Sir Dr. Allama Iqbal paid a visit to Cordova mosque and the inspiration created this master-piece. Many years later, with mind packed with illustrations from Sir Iqbal and Mustansar Hussain Tarar, I felt like a Moor walking back towards Cordova Mosque. Going back isn’t easy; I don’t speak metaphorically.

With little guidance from the map, I guessed for the right bus and then guessed again for the right bus-stop (nobody on the bus spoke English). Probably that was my lucky day as, off the bus, I had to walk only few kilometres before coming across the river. I turned right – again a lucky guess – and lo and behold! I had hit a sign saying something about street being closed for repair. Long story short, I reached the Orange Courtyard pretty exhausted.

So was I entering a mosque or a cathedral? I had been carrying this question since seeing the signboard (shown in picture) right outside the train station. I hailed the philosophy of co-existence and stepped into the hall. Despite reading all those descriptions in the books and internet pages, I wasn’t quite expecting it.