’s dream to stand on the top of the world comes true.

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