CLIFTON BEACH .............. calmness, serenity ,tranquility

Karachi is largest city of Pakistan . A hustling , bustling metropolis of the 1960s , 70s and 80s .........with its financial district across Saddar and MA Jinnah Rd , Karachi University campus around the western tip and beautiful Arabian Sea coastal strip situated at the southern part of town . Clifton Beach is a beautiful serene place with gray waves , shiny sandy beach  located in one of the most upscale neighborhood of the city . Clifton is a word derived from English language which means " city by the cliff" .One can see colorfully decorated camels and camel walas , teenagers dressed up in denims enjoying an evening walk , kids collecting sea shells and also burqa clad ladies enjoying the beautiful sunset at sea. City of Karachi has been badly affected by secretarial violence in the last two decades but still today Clifton Beach and other beaches in town are the place for relaxation for the people especially on weekends . They arrive in suzuki vans , shiny cars or rickshaws to spend few hours of walk on the beach or eat the spicy corn and cotton candy sold by " thela walas" .
In the last decade many new restaurants like the Village have been constructed serving delicious Pakistani cuisine . In one corner lies the fast food chain Macdonalds . Dolmen Mall a high rise mall has been constructed few years back near the beach .  Across from the beach some new car dealerships , designer stores and restaurants are located. The new Cineplex movie theatre near the Clifton Beach is always filled with people showing Hollywood and Bollywood blockbusters . Sea view and Darakhahah Apartments are located across from the beach . The prestigious Karachi Grammar School opened its new campus in this area  few years back . Many upscale country clubs like Golf Club, Marina Club are also located in this area.

POINTS TO PONDER

POINTS TO PONDER
( open letter to Ms Umaira Ahmed )

Madam I have watched a wonderful Urdu Dramas based on your novels (  SHEHER e ZAAT) which were excellent I am currently watching Zindagi Gulzar Hey which again is superb I wait for the new episode every Friday . I have two points I want to discuss in response to your story lines :

1. I have noticed ......All female characters dressed up in western clothes are quite arrogant or rather " full of themselves " , they live in their own world just simply don't care about others around them . As a matter of fact they are " quite spoiled"
Madam it is true that our culture and our world has such people but according to my humble opinion not every girl dressed up in pants and shirt is a " brat " and every girl wrapped in a chaddar is a " neak parveen"( extremely nice ). Madam there are many ladies who dress up in western clothes drive expensive cars but have a heart of gold are nice and respectful to not only those around them but they also help others in need . Also some girls who wear shalwar Kameez all the time are very conniving and jealous . Please try not to label some one .

2. I have also noticed that mothers who are " rich " are too busy in their lives don't care about their husbands and kids ....,.are just busy partying ! Madam I have seen thousands of moms in Pakistan and also abroad who are very involved in their kids lives , are good wives , also take care of the house and yes they also belong to the " upper middle class"
Kindly consider that point too " it is true" that moms who work day and night to make ends meet are simply " great " but the ones who are financialy stable yet taking care of kids and family 24/7 are not at all " worthless "!!
Everyone has different circumstances in life and it is one" s duty to live the best in his or her circumstances .

SCIENTIFIC ROMANCE

People have heard many love stories from Romeo and Juliet to Antony and Cleopatra but few know
 about the turn of the century " love story" of Marie and Pierre Curie . How two people from different worlds came together  and produced some extraordinary discoveries in the fields of Physics and Chemistry .  They spent much of their careers studying radioactivity .They established ; the heavy element thorium which was radioactive and discovered two new elements namely polonium and radium. Polonium was named after Marie " s native country Poland .

In 1891, 24 year old Marie Sklodowska, moved from Warsaw to Paris, where she found work in the laboratory of Pierre Curie, a scientist engaged in research on heat,crystals and magnetism. She was daughter of two teachers when her mom died Marie gave up her education to support her older sister . She had to travel to France in pursuit of higher education as in her native country women were not allowed to attend Universities during that time . She worked day and night at the Laboratory in Paris which   caught the eye of the Laboratory in charge and scientist Pierre Curie .Their interest in science brought them close to each other. They fell in love and later married . They took their honeymoon on bicycles. They expanded the periodic table, discovered two new elements . The Currie's  recognized radioactivity as an atomic property, marking the start  of a new scientific era. They won the Nobel Prize making Marie Curie the first woman to receive the Nobel Prize . They opened up a new lab with the prize money.  In 1906, Pierre was killed in a accident. Marie continued their work alone. She took his job at Sorbonne 's dept of Physics. She became the first female professor at Sorbonne. She  won a second Nobel Prize in 1911 in Chemistry , she was the first person to receive two Noble Prizes.
Marie Curie laid the foundation of Radium Institute in Warsaw ,Poland in 1925 . She created the International Commission of Intellectual Cooperation of the League of Nations . She also wrote an autobiography of her husband named "Pierre Curie" . She died in 1934 from aplastic anemia contracted by her long term exposure to radiation . Marie and Pierre Curie's daughter and son -in -law also received Nobel Prize for their work in the field of Chemistry. 

DR MANZOORUDDIN AHMED ........learned professor and family patriarch

Dr Manzooruddin Ahmed was a famous Pakistani scholar and  former Vice Chancellor of Karachi University the largest University of Pakistan.He was born in Sultanpur India did Masters in Diplomacy from Allahabad University , India . He was among the first few Pakistanis who obtained a  PhD degree in Political Science from Columbia University, NY in 1969 . Dr Ahmed also served as the professor of Pakistan Studies/Political Science through the prestigious Quaid E Azam Chair at Columbia University ."Quaid E Azam Chair" was awarded to him by then Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. He later on served as professor at University of Alberta. Dr Ahmed served as Dean of Arts and later Vice Chancellor of Karachi University . He along with few other notable personalities established the Fatima Jinnah Dental College in Karachi , Pakistan in the year 1992. He wrote many books about Pakistan it's history and it's political destiny. His last book was published few years back . Dr Manzooruddin Ahmed passed away  on 27th Dec 2012 in Syracuse, NY.

He was not only a highly qualified scholar but he was also a great family man who loved his children, brothers,sisters,nieces and nephews dearly. Dr Ahmed was the first one in his family who acquired a Doctorate degree from a highly recognized international institute. He was a family patriarch who was a beacon of inspiration and source of encouragement for everyone around him.