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Swat is the most historically interesting
valley in Pakistan. It is also one of the most
beautiful - certainly much
 greener
and more fertile than the valleys further north
because it lies within the monsoon belt. In
Lower Swat, the valley is wide, the fields on
either side of the river are full of wheat and
Lucerne, and the villages are prosperous and
surrounded by fruit trees. In Upper Swat, the
river tumbles through pine forests hemmed in by
snow-capped mountains. For the historical and
amateur archaeologist, Swat offers several
hundred archaeological sites spanning 5,000
years of history. For the sportsman and trekker,
it offers good fishing and hiking.
The people of Swat are Muslim Pathans,
Kohistanis and Gujars. Some have very distinct
features and claim to be descendants of
Alexander the Great.
The Swat women wear colorful embroidered
shirts and shalwars (baggy trousers). The men
wear shalwar-gamiz and embroidered caps or silk
turban. Swat has been inhabited for over two
thousand years. The first inhabitants were
settled in well-planned towns.
In 327 BC, Alexander the Great fought his way
to Udegram and Barikot and stormed their
battlemens. In Greek accounts these towns have
been identified as Ora and Bazira. Around the
2nd century BC, the area was occupied by
Buddhists, who were attracted by the peace and
serenity of the land. There are many remains
that testify to their skills as sculptors and
architects. In the beginning of the 11th century
AD Mahmud of Ghazni advanced through Dir and
invaded Swat, defeating Gira, the local ruler,
near Udegram. Later the land was taken over by
the Dilazak, who in turn were ousted by the
Yusufzais.
Mingora is the district headquarter and
commercial centre of Swat. the Swat Museum,
located between Mingora and Saidu, has a rich
collection of Gandhara art which is worth
viewing.
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 Swat
Museum
Swat Museum is on the east side of the
street, halfway between Mingora and Saidu.
Japanese aid has given a facelift to its seven
galleries which now contain an excellent
collection of Gandhara sculptures taken from
some of the Buddhist sites in Swat, rearranged
and labeled to illustrate the Buddha's life
story. Terracotta figurines and utensils, beads,
precious stones, coins, weapons and various
metal objects illustrate daily life in Gandhara.
The ethnographic section displays the finest
examples of local embroidery, carved wood and
tribal jewellery.
Butkara
(Butkada) Stupa
One of the most important Buddhist shrines in
Swat, is near the museum. Take the dirt track on
the left (north) side of the museum for one
kilometer (about half a mile). The stupa is 400
meters (above a quarter of mile) across the
fields to the left (north).
The stupa, which dates from the second
century BC, was possibly built by the Mauryan
emperor Ashoka to house some of the ashes of the
Buddha. In subsequent centuries, it was enlarged
five times by encasing the existing structure in
a new shell. Italian excavators working in 1955
exposed the successive layers of the stupa, each
layer illustrating a stage in the evolution of
building techniques.
Kabal
Kabal is a golfer's paradise: an
eighteen-hotel course is open all year round and
anyone can play there by paying the green fees.
Upper
Swat Valley
The Swat Valley becomes more beautiful the
higher you go. In mid-winter it is sometimes
blocked by snow above Bahrain, but in summer you
can drive up beyond Kalam and from there trek
north to either the Chitral Valley or the Gilgit
Valley. From Khwazakhela, the road across the
Shangla Pass to the Karakoram Highway is usually
open only from April to December.
Miandam is a small summer resort ten
kilometres (six miles) up a steep side valley
and 56 kilometres (35 miles) from Saidu Sharif,
making it an hour's drive. The metalled road
passes small villages stacked up the hillside,
the roofs of one row of houses forming the
street for the row of houses above. Tiny
terraced fields march up the hillside right to
the top.
Miandam is a good place for walkers. Paths
follow the stream, past houses with beehives set
into the walls and good-luck charms whitewashed
around the doors. In the graveyards are carved
wooden grave posts with floral designs, like
those used by Buddhists 1,000 years ago.
Madyan is a tourist resort on the Swat River.
At 1,321 meters (4,335 feet) above sea level, it
is neither as cool nor as beautiful as Miandam,
but it is a larger town and has many hotels in
all price ranges and some good tourist shopping.
Antique and modern shawls, traditional
embroidery, tribal jewellery, carved wood and
antique or reproduced coins are sold along the
main street. This is the last Swati village,
offering interesting two-and three-day walks up
to the mountain villages... ask in the bazaar in
Muambar Khan's shop for a guide. North of Madyan
is Swat Kohistan where walking is not
recommended without an armed guard.
The central mosque at Madyan has carved
wooden pillars with elegant scroll capitals, and
its mud-plastered west wall is covered with
relief designs in floral motifs. Both bespeak
the Swati's love of decoration.
Bahrain is ten kilometres north of Madyan and
only slightly higher, at about 1,400 meters
(4,500 feet). It is another popular riverside
tourist resort, with bazaars worth exploring for
their handicrafts. Some of the houses have
carved wooden doors, pillars and balconies.
These show a remarkable variety of decorative
motifs, including floral scrolls and bands of
ornamental diaper patterns almost identical to
those seen on Buddhist shrines and quite
different from the usual Muslim designs.
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Kalam, 29 kilometres (18 miles) from Bahrain
and about 2,000 meters (6,800 feet) above sea
level, the valley opens out, providing rooms for
a small but fertile plateau above the river. In
Kalam the Ushu and Utrot rivers join to form the
Swat river. Here, the metalled road ends and
shingle road leads to the Ushu and Utrot
valleys.
From Matiltan one gets a breath-taking view
of the snow-capped Mount Falaksir 5918 meters
(19,415 ft.), and another un-named peak 6096
meters (20,000 ft.) high. PTDC offers motel
accommodation in Miandam, Kalam and Besham. for
booking please contact: PTDC Motels, Ground
Floor, Block 4-B, Markaz F-7, Bhitai Road,
Islamabad. Tel: (92) (51) 111 555 999.
Ushu,
Utrot and Gabral Valleys
The valleys of Ushu, Utrot and Gabral beyond
Kalam, constitute some of the most beautiful
parts of Swat. There is good trout fishing
around Utrot. Foreign tourists are advised to
contact the local police authorities at Kalam
before preceding to the valleys of Ushu, Utrot
and Gabral.
Swat is ideal for camping, trekking and
mountaineering. Permits are necessary, and can
be obtained from the Tourism Division,
Government of Pakistan, Markaz F-7, Islamabad.
The waters of the Swat River around Kalam and
in the valleys of Ushu and Gabral abound in
brown trout. Fishing licenses must be obtained
from the office of the Assistant Commissioner,
Fisheries at Madyan and Kalam.
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