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Cheelim Jusht FESTIVAL, CHAITRAL, PAKISTAN
Cheelim Jusht FESTIVAL, CHAITRAL, PAKISTAN
Cheelim Jusht FESTIVAL, CHAITRAL, PAKISTAN
Key Information:
Tour Duration: 13 - 15 day(s)
Group Size: 2 - 20 people
Destination(s): Pakistan
Specialty Categories: Off-road Adventure Archeology/History
Season: May
Spring is welcomed to the valleys with girls singing and dancing on the roofs for
the Kirik Pushik, the festival of the first flower blooming. In spring women are
allowed to enter the restricted upper valleys, with the Siu Wajik rite, in which a
girl crushes three walnuts as an offering on the boundary bridge.
Joshi, the main spring festival, is held in May. All the houses and the temple of
the goddess Jeshtak are decorated with walnut branches and flowers, and milk is
distributed to all the villagers.
Dressed in new clothes, the women dance while the elder men sing songs of epic
and romance. All the fairies in the hills gather, it is said, to watch the Kalasha
wave walnut branches in time to the chanting of sacred Gatch (asking for
abundant milk) by the religious leaderAfter this festival is announced people
store milk in their barns where they keep their livestock. Those who have big
flocks and milk in greater quantity, they do not start storing their milk from the
first day. Those who have small flocks they start storing their milk from the first
day to the tenth day. After ten days are completed women and children go to
bring the yellow flowers ( bisha push) from the pastures. These flowers bloom
when no other flower blooms in the area. The next day early in the morning these
flower are put in the doors of all the houses and barns and the temple doors. All
the doors of the buildings owned by Kalash are decorated with these flowers. On
this same day the festival starts, this day’s celebration is called “c’irik pipi”.
Which means, “drink the milk.” The words of this phrase are the polite accents of
the two words “c’ir” milk “pi” drink. In this festival women sing the melodious
song “para para may bayaa zhoshi gos’t’ para c’irik pipi o shishamond hawaw.”
Which means “I went to my brothers barn on the festival of zhoshi and look it is
the time of c’irik pipi.” This meaning is what the words say but it can have
another meaning too. Some of the songs sung in festivals have funny meanings
some times they are about love. So women go from one barn to the other and
collect milk for home. Every village has its own festival of the day. The rich
family who can afford to make cheese, they give cheese whole the villagers. After
this festival they take the goats to the higher pastures.We celebrate the arrival of
spring season with new hopes and aspiration.
ITINERARY:
Day 01 Islamabad.
Morning arrive Islamabad, meet and transfer to hotel to centrally air conditioned
hotel Blue Sky. Evening city tour of Islamabad and Rawalpindi, and a shopping trip to
Supper Market to explore the market for carpets and rugs gathered here from Iran,
Afghanistan, China, Uzbekistan etc, over night at hotel.
Day 02 Peshawar .
.
Day 3: Chitral
Early morning drive to Chitral passing through scenic valleys and mountains. By this
moment we shall be in the Hindukush mountain ranges after passing through lowari
pass. Overnight at hotel.
Day 4: Chitral
Visit Kalash Valley and meet Alexander’s decendents. Visit the local houses to
observe the life style of Kalash tribe. Overnight at hotel.
Day 06:
Day 7 :
Enjoy Festival
Day 8:
Day9:
Swat – Departure early morning and visit Gandhara & Hindu Shahi ruins on way
Day10:
Swat – Departure Late morning for Kalamand visit Madyan in way.
Day11:
Swat – Visit Ushu Valley and move back to Swat by evening.
Day12:
Islamabad - Departure via Shangla Pine Forest and Abbottabad. End of Services
Cost Includes:
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