SANYEEN INTERNET
Chapter 11: Paris 1
Paris
Chapter 8
When Adam and Daowd had
Italian Carta d'Identita they were stunned and traumatized that they were so
real.
With their photos no one can
judge that they were counterfeit and photos were being change. The advantage
of this Carta d'Identita was
that it was valid for five years because its expiry date was after five years.
It has
been three years since they
left their home. Until yet they never travelled in a proper way. With this
Carta
d'Identita there was no
problem during travel. They prepared their baggage. This was first time that
they were
travelling without any agent.
They were very petrified and frightened of police because in the evening there
is
a lot of control at the
Arezzo railway station.
They bought their tickets
earlier because this leaves from Firenze for Gare di Lyon and arrives there in
the
morning. For this train you
have to reserve the couchette as well. It's called berth as well. They were
being
explained everything about
travel. How they will get to Florence from Arezzo and then they will have to
change the train. They will
have to give their tickets and Carta d'Identitas to train's responsible than
they can
go to their couchettes either
stay there or sleep. It depends upon them.
Both of them at Arezzo
railway station at seven "O" clock in the evening. Takmeel Banday,
Lala Bashir and
some other Pakistanis came
with them to say Allah Hafiz (in the hands of god). Train was going to leave so
they punched their tickets
said Allah Hafiz (in the hands of god) and took their bags descended from stair
and
arrived at the binario
(platform) where their train was coming. As usual their train was late half an
hour. It's an
Italian custom that their
trains are late quite often and it happens sometime the train come before time.
Same
is the case with buses. It
was astonishing for them. They were Pakistani. In Pakistan the trains and buses
are
pejorative than Italy.
They were not worried about
this that their train is late they were worried if they will be copped than it
will be
a big problem. The second
reason was that it was quite possible they will miss train for Paris.
Just in case they booked
their couchettes in separate compartments. Sometime when ticket checker come
and
see three or four foreigners
in same compartment. He suspect and keep an eye on them, although his job is to
check tickets not to control
them that they are clandestine. His job is check that if someone is sitting in
wrong
cabin or he doesn't find his
place. This is the job of border police to check documents.
They were drowned in their
thoughts abruptly Firenze's (Florence) train came at platform no four. They
entered in train hurriedly.
They entered in second class compartment with their bags. When they sat they
felt
little bit relaxation and
tranquillity. They were worried as well until and unless they shouldn't arrive
at their
destiny. This dunkey (crossing
boarder by illegal means) was different from other dunkies. They were their
own agents. This was first
time that they were free. There was no tension and apprehension of anyone.
Train
started with jerk and yank.
Adam started looking outside habitually. It was slightly dark outside but he
was
able to see everything
easily. It was a regional train which stops at all major stations. First stop
was
Montevarchi, than Sangiovani
Valdarno, Figline and Campo di Marte came respectively. The last stop of train
was Firenze Santa Maria
Nouvella. At this station had to change for Paris. They descended from train
and
took their bags and entered
in McDonald. They ordered fish fillet burger. According to McDonald's custom
they had to wait for this
burger because other burger are ready but this burger they have to prepare.
This
burger is famous in Muslim
community and in white meat eater's community. For Muslim it's halal kind of
burger. After a little while
a slim girl came at the counter and yelled, "Fillet fish burger".
Adam went at the
counter and that slim girl
gave him two paper bags. Adam was expecting that she will bring these burgers
in a
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tray. Both of them felt very
bizarre and wacky. Adam said in Italian, "si po mangare qui"? Can we
eat here?
The slim girl said, "Si,
si certo".yes yes why not, then she started looking at next customer who
was standing
behind him.
It's Italian custom or
culture that they don't give respect to customer. Treating customers like this
isn't their
fault. As a matter of fact
seventy percent things which are related to fine art are in Italy. So tourism
is their
industry. You can take the
example of Pisa tower. There is no comparison. Millions of people come to Italy
to
see Pisa tower. It doesn't
matter its December or June, April or October. Some tourists say about Italy
that
"every stone has
history" and there is no doubt about it.
They took their paper bags
and went to the upper part of McDonald and found a seat in the corner. There
was
a monitor which had trains
times. They were looking at them while they were eating. They still had
sometime.
Santa Maria Nouvella has
sixteen platforms but platform number ten, eleven a and eleven b are reserved
for
Eurostar, Eurocity, euro
night and intercity as well. There is a bus service from Firenze for Europe
train's
travel is more comfortable.
Both of them finished their
so called meal and came at platform no eleven, their train was there. They
searched for their seats and couchettes.
In every cabin there were three couchettes at one side and three were
on other. Adam found his
berth and daowd started searching his berth and after little search he found
his
berth. Hey left their
belongings at their couchettes. Daowd came in Adam's cabin and they started
planning
about their future. In these
three years they were habitual of everything. Now there wasn't anything strange
for
them. In the beginning the
things which were annoying for them and they used to cry inwardly now these
things were ordinary for
them. Daowd said, "Adam that's enough. As soon i will reach Paris. I will
find some
girl and marry her. Otherwise
i will do paper marriage".
Adam said, "What about
Bubbly".
Daowd said, "Bubby is
Bubbly. Anyway Islam allows to have for wives".
Adam said, " there are
other things in Islam like one should pray five times a day, shouldn't eat
pork, shouldn't
drink alcohol, shouldn't do
fornication or adultery or having sex without marriage but why we men only
remember only one thing that
Islam allow us that we can have four wives".
Daowd said, "Adam
please, no more arguments and discussion. We will have to change our philosophy
about
life. You tell until how long
we will be running to and fro for agents".
While they were discussing
the people who have their seats in their cabin they were coming. So they
dismiss
there meeting. Daowd stood up
and left him alone but Adam came along with him and gripped his shoulder
and said, "So you are
cross and snappy".
Then daowd said, "No not
at all. It's not like that. People are coming to their seats so it isn't nice i
occupy their
place. I felt it should be
awkward. Let's go we will stand at the entrance of the train. We will talk and
discuss
about our future".
They stood in the corner and
started chatting.
As train left the platform
trains ticket checker came and asked for everyone's reservations. Adam and
daowd
gave their tickets,
reservations and documents. He took their tickets and everything which they
have given
him and he has given them a
token. They were on the brink of life and death, until unless they were not at
their destiny. Anyway they
forgot after a while. It has been long time that the train was running very
fast.
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Train took her first stop.
Adam read the sign board. It was bologna railway station. Some passenger left
the
train and some entered in the
train. Train left the Bologna railway station. Train stopped at Parma. Adam and
daowd were still standing at
the entrance door. Train was moving and suddenly train stopped with jolt. This
was Piacenza railway station.
A girl entered in the train where doawd and Adam were standing. That girl said
something in broken Italian.
Adam didn't get what she was saying. Adam responded her in way that he wanted
to get rid of here, "no
capito Italiano" means I don't understand Italian, although he knew enough
Italian. Then
she said, "Do you speak
English"?
Adam said, "Yes".
As she heard this, she asked
another question, "Would you like to tell me where this cabin is? I am
going to
Paris".
Adam said, "why
not".
Adam read the cabin number
and said, "We are in the same cabin".
"Thank you very much.
Are you going to pairs as well"?
Adam, "yes, me and my
friend we are going to Paris. My name is Adam Khan Chughtai and he is daowd
ansari".
Lady, "my name is Tcknip
Malcovich. I am from Croatia".
Adam, "we are
Pakistani".
Tcknip: "Pakistan but
which city; Karachi, Lahore or Islamabad"?
Adam got shocked that she is from
Croatia and she knows about Pakistan. Adam heard about Croatia in
Alliance Francaise when he
was studying French there. There professor used to tell them about Yugoslavia
and Ceckoslavia that they
used to live in tribes and later they were divided into many small countries.
Adam, "we are from
Rawalpindi, its thirteen kilometres far from our capitol. But for me the most
shocking
and flabbergasting thing is
that that you know about Pakistan. I mean you know about Karachi, Lahore and
Islamabad".
Tcknip, "i am not
ignorant and unaware like Italians. I know many languages. Italians only speak
Italian and
other than if they need to
speak other language they will start looking here and there. Their general
knowledge
is very bad as well".
Adam, "Italy is very
beautiful. There history, literature, architecture, paintings above all Italian
girls. God has
given them stunning and
gorgeous beauty. I think god wanted to write poetry with natural beauty and he
selected Italy".
Tcknip, "Adam you are
obsessed with Italian beauty, i would rather say infatuated".
Adam wanted to change the
subject, "do you study, or you are going to France for job".
Tcknip, "in fact i have
done masters in German literature. I could have been the professor of
literature and
language but i didn't like
this job. Anyway i am going to France for job".
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Adam was very surprised of
her answer because he hasn't asked what have you studied. Anyway Adam
continued conversation and
said, "Which is your favourite writer in German literature"?
Tcknip, "you must know
him, Goethe. But i like Günter Grass as well".
Adam, "i like him as
well. i have read tin drum in English. There is no doubt tin drum is very good
novel".
Tcknip, "what you do?
You work or study".
Adam invented in his brain's
hard disc some plans that what he should say. It should be lie and he doesn't
feel
guilty conscious. Before this
he lied to Nadir Balouch, Mehjabeen Qazalbash and Globjatnikof and he was for
sure that he will not see
them again. So he said, "I was studying philosophy and i have done diploma
in
French language and
literature. I am studying in Paris and my friend is here for launch his
garments. He is for
marketing and launching his
product. We were visiting Italy. Now we are going back".
Tcknip, "that's very
good. So you can speak French, vous parlez francaise. She said in French that
you speak
French"
Adam: "bien sur et
vous". (Off course and you)
Tcknip, "no i can't
speak French. I speak German fluently. Ich spreche Deutch sehr gut". She
said in German
that i can speak German
fluently.
Adam, "why you are going
to Paris"?
Tcknip, "in fact i have
some friends who live in Paris. I am going to there to se e them. They are
painting
vendors. They sell the
paintings of famous painters. I thought that i should do this. You can make a
lot of
money, like we sell famous
paintings and artistic master pieces from all around the world like French,
Italian,
and Dutch and from South
America".
Adam asked, "for example
what kind of paintings, realism, surrealism, impressionism, frescoes, gothic,
Dadaism, romanticism or
renaissance paintings".
Tcknip, "you asked me so
many questions in one phrase. To be very honest with you i know nothing about
paintings because we sale
imitations not real one. Like Cezanne, Renoir, Gaugan, Van Gogh, Frida Koehlo,
Klee, Miro, Rothko, Matisse
etc. In fact the painter who existed hundred or two hundred years before. You
can say that the painters of
19th and 20th century".
Adam, "I know little bit
about renaissance painters like Leonardo da Vinci, Caravaggio, Giotto,
Raffaello and
Michelangelo etc".
Tcknip, "Adam do you
have painters in Pakistan because as i have heard and according to the best of
my
knowledge that Pakistan is an
Islamic country. Islam doesn't allow figurative art specially images of human
being or you can rather say
that living beings".
Adam, no...No, it's not like
that. Its true Islam doesn't allow figurative art but it isn't true that we don't
have
painters. We have fine art
colleges, Where you can study painting, sculpture, ceramic art and fabric
painting
art or in a commercial way
textile designing. By the way for your kind information our painter Sadqian,
dedicated his whole life for
painting and sculpture. He was great calligrapher than we had Abdul Rehman
Chughtai, Ustad Allah Buksh,
Azur Zubi, Gul Jee and Amen Gul Jee. My favourite Pakistani painting is
Ustad Allah Buksh's
Talism-e-Hoshruba. We have a very famous calligrapher Rasheed Butt".
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Tcknip, i didn't know that
apart from fine art. What you think about Pakistani politics. I have read about
your
Prime Minister Benazir
Bhutto. She has very elegant and graceful personality. She is beautiful as
well. I heard
her she was being expelled.
Or someone force her to leave".
Adam, "to be very honest
with you i know nothing about politics".
While they were discussing
train stopped at some railway station. Adam had a look. It was Torino railway
station. There was little bit
cold outside. Adam said to Tcknip, "let's go to our cabin".
She said, "Yes why not.
I am tired and weary and i am feeling little cold as well".
Both of them went to their
cabin and they opened their cabin's door very quietly and went to their
couchettes.
Tcknip slept straight away
but Adam wasn't sleeping. He started thinking about everything. It has been
three
years since he left Pakistan.
The time passed like a flicker of eye. It was like yesterday. Whenever they
crossed the border illegally,
he always thought that he will be copped they will send him back. What will be
the scene?
He met many people, Najma
begum, Nadia Behram Kharal, Mehjabeen Qazalbash, Globjatnikof, Friedrich
and now Tcknip. Everyone has
his one has his own story either he is man or woman. Everyone was telling
him a new fable, tale and
parable. For him this was a kind of knowledge. Maybe this is called
anthropology.
He was waiting when border
police will come and check them. The unsheathed sword which is hanging above
their head either it will
fall on the floor or it will cut them into two pieces. Adam was trying to
convince
himself that he is not
sleeping but he didn't know he slept.
As train is moving or
running, with train jerks and jolts some people get sleep and as train stops
they wake up.
But there are many kinds of
travellers. Some people sleep like stone and they don't wake up if you beat
drum
but some people wake up with
a little noise. Adam wasn't one of them who wake up with little noise. Train
stopped with jerk. Adam woke
to use the wash room, in fact he wanted to check which station is this. If it's
not railway station than it
should be small railway station at the border and train stopped for border
police to
check the passengers. He
tried to read the name of railway station. When he saw outside, the whole
scenario
was changed. As he read Lyon,
He felt very happy inwardly. He was unable to speak. His voice was blocked
in his throat. He was so
happy that one can't express that happiness in words. They were in France
without
any trouble. He thought that
Carta d'Identita helped them. He came to his couchette and lay on his
couchette.
He read a lot about France.
This was the first country, he knew their language. All of a sudden a thought
arises
in his minds that if he will
meet with Mehjabeen Qazalbash by chance than he forgot about it. First of all
it
has been three years and
secondly Paris is big city that's what he knew. He was unable to get some sleep
before because he was
frightened and now because of happiness. Then he went to the entrance door
where he
was standing before. Usually
this place is reserved for smokers but there is no condition, anyone can stand
there.
It was becoming brighter
outside. People started coming one by one. They were carrying there towels on
their
shoulders and a tooth brush
in their hand. There was and is an always small washroom which is enough for
these things like brushing
teeth, shaving and rinses your face. They were using it and were going back to
their
seats. Train's speed was
increased; it was because the rail track of France is better than Italy. There
are other
reasons as well. Italy is
hilly and mountainous area. The plain is uneven and there are lots of tunnels
in Italy.
Their rail track or not
updated as well. On the other hand France has some mountainous rail track but
it's not
that complicated and their
rail track is not better but the best.
Adam started looking at the
map which was fixed in train. He found that their next stop was Dijon and the
next stop was Paris. As he
was reading this someone hold his hand on his shoulder. He screamed and thought
that he has been copped. Then
he turned around, he was ticket checker. He had his Carta d'Identita. He has
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given him his Carta
d'Identita and ticket than he said, "dove tuo amico"? Adam took his
card and ticket and
said, "In suo
cabino" in his cabin. Adam didn't know that word cabin is masculine or
feminine so he said
cabino instead of cabina.
After hearing this he said, "va bene" That's good.
When Dijon railway station
arrive lots of passenger left get off from the train. As train stopped doawd
woke
up. Anyway he slept well. He
came to entrance door. First thing he did he lit his cigarette. While he was
smoking he glances at Adam
and said, "Yar (friend) you are very weird person. When you talk with some
girl
you forget everything. What's
going on around you? I got bored and weary of your conversation so i went to
my couchette and had
slept". Adam squeezed his hand slightly and said, "You know my jan
(dear) that we are
in France. After a little
while we will be in Paris".
Daowd said, "Now this is
the real Europe. Now you will see we will have job and a lot of money. Now if
god's grace will be with me,
i will fulfil my dreams".
"Can i have one
cigarette"?
Adam turned around, Tcknip
was standing. Daowd said, "why not".
He presented his Marlboro
cigarettes pack to her and she took one cigarette. Daowd stepped towards her
and
lit her cigarette as well.
She said, "thank you" and started playing with her dishevelled hairs.
During travel
you don't sleep well. Some
people get headache or migraine. It depends; some resolve this problem after
having slept and some people
get rid of this pain with the help of cigarette. Some people drink coffee or
tea.
Sometime aspirin or
paracetamol gives you relief. Both of them are drugs but aspirin is more
dangerous than
paracetamol.
The people who smoke
cigarette they have their own world. Even they are from any part of the world,
either
they know each other's
language or not. When they will have the desire of having cigarette, if they
haven't got
any cigarette, they will ask
anyone for the cigarette, if the person is a smoker. They willn't even think
the
person whom they are asking
for the cigarette is not from their country, religion.
When nicotine and caffeine
enters in your blood than it's difficult to get rid of it, it becomes like a
drug. It's
very strange tea, coffee and
coca cola carries the same properties like cigarette but drinking coca cola,
coffee
and tea is not a sin but
smoking cigarette is considered as curse.
Although nicotine, caffeine,
cocaine, morphine, heroin all of them are alkaloid. Even caffeine is more
dangerous than nicotine. But
some people don't like seeing rings or spirals of cigarette's smoke but they
like
sipping tea. One should
appreciate that person who invented cigarette.
Tcknip shake his shoulder,
"what are you thinking? Adam you don't smoke"?
Adam, "no, i never
smoked in my life. I have only one addiction that is tea. I am dying for
it".
Tcknip, "you can drink
coffee".
Adam, "no, i will have
aspirin or paracetamol".
Train's speed was getting
slower and slower. Adam recognized that train was entering in environs of
Paris.
Ticket checker was searching
daowd and lastly he found him and gave him his ticket and Carta d'Identita.
Adam took these things
swiftly and said, thank you".
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Tcknip wrote her address on a
small piece of paper and gave it to Adam and said, "This is my address in
Paris.
I am going to stay with my
friends. Whenever you have great desire to see Museè di Louvre, you phone me.
I have written my mobile my
mobile number as well. I don't it function in Paris or not. You give me your
number. If i will find time,
I will phone you".
Adam was looking here and
there because he lied to her. "At the moment i haven't got any phone
number but i
will phone you".
As the train's speed was
becoming slower and slower Adam and daowd were getting upset they were happy as
well. They were being told
that Paris is the land of fairies. The streets and roads are made of glass and
mirror.
There is special mist in the
air of Paris. It's not even days, nights glitter and shine like daylight.
People don't
sleep. Word Paris has its own
signification. It's the city of knowledge and wisdom, literature and art. There
is
Eiffel tower as well.
Once upon time daowd's mother
bought a talcum powder which was made by ponds. It had a very soft and
puffy puff in it. Daowd's
mother liked this powder's box and its puff as well. She never threw this and
she
used to buy some cheap talcum
powder and fill this up. Its puff was very fluffy but it was a little bit worn
after
using it a lot. That ponds
powder box has three names written on it; Paris, London and New York. It's
quite
possible that daowd created a
dream that he will see these three cities which are written on this powder box.
He was nearly in Paris. He
was feeling that he is arriving in Europe first time. He started thinking this
is the
real Europe he dreamt since
long because Greece and Italy he had seen. There is no doubt that both of them
were in Europe but they were
not like the way he thought about Europe. Paris was something really different.
Train stopped with jerk and
jolt. It was very big railway station. Gare de Lyon. People started getting off
from
the train. Adam and daowd
were not in hurry. They were waiting for Tcknip that she should go first than
they
will get off from the train
because they weren't willing that she should know that where they are going.
They
knew that train's friendships
ends in train. Both of them were in this dilemma, all of a sudden Tcknip said
"see
you" and got off from
the train and she insisted for the phone as well while she was leaving.
Gare de Lyon was a new world
for Adam and Daowd. They never travelled in metro before. They heard about
Rome's metro but never had
any chance to see it or use it. At the railway station all the sign boards were
in
French language. Adam was
able to read but these all names were new for him. Gare de Lyon is old
fashioned
railway station but it's very
famous. There is wonderful network of underground system. Gare de Lyon is
famous for metro no 1. It
starts from Chateau de Vincennes and ends at Grande l'Arch de la Defence.
French
metro service started with
this metro no 1 in 1849.
Apart from metro there is
train called RER A (name of another train for environs of Paris) which starts
from
Boissy St.Leger and ends at
Saint Germaine-en-Laye.
Adam was standing in queue to
buy two tickets. As his turn came he said in French, "Je voudrais deux
billets,
s'il vous plait" (i
would like to have two tickets please). The person who was sitting behind the
window, he
got shocked that a foreigner
is speaking French grammatical correct. He knew that Adam wasn't French. He
gave him two green tickets
and gave him rest.
Adam and Daowd hadn't seen
tickets like this before. People used to tell them in Italy how underground or
metro works, how to change
the metro to get another one but they forgot everything. Everything was removed
from his brain's screen. Adam
thought it would be better if he ask in English instead of French. It was very
big
railway station and there was
hustle and bustle at the railway station. Adam asked to one person,
"excuse me;
we would like to go
Strasbourg St. Denis. Could you please tell us that which metro will go
there"?
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That person, he opened a
small metro map and started explaining them. He said you have to follow the
destination of the metro
otherwise it will be difficult for you to find the place where you are going.
He told
them take metro no 1 but you
have to be very careful that the destination should be Chateau Vincennes not la
Defence, from this metro you
will have to get off at chatalet. From chatalet you can ask someone. They took
their baggage and now they
were going towards metro no 1. They were going down by escalators and both of
them were thinking they are
born today. It's quite famous about Lahore that if you haven't seen Lahore or
you
haven't been to Lahore. You
are not born. But Adam thought about Paris that if you haven't seen Paris you
aren't born. After facing so
many disaster, calamities and catastrophes they were thinking that they are the
most experienced people of
the world.
They took towards platforms.
It was getting little hot. They saw the directions. One has the last stop
Chateau
de Vincennes and other has
the last stop la Defence. They went to la Defence's direction. They were
waiting
for the train at the
platform. At their opposite direction people were waiting for the train for
chateau de
Vincennes's direction. Metro
came and in a blink of eye the opposite direction's platform was swept like
there
wasn't anything there, Adam
felt like waves take everything with them when they hit the bank of the river.
As
they were thinking their
train came. All doors were open. Nobody waited for anyone, either the one who
was
entering or the one who was
leaving. Where they were standing, the names of all the stations where train
had
to stop were written. First
stop was Bastille. This word is Bastille but in French its written Bastille but
the
pronunciation is Basti,
French people don't pronounce double LL and E. Adam read a lot about French
revolution and Bastille has
great importance concerning French revolution. After Bastille stop there was
St.Paul and Hotel de Ville's
stop. The next stop was chatalet and that was Adam and Daowd's stop. Metro
stopped at this station and
they got off from the train because they had to change their metro. It was
still in
Adam's mind that they have to
be very careful about direct ions. He saw the small map and started looking at
the direction which was
suitable for them. There were two directions of their metro, Porte de
Clignancourt and
Porte d'Orleans. For them
Porte de Clignancourt direction was okay. They went towards that direction where
their metro was supposed to
be coming. They were waiting for metro. Adam started looking at tunnels which
were made for metros. They
were like dark caves. Trains were coming and going. After couple of minutes
their metro came as well. As
they entered in metro Adam found a seat and sat there. Suddenly he saw an old
man and he offered him his
seat but that old man didn't like it. Adam felt strange that what sort of
person he is
but while he was busy
thinking about him, their stop came and they got off from metro at Strasbourg
st.
Denis. They saw the exit
direction and took the escalators and came out from the underground station. As
they
came out, for them it was a
new world. All around them were building which were approximately hundred
years old. They must have six
or seven stories. Adam took the information about Passage Brady. At last they
found it and entered in
Passage Brady. As they enter first thing they saw was big wrought iron gate and
it
must have been open since
ages. Adam thought if someone will try to slam it or close it, it will fall. On
one
side there was bar and on the
other side there were garbage drums. I don't call them dust bins because they
were quite big. They were
walking and they saw some alcoholics, who were badly drunk. One of them was
African, two of them were
white and one of them was Indian. They were carrying their bags. While they
were
walking in this narrow
passage or you can say street Adam felt that he is walking in narrow streets of
ratta
amrall. It seemed like that
they will fall at any moment. There were Indian and Pakistani restaurants on
both
sides. At the end of the
passage there was barber shop and there was shop of designer clothes as well.
Both of them were waiting at
the barber shop and they were waiting when restaurants will be open. Where
they were waiting, he was an
Indian. He said, "You can phone your friend if you like". Adam said,
"We are
trying but he doesn't pick up
the phone so that's why we came here".
Adam and doawd were looking
outside. On both sides restaurant workers were opening the restaurants.
Passage Brady was showing a
very strange scene. Adam and daowd thought that they are moving in some
Pakistani bazaar. Boys were
setting tables and chairs in corridor. Some boys were tying their ties. One of
them
Chapter 11: Paris 1
SANYEEN INTERNET
was looking at his shoes if
they dirty or clean. Some of them were cleaning windows. A guy took out two big
brass elephants and left them
outside the restaurant and he started polishing them with brasso (a kind of
brass
polish called brasso). Next
to barber shop there was a restaurant. Adam saw the big statue of copper of
Indian
deity Laskshmi.
They saw a person was coming
towards them. They knew he was Ehtram-ul- Haque Butt. As he came closer
to them he said,
"Takmeel Banday has given you my reference". They nodded their head
in yes. He shook his
hand and said, "My name
is Ehtram-ul-Haque Butt". Adam said warmheartedly and dotingly, "my
name is
Adam khan chughtai".
Daowd introduced himself as well, "my name is daowd ansari".
Butt was feeling bizarre and
uncanny because before he has seen many Pakistanis they were malik, chaudary
and then some of them were
Khaghay, Pindhar, Qureshi but chughtai and ansari were new names for him. He
heard these names first time
in his life. He asked them, "where you from"?
They knew what it means, so
they responded collectively, "We are from Rawalpindi". He said,
"But from
which village"?
Adam responded, "We
don't have any village. We are from Rawalpindi". Now they were habitual of
these
questions so they were ready
for the next question. He said curiously and inquisitively, "but you must
have
some village where you have
your land or fields".
Daowd said, "We don't
have any village, we don't have any land or fields and we don't have any
marabay"
(land in acres and hectors).
Butt didn't felt comfortable
to ask them further questions and said, "Come with me in restaurant and
have your
breakfast. I know that you
haven't eaten anything. After breakfast if you like to stay here you can stay
here or
if you like to go home i will
take you home. I live nearby".
He took both of them in a
small restaurant. He left their baggage in a corner. Then he accompanied them
throw narrow and dark stairs
into the back side of the restaurant which was reserve for restaurant goods. It
was a kind of store and next
to store there was restaurant's kitchen. These back and hidden stairs were for
special people. He knocked
the door and they heard the voice, "who is this".
Butt said, "it's me
butt, i am with two guests". They entered in the kitchen, the person who
opened the door, he
was very slim or you can say
skinny. After opening the door he kept himself busy in cooking. He was mixing
something in a big pan with
something. Butt sahib (Mr.) said, "He is from Rawalpindi as well. He
belongs to a
village called Jhamat. His
name is Azeem Baig. We call him baig". Butt called baig and said, Baig
Sahib, they
are our guest. Prepare
breakfast for them, Cheese nans and strong tea with milk. I should go now. I
have to
prepare the hall. When you
finish your breakfast, come downstairs. Whatever you decide please tell me
either
you want to stay here or you
want to go home".
Nan formage (Cheese Nan is
Pakistanis invention in France. They never had this kind of nan before. Baig
made two nan for them and
given left over curry of last night and strong tea. They enjoyed cheese nan and
curry and tea as well. Adam
was very glad that he saw after a long time a person from Mughal's family. He
told baig, that he is Mughal
as well but he refused to accept it that chughtai and khan are Mughals as well.
He
said, "Biag, Mirza,
Meerza and Mughal are only family names which tell that a person belongs to
mughal
family". Adam said,
"Baig, Mughal, Mirza, Meerza, and Barlas are the sir names of Mughals and
Chughtai
was the name of Changhez Khan
which is Ganges khan in English. So that's why Chughtais are Mughal as
well and Khans are Mughal
too" when he saw that azeem baig was moving that big thing in a big pan,
Adam
was feeling inwardly that
this gentleman ruined the mughal history and there three hundred rule in India.
Chapter 11: Paris 1
SANYEEN INTERNET
After having their breakfast
they came downstairs in the hall. There was a little commotion in Passage
Brady.
The whole passage was
decorated with chairs, tables, statues and different gaily painted things. So
were
waiting for the customer like
in red light area prostitutes wait for their customers. In front of every restaurant
there were small sign boards
and on them it was written "menu midi 49ff (lunch for 49 French francs).
Some
boys were standing outside
the restaurants and they were hawking, "menu midi 49, menu midi 49, allez
monsieur, c'est la meilleur
restaurant dans la passage, s'il vous plait"
(Lunch menu 49 franc, come in
please. This is the best restaurant in passage). Adam didn't believe that he
was
in Paris. He started thinking
is this Paris.
Chapter 11: Paris 1
SANYEEN INTERNET
Chapter 12: Paris 2
In the afternoon butt and
both of them went towards home. Again they were standing at the platform of
metro
at Strasbourg St. Denis.
Metro came and they entered in metro. They had to change metro at Republique.
They got off at republique
stop and from there they took metro no 11. The second stop of metro no 11 was
their stop. Butt sahib said,
"Only two stops are remaining. We will have to get off at Belleville stop
than my
house is nearby".
Adam and daowd were very
curious about house where butt was staying. As they got off from metro and
came out from the metro
station. They started walking on the road. Adam got shocked that at the brink
of
pavement there were small
pieces of clothes. The material was like jute clothes. With small patches the
water
was coming out and it was
clear crystal water. Anyhow Adam didn't ask any question. Italy was very
beautiful
but Paris has its own beauty.
They were walking on a wide road but all of a sudden they entered in a small
alley way. Than after couple of
minutes they entered in a building and started ascending stairs of that
building.
They smell clamminess and
damp on the railing of the stairs. Adam touched the grill but as his hand went
towards grill he felt
clamminess and he removed his hand swiftly. There was weird pong and stink in
the
stairs. As they were
ascending the stairs they smelt this reek and odour. At last they arrived at
the last floor.
They thought it must be a big
house of three or four rooms. When they arrived in front of apartment they saw
ten or twelve pair of shoes
of different kinds. Butt wanted to open the door but the door was open. Someone
yelled from inside,
"come in Butt. You are with guests". They entered inside the flat.
Butt sahib entered in the
bathroom and Adam started
observing the room. In French language this kind of flat or apartment is call
attique. This means the last
floor flat and usually they have inclined windows and the roof is very low.
Usually you can find these
kinds of flats on low rent. This room had roof like, he used to draw in his
drawing
book when he was in school.
The roof was very low and inclined and there were two windows in it. They
were half open. It wasn't a
room, it was like a museum. It was one bed room flat. It has kitchen, bathroom,
and
in the middle of the room
there was double bed and around the bed there were lots of decoration pieces.
There
was television, video
cassette player and audio cassette player in one corner of the room and next to
that there
were lots of video cassette.
Where the roof was ending in the middle it was divided with piece of bed sheet
and it was a nice try to make
small room in this room which was already very small. Behind the curtain there
were two mattresses. Adam
thought of big houses luminous houses in Arezzo and this was like fowl house.
When one can't have any
choice than he has to accept whatever it is, he has to suffer and bear because
this is
his own choice. Neither
Europeans force him to come to their country and live in small houses like this
ten or
more than ten person nor is
he living in such a worse condition that he should leave his country. This is
all
because he looks at others
that they have been to Europe so he decides that i should go there. This is
same like
sheep follow heard of sheep
wherever they go. Sheep doesn't even think either she is right or wrong. If
someone from someone's
village or area comes to Europe and when he goes back with sunglasses, European
clothes and credit cards. He
tells them wonderful and voluptuous stories. After hearing these stories every
young lad wants to go to
there. It doesn't matter he lives in a village or in a big city. He will sale
his land, take
loan and pay big amount to
come to Europe. When he comes here than he finds that his language, culture and
identity has been change.
Exactly same thing was happening with Adam and Daowd.
As they arrived in Paris they
felt that Paris's environment is better than Italy. People had little bit
awareness.
The person who welcomed
wholeheartedly when they came, he offered them tea and butt sahib went to bed
for siesta. Adam and daowd
went behind the curtain right at that place where there were two mattresses.
They
were very tired so in a while
they got sleep. When they woke up, there was no one in the house. You can't
name it house, it was fowl
house and they named it apartment. In every corner of the room there was
something, shirts, jeans,
socks, shoes and some tissue papers. One thing was different from Greece and
Italy.
There were different tooth brushes
and shaving machines. There were some bottles of perfumes and eau de
toilettes. Some of them were
empty and some of them were half full. One corner was for shower and next to it
there was water closet
(W.C.). Wash room was very small. It was that small that it was impossible to
stand
Chapter 12: Paris 2
SANYEEN INTERNET
straight otherwise you hit
the roof. In the room there was cooker (cooking range) and next to it was
washing
machine and wash basin, this
was for dish washing. There wasn't lacking anything. There was no trend of roti
(chapatti) making because all
of them were working in restaurant. They used to make curry of different things
and used to eat it with
baguette (its French long bread).
Both of them didn't know that
what they should do. Daowd said, "We will apply political asylum
here". Adam
said nothing. All of a sudden
they heard; someone opened the door, a young guy entered in the room. His
jeans was worn and torn from
different places. He was wearing long boots like army man but they were not
black they had beige colour
or may be camel colour. It was easily to notice that he was very tired and
weary.
As he entered he started
taking off his shoes but wanted that he should take off jeans without taking
off shoes
which was impossible. So he
took off shoes first than jeans. He said hello slightly and entered in
bathroom.
Adam and daowd didn't mind
because now they were habitual of these things. They knew that after a little
while he will ask them the
same question where you from. What's the name of your village? The guy came out
from bathroom and he was
drying his hair with towel. He was wearing track suits pyjama. He started
walking
here and there. Finally Adam
broke the ice, "could you please tell me where is onion, so i will cook
something". He said,
"No no, there is no need of this. I will cook myself".
Adam and Daowd had enough
money that they were able to stay in Paris without job, including mess, metro's
ticket and other daily
expenses. They used to speak with butt about these things that they want to pay
rent and
mess bill, this and that but
he used to refuse to take it.
Butt sahib found a job for
daowd as a dish washer and it was his duty to help chef as well. As Adam knew
French so for him he found
job as waiter. Butt sahib bound them and strictly said, "Don't tell anyone
that you
don't have documents. If
someone asks, tell him that you have Italian documents. We didn't find any job
in
Italy so we came here. Always
keep your Carta d'Identita with you. If police asks you about documents, you
show them this card. Usually
they don't check in computer. Don't be garrulous and make fun of any one. If
someone asks about you, tell
him that you are my relative and it has been many years that we are living in
Europe. Until unless you
don't get first pay, there is no need for paying anything. I will buy you
metro's pass.
When i came to Paris we used
to go to Pakistani chowk. It's the name of one corner in Strasbourg st. Denis
where Pakistani used to stand
for job and they name it Pakistani chowk. Near to this chowk there were many
brothel houses. It was kind
of red light area. This road is as busy as it was busy ten years before. This
is
famous cloth merchants and
most of merchants are Jew. They used to call us to load and unload piles of
cloths. It was same like
Pakistan, you might have seen in all big cities of Pakistan in main bazaars
masons,
painters and different
labourer wait there with their tools for job. Anyway this is history now, by
the way
Paris's atmosphere in
different". He addressed Adam, "Adam sahib, you are very lucky that
you have learnt
French in Pakistan. You can't
even imagine that people are living here from last fifteen years and they can't
speak French. Anyway this is
their lethargy". He continued his lecture and said, "Don't tell your
secret to
anyone. If you have done
matriculation you should tell that you have done graduation. Don't tell anyone
that
you left Pakistan because of
poverty and hunger. You are here to earn money. You invent any excuse that you
were being condemned of 302
(which is code of legislation if you kill someone and the sentence for that is
life
imprisonment or to be hanged
till death). Your family forced you to marry someone or you had great passion
and craze for Europe".
Adam said, "Why we need to lie"?
Butt sahib felt very bad
inwardly but he didn't show that. He said, "It's very important and
necessary. It will be
difficult for you to survive.
The people who are working in Passage Brady, most of them are relatives of
ministers, member of national
assembly (M.N.A.)'s chairman or prime minister. One is superior to other. No
one will tell you that he
belongs to ordinary or poor family. But they don't mind cleaning dishes for
3500
French francs. When they get
papers and they will go to Pakistan and they will tell everyone that they have
their own business.
Especially if someone comes from Paris people receive him like a prince. The
relatives
Chapter 12: Paris 2
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and families who don't want
to give even sleeper of their daughter. They by themselves will ask him to
marry
with their daughter. They
will flatter him. You have seen where i live. It's a small house, one bed room
flat.
Two other boys are with me.
You know how much rent i pay for this fowl's house. Two thousand five
hundred francs and if you
include gas, water and electricity bills it becomes four thousand francs.
Metro's
ticket, food stuff, clothes
this and that. I regularly send money to my family. If we don't send money to
our
families they will suffer.
The immigrants who live in European countries there life style is different
than those
immigrants who live in Arab
countries. They live in Islamic countries. If they deport them they can go
there
paying little money but if
they deport us it's nearly impossible to come back. Or they have legal
documents so
they can go yearly but for
us, it's not like that. So it's my suggestion that whenever you find an
occasion to
make papers, don't miss it.
In restaurant's field it's easy to find a girl. You must have certain things
ready all
the time. Like birth
certificate, unmarried certificate, character certificate and they should be
attested from
foreign office. You may need
these certificates and papers at any moment. Sometime due to little mistakes
you miss great chances.
Anyway i should go now. I have to start work".
In Passage Brady Adam was
standing, wearing black slack, white shirt and black tie, black shoes and he
was
hawking, "menu midi 49,
and menu midi 49. In Passage Brady from 11:30 to 14:00 they hawk like this.
There
are few people at this time
but there are some foreigners and tourists but they don't pay any attention.
When there are no customers
the guys who are standing outside the restaurants they make fun of each other.
They taunted Adam as well but
he didn't respond. In this passage there were some guys from Arezzo as well.
They used to come to this
passage for lunch because they were working in Paris. Some of them were here to
see their relatives.
In Paris people found jobs
area wise, where they belonged. People from Jhelum they found jobs in
restaurant
field. People from Sargodha
and Mandi Bhauuddin were taking contract of painting buildings. Some of them
were in electricity work.
People from Rawalpindi, Gujar Khan, Rawat and Jhamat they were in different
fields. Some of them were
salesman at Jews shops in Strasbourg st. Denis. Adam didn't find anyone from
Sindh and Baluchistan during
his stay in Europe. There must have been someone from Sindh but from
Baluchistan, it was nearly
impossible. Daowd used to clean dishes and help the big chef as well. He
stopped
crying because now he
understood that this is called Europe.
Restaurant used to be very
busy on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. In these days he used to wash piles of
dishes
and helping chef. Adam used
to do services in hall as a waiter. Both of them were getting same salary.
Sometime they used to get tip
as well. They used to go home by foot in half an hour. They used to come and
go through same route but
they were lucky that not body checked them. No asked them about documents. In
all European countries police
has right to check the documents except United Kingdom of Great Britain. In
other European countries if
police suspect, he can ask anybody for documents but in Great Britain they are
not
allowed to ask such
questions. They used to have day off on Monday.
After few months experience
both of them were expert in their departments. There was a time when dish
washing was such a curse for
daowd and now he used to wash piles of dishes quickly. Apart from dish
washing he started learning
making curries as well which were called Indian and Pakistani dishes. About
this
the head chef never helped
him. It was daowd's duty to clean kitchen after closing the restaurant. So he
used
to do this job as well.
Daowd's curiosity was to that how the head chef use spices for curries, he
wanted to
know the recipes and quantity
of spices for different curries. Daowd used to check the spice boxes where they
kept the spices and he
understood by the depth of boxes the quantity of spices used by head chef.
Daowd got
success by this trick and
head chef thought that daowd haven't learnt anything because head chef whenever
he
use spices for curries, he
never showed daowd the quantity of spices. He used to send him somewhere or ask
for cleaning some pan or pot.
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After three or four year's
hard life daowd understood very well that this is the real face of Europe. But
Adam
was still following his rules
and principles, like if you apply political asylum; its shame is disrespectful
for
your country. Paper marriage
causes you guilty conscious. At last Adam had to leave the job because of his
attitude. He used to discuss
with customers during service and the restaurant owner never liked it.
According
to him this thing wasn't good
for business. Especially on Fridays and Saturdays the owner indicated him
warned him not to do this but
this was Adam's habit. Lastly the owner spoke with butt. Adam never did this
purposely. Whenever he has
seen some space or gap during discussion, he tried to fill it up. He wanted to
clear the concept of
customer. He wasn't able to accept this that Pakistan is the part of India. Pakistan
has his
own identity and
distinctiveness. He used to make maps of Pakistan. He never liked Pakistani
politician and
its political system but he
never said anything against Pakistan. He always tried to explain everybody that
Pakistan is thousand times
better than many countries. It's independent country.
He used to start discussion
because of only one phrase when some customer used to say, "where is
Pakistan, is
it an Indian province".
These phrases were enough to start discussion. Adam used to start with these
phrases
that Pakistan is an
independent country ad it has been fifty years that this country is on the
world map. Still
lots of people don' know
that. Its same Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia that they are divided into
different
small countries, like
Makendonija (Macedonia), Jugoslavia (Yugoslavia), Bosnia Erzegovina, Hrvatska
(Croazia) slovenija
(Slovenia) and Czec Republic then Montenegro, Lithuania, Albania, Latvia,
Belarus and
Estonia.
These all are small states
and during the time of Ottoman Empire (Khilafat-e-Usmania) they were divided
into
small tribes. Since ages they
were fighting among each other. Who had power he ruled other tribe or tribes.
Adam used to start discussion
with Pakistani politics and he used end at European politics. During service
whenever he starts discussion
he did both things together service and discussion. Where ever he used end the
discussion he restart from
there. Like, he used to say that. Whoever had the power he suppressed others,
sometime Hungarian king,
sometime Romanian king, sometime Bulgarian king and sometime Austrian king.
In the 14th century when
Ottoman Empire started advancing towards these states and tribes, the Jews and
Christians just to save their
properties they became Muslim, although they were not forced by Ottoman kings.
When ottoman kings conquered
these states so according to Islam law all non Muslim had to pay tax which
was only for non Muslims and
it was called Jazia (it's a tax that provides you protection , either of your
property or life) the people
who became Muslim they were exempt of this tax. So lots of Christians and Jews
became Muslim just to save
tax. So respectively the ottoman kings, descendents they got married without
any
religious discrimination with
Christian and Jew girls. On one side it played important role politically.
Like Sultan Orian married
with Byzantine king john VI Contazuzenus's daughter Theodora. Sultan orian and
Theodora's son sultan murad
first married with Byzantine and Bulgarian princes. Behzad first married with
Serbia's king's daughter
Despina. These marriages brought Christianity in there palaces. They didn't
even
enter in their private life;
they got important and selected posted in their kingdom.
Adam used to start with
something else and he used to end up somewhere else. His main intention always
had
been different. He wanted to
separate religion from politics. According to Adam religion and politics are
two
different things. Pakistan
came into being by the name of religion. Muslims of India dreamt about a
separate
homeland and they use
religion as tool in fact deep down, their intentions were different. He wanted
to tell the
customers that where ever
someone felt that he can take advantage of religion he did it. Either it was
Ottoman
Empire or it was Pakistan
movement. After debating about European politics he used to come back on Indian
and Pakistani politics. He
used to tell them, it's true Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Burma, Tibet,
Ceylon and India these all
countries were part of India but every country has its own importance and
prestige.
Every country has paid its
independence, prestige's price. There were independence movements in every
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SANYEEN INTERNET
country wherever goras were
ruling. On the other hand wherever goras raised their flag, in all those places
Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs
Buddhists and Nepali Gorkhas gave their life for goras. In First World War
goras
forced Muslim to against
Muslims and promised them for independence. In Second World War they promised
not even Muslims, but to
Hindus, Sikhs, Nepali Gorkhas that fight for us, in return we will give you
independence. Lots of people
lost their lives. If you visit European graveyards you will find many brothers
who left their sisters in
their country, many husbands who left their wives and many sons who left their
mothers. They were hoping
that they will come back but they lost their lives. They are buried in European
graveyards.
Today Europeans look at
Pakistanis, Bengalis and Indian with tilted eye. This is their cheapness. In
Second
World War when German army
was ruining and dragging whole Europe, at that time these Indian, Bengali,
Pakistani and Nepalese were
fighting on front. Goras were only ordering and commanding. It was Italy or
France, either it was Egypt
or it was Russia. European people don't read their history properly or they
mess it.
The young European generation
only know this that American came to save them from German and the truth
is that Americans came to
stop Russian army who were entering in Europe from other end. Because as
German army started
retreating back, Russian army started advancing towards Europe. Today any
European
can easily say that where is
Pakistan? Dove Pakistan (in Italian dove is where)? Pakistan est où?
If they ask their
forefathers, they will tell them that these Indians, Bengalis, Pakistanis and
Nepalese came to
these European countries to
protect them. Most of the soldiers who came with British army, they didn't go
back. Some of them lost their
lives and it happened like this when there was no proper arrangement to send
the soldiers back. They were
being killed and were called martyred of Second World War and were buried in
European graveyards. Some of
them were shown lost in British army's record.
Their forefathers will tell
them that we aren't foreigner for you.
Most of the customer used to
like whatever Adam used to say them but his discussion never liked his owner.
Adam started his own
business. He was standing near Arc di Triomphe with his tape recorder and
dancing
couple. It was a couple of
Mickey Mouse. He has Spider Man as well. In the month of august this place used
to be very busy because of
tourists.
The metro stop near arc di
triomphe is called arc di triomphe as well. By the way this arc di triomphe is
called
Charles de Gaule Etoile as
well. Twelve roads pass through this arc like in Faisalabad's Ghantaghar (watch
tower) eight roads passes.
Through this metro stop
groups and hordes of tourists come out and the first thing they see is Charles
de
Gaule Etoile. In French
Etoile means star. If you see this place you will find a big star around this
arc.
Through this arc twelve roads
pass. Which are avenue de Friedland, avenue Hoche, avenue de Wagram,
avenue McMahan, avenue
Carnot, avenue de la Grande Armee, avenue d'Iene, avenue Kleber, avenue
Marceau and most famous is
avenue des Champs Elyse's.
Adam started selling dancing
couples and spider man next to arc di triomphe and he selected a big glass
building. He had two
qualities of these dancing couples. One was cheap one and only function when
you buy
and other was a little
expensive but better. He called them first grade and second grade, one was real
and other
was fake.
As tourists came close to
him, He used to shout in English and French as well. Ten franc, dix franc, ten
franc,
dix franc, he used to through
spider man as high as he can on that glass building. They had special kind of
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gum on their arms and legs.
They spider man used to fall like that that some soldiers are doing their
military
training. He wasn't only one
who was selling these things. There were others as well like Moroccans,
Pakistani and Bengalis. Some
of them were selling peanuts, some of them were selling photos and some of
them were selling umbrellas.
Some tourists used to taunt and ridicule at them when they came to know that
they are from Pakistan or
India, "look they have so much poverty in their countries that they are
bound to do
these petty and trivial jobs.
On the other hand they have nuclear bombs and hydrogen bombs".
Adam had a folding stool. He
used to open his folding stool like conjuror and sit on it. When customers came
close to him he used say in
loud voice about dancing couples and spider man. He was only scared of police
other than that there was no
fear of anyone. Over hear he wasn't bound of anyone. No boss or owner. He was
his own boss. He was allowed
to give lectures to tourist. He used to feel that he is breathing in fresh and
free
air.
Today he was sitting on his
folding stool and he drowned in deep memories. He started thinking that he used
to talk about Jean Paul
Sartre philosophy. He used to discuss existentialism. He used to converse about
Greek
philosophers, Latin
philosophers, German philosophers, French philosophers and English philosophers
as
well. He was expert in
explaining all these philosophies. One year was left. He would have completed
his
masters. He read about
westerns philosophers and about eastern philosophers as well. On one side he
studied
Aristotle, Plato, Dante,
Montaigne, Beckon, Voltaire, Rousseau, Marx, Russell and Sartre. On other side
he
studied Imam Ghazali, Jalal
Uddin Rumi, Jami, Farabi, Bu Ali Sina, Ibn-e-Rushd, Ibn-e-Khaldon, Omar
Khayyam, imam wasique. He
knew that Muslim philosophers and scholars played important role in European
renaissance. They have
translated most of the golden books of Greek philosophers in Arabic and Spanish
and
from Spain they came to other
European countries. The modern philosophy of France was based upon Muslim
philosophies. The famous
novel of Robinson Crusoe was written by Daniel Defoe and he got the main theme
of this novel from a Spanish
novel which was written by Mohammad Tufail and it was called Ibn-e-Yaqzan.
Spanish dictionary was
compiled by Muslims and the definite and indefinite articles came from Arabic
in
Latin originated languages.
He used to think that he is
in Saint Germaine du Pres and sitting in Cafe deux Maggots or sitting in Cafe
du
Flore. He meets with Jean
Paul Sartre and Simon de Beauvoir.
These cafes are famous for
jean Paul Sartre, Simon de Beauvoir, Prevert, Apollinaire, Albert Camus,
Picasso,
Alain Delon, Brigitte Bardot,
André Gide, Fernand Léger, André Breton, and Earnest Hemingway.
At Cafe deux Maggots, Jean
Paul Sartre and Simon de Beauvoir used to meet at the same place and same
table. They met each other at
this cafe for forty years. They had love affair but they were never married.
Sartre
was busy in working for his
school of thought existentialism and Beauvoir dedicated her whole life studying
and working for feminism.
"Attention monsieur!
S'il vous plait" (attention Mr. If it's pleases you).
As he heard this voice Adam
came back to real life. A police man was standing. He fished out his Carta
d'Identita from his pocket
and showed them. They had a glance and gay him back his Carta d'Identita and
then
they took everything even his
folding stool. They gave him a receipt and said, "Come to the police
station pay
fine and take your things
back". Usually when police come they disappear in streets. There is always
some
informer but today he didn't
find time to escape. He threw that receipt in nearest bin. He was glad that
they
haven't taken him to the
police station. Otherwise it would have been more complicated.
He was working on very famous
road. Champs Elysees, Elysian Fields. Like there is place in Karachi called
Lalo Khet, (lalo's fields)
Chapter 12: Paris 2
SANYEEN INTERNET
There was time when there was
no arc di triomphe here. There were beautiful fields. In 1806 Napoleon
Bonaparte hired famous
architect Chalgrin Jean François to make an arch over here. On 15th august
1806
foundation stone of this arch
was laid. Chalgrin got the inspiration of this arch from roman arch which was
built in Rome and you can
still see its ruins in Rome. French famous and renowned poet, novelist and
short
story writer Victor Hugo who
has written Notre Dame du Paris and Les Miserable, his mausoleum is there as
well.
It has been three or four
years that daowd and Adam were together since they left Pakistan. But since
they
were in Paris, Daowd's
attitude has been change. He used to act strange with Adam. Ehtram ul Haque
Butt
convinced Doawd that if you
want to become a successful in your life you have to get rid of Adam. Neither
he
will achieve anything in life
nor will he help you. You willn't achieve what you have dreamt. It was butt's
philosophy that people who
studies a little more, they become lunatics. They always talk about principle
and
rules, codes and ethics.
Daowd just needed an excuse.
Now his desires to become rich were at their peak. Paris's glittering lights
and
perfumes changed his point of
view about life. Now he was head chef of drawadians. He learnt everything. He
knew how to make different
curries, making things in tandoor like chicken tandoori, cheese nan, chutneys,
ghulab jamun (it's kind of
sweet). His father was doing same job. He was selling dahi bhallay. The
difference
was money. Daowd used to earn
80 to 90 thousand rupees. Plus tip as well which they used to divide among
each other. He used to eat in
restaurant but without knowing the owner because they were not allowed to eat.
During this period he learnt
all tricks.
As ehtram ul haque butt got
carte sejour (permit of stay) he started running to and fro to open his own
restaurant. He was completely
successful in his plan. The most important thing for the restaurant was a good
cook. For this purpose he
prepared doawd. To find waiters, assistant cook, dish washer, it wasn't a big
problem.
Cook was ready and it was
Butt's plan to find some girl for Daowd for paper marriage. When daowd will
have
carte sejour (permit of
stay), He will change the owner so Daowd will become the owner of the
restaurant and
butt will start getting
shomage (social security. its money you can get from state when you don't have
job).
Behind the curtain he will
play the game. Doawd will be like a puppet because didn't nothing about
documentation. He didn't know
the language and he hasn't got that much confidence and sense that he could
understand official
technicalities. This was main conflict between daowd and Adam. Adam was annoyed
that
daowd hasn't learnt language
and never tried to know about paper work. Whenever he needed, he asked
someone to accompany him.
Even to receive parcel from post office he needed someone. On the other hand
Adam never had any problem.
He always felt that he is living in pairs since ages.
Ehtram ul Haque Butt took an
old restaurant on two contract basis in Passage Brady. He appointed daowd the
head chef of restaurant. He
convinced and persuaded daowd that this is your own restaurant. Since Daowd
came to Paris he stopped
sending money to Pakistan. His father told him that you don't need to send us
money. Save your money and
try to achieve your goal. So he had sixty thousand French francs saving. Daowd
contribute these sixty
thousand francs for this restaurant and butt took loan from bank as well the
only
problem Daowd had, were
papers. Butt solves this problem as well. As Butt got carte sejour, he gave
divorce
to Marie Antoine. Butt
thought if she does paper marriage with daowd, like this daowd will have
documents.
For this purpose Marie
Antoine was ready. She was concerned with money. This was her business. In fact
she
Chapter 12: Paris 2
SANYEEN INTERNET
wasn't like this, drugs made
her like this.
Ehtram ul haque butt spoke
with solicitor, so he said as daowd hasn't entered in France legally, which
means
he entered in France without
visa so he will have to apply for political asylum. Usually they refuse case in
six
months but as we will submit
his case for political asylum. We will get the date for marriage from registrar
office. He must have his
birth certificate, character certificate and unmarried certificate ready and it
must be
attested from Pakistani
foreign office. When these things are ready, rest of things, i will take care.
Daowd
showed him these three paper
which were attested by Pakistani foreign office. When he saw, he said they are
valid for six months. So you
should have new one. As we will start paper work, by the time we will present
our case, they will be
expired. Daowd was doing whatever butt was saying. He was like puppet. Adam's
sixth
sense was intimating him that
something is going wrong. He knew that in this world no can be that much
honest with someone like butt
was with daowd. He hasn't said anything to daowd. He thought about his
friendship. So he kept quite.
Butt offered him waiter's job but Adam refused his offer. First of all daowd
should have asked him for
this job and secondly they haven't taken his opinion or discussed with him.
Adam
smelt something. He knew that
a simple going to be ruined. He was unable to help him because circumstances
were unfavourable. Daowd
became blind because he wanted to become rich man. He wanted to become big
man.
Chapter 12: Paris 2
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