we were given a wonderfully comfortable room , next to the prison cells . The looks from the incarcerated suggested we were from another planet . The bike was safely parked inside the compound , all the police officers took an obligatory selfie with it , next to it , on it .
One of the police chiefs went to a local market and bought us food , tasty and filling samosas . As usual , refusing any payment attempts .
“ You are the guests ,” he announced . “ We don ’ t take money .”
A phrase I would hear often throughout the journey across Pakistan .
As comfortable as our room might have been , with its nice , if somewhat dusty carpet , to lay on , we much preferred go to a hotel . As the sun set and the city restrictions were lifted , we continued on our journey , albeit just 200 metres before coming to a halt .
Requiring a new escort had brought us to a stop in the middle of a busy intersection . Forced to wait for what felt like an eternity I could sense everyone looking at us , and within minutes a crowd had started to gather . It was as if I had a huge fluorescent target on my back .
Our new car arrived and with it new tensions . Unlike the previous escorts , this one was clearly serious . The guy had his finger on the trigger ready to roll . Flashing his torch into the eyes of everyone around us , I tried to stay as close to the car as possible , trying not to think that if someone was to shoot our escort would fire back with me in the middle of it all . As if that wasn ’ t enough , I barely had traction from my tires , the road was slick like ice and covered in a thin layer of dust , so my brakes didn ’ t really work and I was trying not to lean the bike too much .
That 30 minute ride across the city
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