This is a tour with a difference, combining commercial, industrial and historical interests. Sialkot is the heart of Pakistan’s manufacturing industry. Sadly, the world community is ignorant to the fact that leading products come from this important region, such as precision surgical equipment and instruments, leather and sports products, to name a few. We will be welcomed by the Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and hear a talk on the city’s industrial prowess before taking an Industrial Area City Tour.  

On the historical side, we will study the foremost Muslim writer, philosopher and politician, Dr Muhammad Allama Iqbal (1877-1938). His poetry in the Urdu language is considered to be among the greatest of the twentieth century, and his vision of a cultural and political ideal for the Muslims of British-ruled India was to animate the impulse for Pakistan. We shall visit his birthplace, Iqbal Manzil, which is now a museum and library. 

For 200 years, beginning from about 1525 A.D., Lahore was a thriving cultural centre of the great Mughal Empire. Mughal Emperors beautified Lahore, with palaces, gardens and mosques. During the British regime many monuments sprang up in Lahore which blended beautifully with the Mughal, Gothic and Victorian styles of architecture.

Lahore is the second largest city in Pakistan and the provincial capital of Punjab. Apart from being the cultural and academic centre of the country, Lahore is the Mughal “Show-Window” of Pakistan. The origins of Lahore are shrouded in the mists of antiquity. Reminiscence of its hoary past are the remains of a subterranean temple in the northern part of the Royal Fort, attributed to Rama, the legendary hero of Ramayana. Lying on the main trade and invasion routes to the South Asia, Lahore has been ruled and plundered by a number of dynasties and herdes. However, it touched the zenith of its glory during the rule of the Mughals. The Mughals, who were famous as builders, gave Lahore some of its finest architectural monuments that are extinct today.