TravelTales & Teachings

 

“The world is a living classroom. Every journey holds a lesson, and every culture is a teacher.”
— Durdana Khan, TravelTales & Teachings

I am delighted to share my YouTube channel, TravelTales & Teachings, a platform where education and exploration converge. As an educationist and passionate traveller, I aim to present thoughtful reflections on global learning, cultural understanding, and the transformative power of travel.

Through this channel, I aspire to promote the philosophy of “Travel. Teach. Transform.” — encouraging learners and educators alike to view the world as an open classroom rich with diverse perspectives and life lessons.

I warmly invite my colleagues, students, and fellow educators to join me on this journey of intellectual discovery and cultural dialogue. Join me in discovering how travel inspires learning and transformation. explore the world beyond classrooms — discovering lessons from nature, people, and places that shape global learning experiences.

https://www.youtube.com/@durdanaahmedkhan5411

#TravelTalesAndTeachings #GlobalLearning #EducationalExploration #DurdanaKhan #LifelongLearning #YouTubeChannelLaunch

A trip to Neelam Valley in Azad Kashmir Pakistan:

Neelam Valley in Azad Kashmir

List of Fascinating Places to Visit in Neelum Valley Located in the Kashmir region of northern Pakistan, 20 km from Muzaffarabad, lies the Valley of Dreams - a center of scenic beauty. Its vast panoramic views, towering hills, streams, and high-altitude lakes add to the alluring charm of the famous Neelum Valley tourist spot in Pakistan.

Lush green forests and snow-capped mountains make it a destination hub for mountain hikers and those looking for an escapade through the tourism of northern Pakistan. The first thing you might ask would be the itinerary. Since there are a number of amazing places and picturesque landscapes in every corner of the northern regions, narrowing it down to a few would be a rough but memorable choice for the vacation you have planned.

Easy way to visit Neelam Valley, Azad Kashmir Pakistan:

For the information of the tourists intending to visit Azad Kashmir, it is requested to come from any city of Pakistan to Neelam Valley via the express highway from Islamabad through Murree. At the end of the express highway, continue to Muzaffarabad, the capital of Azad Kashmir, via Murree Road on the left. (Honorable guests coming from Hazara should use Hazara Motorway)

Warning- (About 2 hours from Islamabad there is a business center called Neelum Point on the bank of river Jhelum to cheat tourists of Neelum Valley which has nothing to do with Azad Kashmir or Neelum Valley. (Remember, this place is not Azad Kashmir or Neelam Valley. So avoid being cheated.)

After crossing the Kohal bridge near this place, the state of Azad Jammu and Kashmir begins. The muzaffarabad city is located about an hour from Kohala. He said that he should stay in Muzaffarabad for the night or leave for Neelam Valley. Neelam Valley is always a night trip for tourists. If you are in Muzaffarabad in the evening, stay overnight in Muzaffarabad.

There are hotels and guest houses of all quality in Muzaffarabad city starting from Rs.1500/2000 per room to PC Hotel. If you are in Muzaffarabad during the day and intend to proceed further, take Muzaffarabad city main highway or Nalochhi Gujra bypass road towards Chehla Bandi.

Your journey to Neelam Valley starts from Chehla Bandi. On the way to visit various tourist points (Dhani Waterfall, Neelum Jhelum Dam, Lion of Control Chalhana) you will reach Kundalshahi after about 3 hours. After visiting Kundalshahi Waterfall, overnight stay at Kundalshahi, Kattan, or Athmaqam. There are many guesthouses at these places for the accommodation of tourists.

If you have time or no place to stay at these places, you can also stay at Kern or Upper Neelum, 35 minutes away from Athmakam. Upper Neelum Village has a special place in Neelum Valley tourism due to its beauty and location just opposite the Line of Control.

After the overnight stay, the next morning after breakfast, etc. if you intend to Ratigli Lake then a link road leads to Ratigli Lake from Dawarian village about 30 minutes from Cairn. If you don't have your 4WD vehicle, rent a jeep from Dwaryan which costs around 7 to 8 thousand rupees. If you intend to trek on foot, then you must carry energy foods like energy biscuits, instant powder juices, milk, etc. Apart from this, souvenirs of Azad Kashmir are also handy.

Even if you have your 4WD vehicle, try to hire a local driver from Dwariya who will be available at a suitable time. Inexperienced persons should avoid self-driving on Ratigli Road.

Dwarian to Ratigali base camp is about 18 km as far as vehicles can go and this 18 km distance is covered in about 2.5 to 3 hours. Overnight stay at Ratigli Base Camp where you can also pitch your tents, otherwise, tents are available at reasonable rent at the base camp. After an overnight stay at Ratigali base camp, in the morning trek from base camp to Ratigali Lake, Ratigali Lake is about 40 minutes away from base camp. Spend the best day of your life at Ratigali Lake after assessing the weather conditions for the day, reach back to the base camp by noon, and then start your journey back to Dawarian.

Reach Dwarian and leave for Sharda. The distance from Dwarian to Sharda is about 2 hours. Remember that the road conditions beyond the roundabouts are not very good, so drive carefully. Overnight stay in Sharda, where there are many hotels and guesthouses. If you have time and plan to go further, driving very carefully you will reach Kiel after about 1.5 hours from Sharda, park your car in the parking lot, and take a chairlift from Kiel to Arang Kiel. go After the chairlift there is about 35 to 40 minutes of hiking. (Note that the chairlift often closes before sunset)

Stay overnight and wake up early in the morning to see the beautiful valley. Then return to Kiel and leave Kiel by jeep or private 4WD vehicle for Taubat. The distance from Kiel to Taubat is around 40 km which takes about 3 hours. Try to spend the night at Taubat, if you intend to return, come back to Kiel around 2 o'clock in the day. Try to reach Kundal Shahi or Kattan by night

After an overnight stay, get up the next morning and leave for Baboon Valley via Jagran. You can drive your car to Jagran or take a 4WD vehicle from Kattan, which will cost 7 to 8 thousand. You will reach Jagran in half an hour. You will reach Baboon Valley in about 2 hours from Jagran and the first word that will come out of your tongue will be something like this.

 Wow, baboon, remarkable  place…amazing

After seeing the power of Allah throughout the day, stay back at night

The next morning after breakfast start the return journey with a view of Kundal Shahi Waterfall. May Allah protect you

Some Important points to consider:

1.     ·        As Neelam Valley is a hilly area, drive with extreme caution. And especially drowsy driving can be extremely dangerous.

2.     ·        When coming to Neelum Valley, you must carry a warm shawl, warm clothes, jacket, hat, gloves, and socks as per your need.

3.     ·        As it is not possible to reach the hospital etc. quickly in Neelum Valley, so carry emergency medicines for fever, cold, diarrhea, vomiting, constipation, etc., bandages, pyodine, etc. with you.

4.     ·        Rati Gali and Baboon Valley are located at a very high altitude so carry good quality sunblock creams to protect your skin from UV rays.

5.     ·        Neelam River currents are very powerful and dangerous so avoid entering rivers, streams, a selfie or a picture hobby on any canal or wooden bridge that can kill you. Protect yourself and your loved ones.

6.     ·        While visiting any area, consider the natural beauty of the area, and instead of throwing away the wrappers of the food and drinks you brought with you, put them in a shopping bag and take them back with you and dispose of them at a designated place. Do and prove to be a conscious citizen.

7.     ·        While visiting any area, respect the respect and privacy of the local people and do not photograph any house or woman without permission, it may cause quarrels and resentment for you.

8.     ·        Do not attempt to drive any vehicle other than a 4WD vehicle on dirt or gravel roads as it may prove to be dangerous to your life.

Please remember that this is a general tour, there are many other places to visit Shontar Valley, Chitta Katha Lake, Patlian Lake, Gitian Lake, Saral Lake, etc. are worth mentioning.

Note: You can contact us for any consultancy required for traveling and tourism in northern or southern areas of Pakistan at 369consultancyprovider@gmail.com

 

Cyprus A hidden Paradise

 

My Travel to Gorakh Hills

Mystery of 'fairy circles'

They are one of nature's greatest mysteries, prompting local legends they are created by gods and generating wild theories about visits by UFOs.

These images show the vast areas that are covered by the mysterious fairy circles that pock the grassy desert of Namibia and why they have captivated the imaginations of visitors to the region.For decades it is a phenomenon which has left scientists stumped.Thousands of barren patches of land several meters wide, known as 'fairy circles', which are found across the Namib Desert in southern Africa for no apparent reason.

What are fairy circles?

Fairy circles are barren patches of land which can be found across the Namib Desert in southern Africa.They can be 6-40 feet (2-12m) in diameter, are found in the region’s arid grassland on sandy soils.A ring of vegetation around the edge of the ring is taller than the surrounding grassland. The mystery of how they got there, or why they stay there, has stumped scientists for decades. Theories have included grass-killing gas, termites and even UFOs while local myth holds that a dragon lives beneath the Earth and his fiery breath burns the vegetation.

The fairy rings, which measure between 6 feet and 40 feet across (2-12 meters), are essentially bare patches of earth in the stubby grass that grows across the Namib Desert.

Fairy circles are circular patches of land, barren of plants, though often encircled by a ring of stimulated growth of grass. They typically appear in the arid grasslands of the western part of Southern Africa. Fairy circles are particularly common in Namibia, but also occur in parts of Angola and South Africa.

Fairy circles vary between 2 and 15 meters (7 and 49 ft) in diameter. They typically occur in essentially nonspecific grassy vegetation, especially in Namibia, where conditions are particularly arid. Associated grasses commonly are species in the genusStipagrostis

The circles occur in a band lying about 100 miles (160 km) inland, and extending southward from Angola for some 1,500 miles (2,400 km) down to the Northwestern Cape Province of South Africa. It is largely a remote and inhospitable region, much of it over a hundred miles from the nearest village. The circles have been recognized and informally remarked on for many years, first being mentioned in technical literature in the 1920s and intermittently thereafter with the intensity of study increasing during the final quarter of the 20th century.

Studies show that these circles pass through a life cycle of some 30 to 60 years. They become noticeable at a diameter of about 2 meters, achieving a peak diameter of perhaps 12 meters,^[after which they mature and "die" as they undergo invasion, mainly by grasses.

Theories have included radioactive soil, meteorites or even UFOs while local myth holds that a dragon lives beneath the Earth and his fiery breath burns the vegetation. 

But finally, a German professor believes he has solved the mystery for good. After a six-year study, and more than 40 trips to the Namib desert, Norbert Jürgens from the University of Hamburg says a species of sand termite is responsible.

He examined hundreds of fairy circles in more than 1,200 miles of the desert and found that the Psammotermes allocerus, or sand termite, was the only species consistently present.Mr Jürgens theory is that they eat plant roots before they can sprout through the desert soil creating a water trap - in a similar way that beavers create dams.

Because of the lack of foliage, rainwater is not lost through transpiration (the evaporation of water from plants) and instead stays below the surface. This allows the sand termites to survive and stay active during the dry season and also helps grasses at the edge of the circle to thrive attracting other life forms. The termites feed on those grasses, thereby gradually extending the circle.

Mr. Jürgens concludes that the fairy circles are actually an astounding example of ecological engineering by the sand termite, designed to retain precious water in an otherwise arid landscape. ‘Fairy circles can be regarded as an outstanding example of allogeneic ecosystem engineering resulting in unique landscapes with increased biodiversity, driven by key resources such as permanently available water, perennial plant biomass, and perennial termite biomass,' he told South Africa's newspaper the Weekend Argus.

'The termites match the beaver with regard to intensity of environmental change, but they surpass it with regard to the spatial dimension of their impact.

'The sand termite turns wide desert regions of predominantly ephemeral life into landscapes dominated by species-rich perennial grassland, supporting uninterrupted perennial life even during dry seasons and drought years.'

Mysterious Desert Fairy Circles Share Pattern with Skin Cells

Patterns appearing on both the very large and very small scale are extremely rare, but researchers at Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (OIST) in Japan have found a similar pattern in two apparently unrelated systems -- skin cells and fairy circles in the Namibian desert.

“It's a completely amazing, strange match,” said Prof. Robert Sinclair, who heads the Mathematical Biology Unit at OIST.

Desert fairy circles are considered one of nature’s greatest mysteries because no one knows how they form. Different from mushroom rings, these fairy circles are large barren patches of earth ringed by short grass dotting the desert like craters on the moon or big freckles. Several groups are racing to figure out this bizarre phenomenon. Sinclair and his collaborator, Haozhe Zhang, believe they have identified a small, but vital piece of the puzzle.

The distribution of fairy circles throughout the desert may look random, but turns out to have a pattern that very closely matches the distribution pattern of skin cells. A pattern spanning such drastically different size scales -- microscopic skin cells and the desert landscape -- is almost unheard of in nature.

“It is still difficult to say why exactly they are similar, but the fact that they are similar is already very important,” Sinclair said. “This is suggesting there may be such types of patterns that cover really different size scales.”

To conduct the analysis, Sinclair and Zhang compared the number of neighbors adjacent to fairy circles and skin cells. They took satellite images of fairy circles, and a computer drew lines halfway between each pair of circles to designate invisible boundaries, much like cell walls. The computer then counted how many neighbors surround each fairy circle. Other researchers had calculated skin cell neighbors several years ago.

The results were almost identical. Both the majority of fairy circles and majority of cells have six neighbors. But the similarity gets even more specific -- the percentage of fairy circles with four, five, six, seven, eight and nine neighbors is essentially the same as the skin cells.

“I didn’t expect it to be so close,” Sinclair said. “We spent a lot of time checking because it really looked too close to believe.”

Many theories about how fairy circles form -- from rolling zebras to underground gases to dying trees -- have been proven incorrect. Now, some scientists are developing mathematical models attempting to explain the origin of fairy circles.

“These models have to incorporate our results,” said Zhang, a Ph.D. student in the Department of Statistics at Iowa State University, who conducted the research at OIST with Sinclair in 2013.

The researchers suspect the patterns might be similar because both skin cells and fairy circles are fighting for space. If true, scientists might one day be able to glean information about systems just by analyzing patterns. For example, they could search for signs of life on other planets or moons, where images are usually the only data initially available.

Finding such a pattern could also benefit ecology and biology in general. Understanding processes on one scale could illuminate what is happening at the other end of the spectrum. “Otherwise, we need a whole new theory for each type of system we study, and may miss general principles, or, as some say, not see the forest for the trees,” Sinclair said.

Myths

In the oral myths of the Himba people these barren patches are said to have been caused by the gods, spirits and/or natural divinities. The region's Bushmen have traditionally ascribed spiritual and magical powers to them. Of specific beliefs, the Himba people note that their original ancestor, Mukuru was responsible for the creation of the fairy circles, or that they were the footprints of gods.

Another myth put forth, believed by some scientists to be tied to tour guides, is that the circles are formed by a dragon in the earth and that its poisonous breath kills the vegetation.

Local legends say the fairy circles are the footsteps of the gods while others have suggested they are burn marks from dragons living beneath the ground. Some have suggested they may be the landing spots of UFOs or the sleeping spots of Namibia's national animal the Oryx.

There are some scientists who have suggested the circles are created by radioactive patches of soil that prevent the grass that covers the landscape from growing

One oral myth says the circles are the footprints of the gods; another that a dragon living beneath the earth’s crust breathes fiery bubbles which, when they hit the surface, burn the vegetation into the near-perfect circles.

No matter what is found in the field, all hypotheses on fairy circles need to account for both their small- and large-scale patterns. ‘This is the great thing about having multiple disciplines involved – trying to assemble the puzzle with just one doesn't always work.'

But the circles haven’t just confused the Himba. Despite decades of investigation, and a multitude of theories, scientists still haven’t come up with a definitive explanation for their existence. To this day, the circles remain one of nature’s greatest mysteries.

A Trip to Dead Hotels along with the beaches Famagusta,Cyprus

The aim of this trip was to show how lack of planning can have a negative effect on economic system, environment, social and cultural in terms of land use, raw materials, natural and human resources and other aspects. All of these projects lead market failure, wastefulness and even death from tourism point of view.  Role of Planners and governments are missed and we can see, there is no sustainability in destination. Lack of master plan can be felt in these areas.

North Cyprus has beautiful beaches, marinas and mountains. The coastlines consist of rocky coast and long golden sandy beaches which are eye catching in Mediterranean region. Some of the North Cyprus beaches offer activities such as scuba diving that attracts thousands of tourists every year to this Island for leisure time that anticipate to have unforgettable memory which can motivate them to return in future. Now the question is that why this island should lose many of resources of land and beaches which are its main attractions?

According to our field trip we have seen many places and it started by analysing the main road from the entrance of university. Here one can observe the lack of harmony between the buildings and lots of shop which they don’t have any parking area, also the quality of streets and sidewalk and many unfinished projects that completely destroyed appearance of the city are the reasons for lack of planning. Supermarkets which are located in Main Street and because of lack of parking area, a lots of conjunction seen and possibility of accidents can rise. After the arrival of tourist in summer season, area looks overcrowded an a lots of transport can be seen. Walkways and service roads are always occupied.

The first place which we visited was Crystal Rock Hotel which is near the beach. It is also showing wrong planning and lack of professional involvement because the hotel design, shape colour and materials not match with Cyprus’s tradition, history  and culture. The material which is used in hotel is not suitable for Cyprus’s weather, culture and history. The design of hotel , doesn’t have any meaning ,on the other hand ,there is a big problem in using of landscape ,the parking area is not reasonable ,it is located between hotel and beach and the people who are sitting in the balcony in restaurant ,they have a bad view of parking .A big wall covers the beach view and it failed in tourism.

The biggest mistake is about the beach that they have made which is useless and they destroyed rocky beach in order to build the sandy beach which just show the lack of the developers’ knowledge from the beaches types.  There is a wall between beach and parking area that it has no meaning and it block the sea view. Another problem is garbage area that is near the hotel and the pollution. Overall in this case, lack of law and roles of coastal zone and lack of professional involvement are causes to fail and waste of money and too negative impacts on environment and beach.If it built thirty years ago,it was not a problem becauseof lack of tourism awareness.Now in these 5-10 years planners should take care about  design,structure and also should take care about local material that matches to history of Cyprus.

The second place was a dead hotel named Momozal and because of wrong planning , wrong structural design, it is completely died and no one wants to rebuild/renew it because it is costly. The image of this hotel completely destroyed the whole view of left side beaches of salamis hotel and it is so ugly, and this building like many other places in Cyprus waste too much money and resources and has negative impact on surroundings. On a beautiful beach it is showing horrible design. Buildings are constructed very near to beach. Tourist, in the evening cannot sit in front of the beach because of intruded water.

The third place was SALAMIS HOTEL which is designed without any knowledge and professional background .we can see lack of professional plan in design of building which after 4 o’clock, it causes to create a big shadow and cover the beach and make it useless .on the other hand in high season, we face with limited beaches area and is not good because the tourists have to move and use other beaches area. As we know land is the main resource and if we do make our place sustainable, we lose the value of land and it makes a lots of problems for now and future. 

Aloong with the beach ,away from Momozal Hotel there is a camping ground.Now its aplace of gypsies and no body take care about this area.A lots of pollution van be seen in surrounding area that destroys whole beautiful view of the sea.They never ask professionals or architechtures to develop a proper design that could be beneficial beach.

The last place was Sky Venus Beach Hotel which shows the lack of management and master plan-no intervene-no tourist attraction, in this place ,the wrong design is started from the entrance which does not have any meaning and any characteristic ,the surrounding is not clear and it is not suitable for hotel .when we look at the building ,we can see the wrong structure and wrong design which is unprofessional and it shows that there is no knowledge background .the building is ugly and huge..This building doesn’t have any concept or meaning, Its look like that it was built for imprison the enemies or for artillery that involve in war. The design of building is looking horrible.   We can see how much money has been wasted. After many times reselling ,finally it is changed to dormitory for university.

Conclusion

Overall, it’s clear that lack of planning, no interest from government, no implementation of  law effect in negative way and destroyed because of some people’s benefit . Sustainability is an important issue that we have to pay attention and if we use a group of community and stakeholders to encourage them to invest in tourism in correct way and make a good relationship with government and encourage people to understand the benefit of sustainability. We can prepare a comprehensive plan to prevent the issues and wasting of natural beauty