Dusty, narrow,
winding roads give way to the spectacular
Shandur plateau pass, where a fierce
no-rules polo match between the best teams
of Chitral and Gilgit takes place annually.
More than 3500 meters above sea level,
stretching approximately 20 kilometers long,
Shandur is referred to by some as a place
“halfway to heaven”, and is the highest polo
ground in the world. With lakes and streams,
shepherds and their herds, the occasional
glimpse of colorful fruit orchards on the
way to the top of the pass, a baking blue
sky overhead, and no city or cement to be
seen for miles, so one easily has the
sensation of having been transported back to
the past.
Indeed, although
the first officially-recorded tournament
played on Shandur took place only as recent
as 1936, polo in northern Pakistan is said
to hark back almost 300 years. The sport of
polo itself has its origins in Central Asia,
and dates back to the sixth century BC. It
supposedly began as a training game for
cavalry units for royal and elite troops in
Persia, where it was then called chughan
(Persian for “stick”), and it became a
Persian national sport in the sixth century
AD. In its most primitive form, as many as
100 players could play to a side, resulting
in the game turning into a small-scale war
of sorts. In those ancient days, there was
no limit to the number of players and no
time limit; whichever team was the first to
score nine goals won. From Persia, the game
spread to Arabia, Tibet, China, India, and
the Himalayas. It was around the
China-Tibet-Pakistan region that the British
picked up the game, giving it the name by
which the world knows it today, polo. The
etymology of the word is supposedly from the
Tibetan word pulu, which means willow root,
which was the material from which the ball
was constructed. Today, Chitral, Gilgit and
neighboring Skardu and Hunza play the game
of polo closest to how it was originally
played: With no rules, no umpire, and a good
deal of reckless courage and sporting
bloodshed. Each game lasts for an hour, with
a short break between two half-hour plays,
or chukkas. During a game, horses cannot be
changed, let alone rested. Time-outs are
only given when there is serious injury to
either player or horse, but “seriousness” is
relative here; broken ribs and arms have not
stopped players before, and in fact,
bandaged, bruised limbs or an injured horse
are considered signs of a good match.
Players do not usually wear protective
guards of any sort, and the polo stick is
used as much as a weapon as it is used as
equipment, being used to whip and hook the
horses of opponents, as well as hit and beat
at the shoulders and arms of the opposing
team’s players. It is not considered
cheating, but rather, an extreme and
scintillating display of horsemanship skill
and tactical savagery. The horses used in
the games are typically crossbreeds of
Himalayan mountain ponies and English
thoroughbreds, and are ridden wildly and at
full-speed for the entire length of the
match.
A trip to Pakistan
is certainly an adventure- as reactions from
friends and relatives would undoubtedly
inform you as you openly contemplate a trip
to the country. The luxury of visiting
Pakistan now, perhaps, is one of being where
few people have and certainly, whilst the
most savvy travelers have ventured through
to Pakistan, the infrastructure for
mass-luxury tourism is not in place yet,
making it an ideal location for the intrepid
luxury traveller.
A unique aspect of
Shandur polo is its music, which is provided
live and throughout the game by traditional
musicians. Instruments typically range from
one big drum to a few smaller kettle drums,
and also include a long pipe, the
traditional surnai, which is a variety of
the wind instrument. As in many contemporary
games, when a goal is scored, the musicians
play a tune unique to the scorer, his chosen
anthem. For the duration of the games, a
bazaar is also held on Shandur, and here,
one can buy handicrafts, souvenirs, listen
to folk music of the Kalash tribes who live
in those mountainous regions (among other
performances), and also enjoy folk dancing
every night. A restaurant tent is also set
up for tourists and visiting locals alike,
creating the opportunity for a good dose of
intercultural exchange. Accommodation for
visitors is typically by luxury tent, thus
ensuring a comfortable stay in the midst of
all the natural mountainous beauty. The next
tournament takes place in 2009.
Luxury travel to
Pakistan is less about luxury hotels
(although there are quite a few stunningly
restored boutique hotels) but is instead
about privileged access- staying in the home
of a Prince in Chitral, knowing
personalities on the ground as well as
exclusive access to a fort on the border of
Afghanistan- this is a country where
'luxury' is certainly defined by connections
and insider access.
