Thursday 4 October 2007

Pedalling in the Punjab....

It's amazing to think that Mark has gone from this.....

to this......in just five days!

It is a graphic reminder, if a reminder were needed, of the distances Mark is covering.

Mark is now well into the part of Pakistan referred to as the Punjab. The Punjab (literally 'land of the five rivers' which are tributaries of the Indus) straddles the border between India and Pakistan. However, aproximately 80% of the Punjab lies within Pakistan's borders. As mentioned yesterday, the area receives a very low annual rainfall but is watered by irrigation from the Indus and this supports the 86 million people who live in the Pakistani Punjab.

The Pakistani Punjab is considered to be one of the most fertile regions on Earth. It produces about 70% of the country's agricultural output which includes wheat, rice, cotton, sugar cane, fruit and vegetables. A Flickr search produced these images of rural life in the Punjab. As over 50% 0f the population still live and work in the countryside, they are hopefully representative of the type of human landscape through which Mark is currently travelling.

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