It’s 0230 and I’m halfway through the first long airport stop of the journey. I arrived at the airport half an hour earlier than needed to find a very long hydra headed queue consisting of Pathans pushing trolleys heaped with shrink wrapped blankets. Pakistani men’s vaunted respect and deference to women can rarely be depended upon especially when the woman in question has short hair, bare head and arms, and no gold jewellery. However the queue was generally polite despite some shuffling around at the shoulders of the hydra, and then I decided to take a chance with the business class queue. This was, happily, successful.
I urge readers to be prepared for some tedious posts as I have a 9 hour stopover in Karachi.