It was in the scorching month of May that we were given an opportunity by our university (University of Hyderabad) to go on an educational tour to Thatta.

Due to the hot weather of both Hyderabad and Thatta, most of the students were reluctant to undertake the excursion, but the curious and adventurous among us were not bothered by the weather or any other hurdle. Seeing my enthusiasm, some of my friends also showed interest and soon I, my friends and some faculty members set about planning the excursion.

A historically significant city Thatta, also called Thatto by the locals, is located 98 kilometres from Karachi, and about 100 kilometres to the southwest of Jamshoro. It has a 2,000-year-old history and was the capital of Sindh for four centuries and the hub of Islamic arts.

Our bus left for Thatta at about 930am from the old campus and it took more than two hours to reach our first destination, the Makli Hills necropolis, where we were welcomed by countless beggars.

Makli Hills give a glimpse of Thatta`s civilised and culturally rich past. It is considered as the largest ancient graveyard in the world, spread over an area of 15sq.km, and with numerous graves of commoners and dignitaries such as kings, queens, scholars, chiefs, saints, etc.

The unique aspect of these stone graves is that the designs carved on them have been done keeping in mind the gender difference. Tomb pieces of women`s graves display designs of jewellery, while men`s graves bear horses and riders. Each emperor tried to make the graves of his era more attractive than those of previous dynasties.

We shared our knowledge about the necropolis with each other, however, there was supposed to be a tourist guide available for providing us in-depth details about the history of this unique spot but he was sadly missing. Anyways, we had great fun as we cooled ourselves with kulfi.

After spending an hour at Makli Hills, our bus took us to the impressive Shah Jehan Mosque. This mosque is representative of Muslim and Mughal architecture and was built in AD1647 by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jehan. Its construction was completed in three years and was elaborately decorated with white, dark brown and blue tiles. Shah Jehan Mosque consists of 92 domes supported with arches so that the sound of the prayer could be heard in all parts of the large mosque without the use of loudspeakers.

The mosque has five doors including a magnificent main gate. Here we were allowed to stay for only half an hour by our tour organiser. Besides offering prayers, one can also enjoy cold lassi and some other edible items at this spot.
Next we proceeded to the magnificent and gorgeous Keenjhar Lake, where we made a two-hour long stop. This lake is situated to the north of Thatta, about 80kms from Jamshoro. About 20 miles long and six miles wide, the lake has boating facilities and many fishermen live in the boats too.

There were a lot of visitors there, some enjoying rides on the motorboat while others just hanging around the lakeside, cooling themselves with cold drinks, ice cream and even tea! As we ordered tea at a restaurant, the power went off and we came out to enjoy our tea and snacks in the open and airy environment.

At Keenjhar, air-conditioned cottages are also available for overnight stay. However, as we were not supposed to stay there so we left Thatta at 6pm, after having lots of fun and taking away lovely memories in our hearts.