Karachi

Karachi grew from a fishing settlement into a port under the British and then into a metropolis of well over twenty million people, and it wears that history in layers. The colonial quarter around Empress Market, Frere Hall and the Sindh High Court is built in yellow Gizri stone with arcades and towers, faded and busy. Mohatta Palace, a pink and yellow stone mansion of 1927 built for a Hindu businessman and later used by Fatima Jinnah, is now the city's best exhibition space and its most photogenic building. The Quaid's mausoleum, a white marble cube under a curved dome, stands in its own park. Beyond the monuments, Karachi is about eating: seafood at Boat Basin and the port, biryani, nihari and a café culture that runs late. Clifton and Hawke's Bay give beaches, though water quality varies and swimming safety is a real consideration.

History

Upper Paleolithic and Mesolithic sites have been excavated in the Mulri Hills on the city's northern edge. Baloch settlers from Makran and Kalat came to the hamlet of Dibro on the harbour in 1725, and in 1729 a new settlement there, Kolachi-jo-Goth, was named after Mai Kolachi; the name Karachee first appears in a Dutch report of 1742 about a shipwreck nearby (Wikipedia, Karachi).

Highlights

• Mohatta Palace - the pink stone mansion and its exhibitions.
• The colonial quarter - Empress Market, Frere Hall and Gizri stone buildings.
• The Quaid's mausoleum - the white marble tomb in its park.
• Beaches and seafood - Clifton, Hawke's Bay and the port fish markets.

When to go

November to February, when the humidity drops and evenings are pleasant. Summer is hot and very humid, and the monsoon brings urban flooding that paralyses parts of the city. Ramadan changes eating hours across the city entirely.

Good to know

Traffic is severe and distances are long; budget hours for crossing the city. Beach water quality is poor in places and drownings occur in the surf at Clifton and Hawke's Bay, where currents are strong and lifeguarding is limited. Neighbourhood conditions vary widely, and local advice on where to go and when is worth taking.

Nearby

Chaukhandi tombs are east; Thatta and Keenjhar Lake lie a couple of hours away.

Key facts