On 6 February at the Great Hall of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences was held an exciting event. The exhibition "Nature and people in the mountains of Pakistan" was opened and the book "First Seven" by Boyan Petrov was presented.
The event was organized by the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to the Republic of Bulgaria and the National Museum of Natural History – BAS, gathered many distinguished guests from the fields of diplomacy, politics, culture, sports, among which were Mr Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, Prime Minister of Bulgaria (2001 -2005), Dr Petar Beron, Acad. Julian Revalski, president of BAS, Acad. Stefan Vodenitcharov.
The event was opened by Prof. Nikolay Spasov, director of the National Museum of Natural History – BAS, the oldest museum in Bulgaria. He marked that in the museum have always worked personalities, who take their work not just as a job, but as a calling. Such a personality is Boyan Petrov as well.
H. E. Mr. A. S. Babar Hashmi, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to the Republic of Bulgaria, gave a bright and memorable speech:
"... We are gathered together for the Launch of the first book of Mr Boyan Petrov -"First Seven" and for the opening of the first in photographic exhibition in Sofia of the "Nature and people in the mountains of Pakistan". "First Seven" is the story of Boyan’s first seven peaks over 8000 meters high.
Boyan, as many of you already know, is a Bulgarian hero. A Zoologist by profession and a Mountaineer by choice, he has already climbed 8 mountain peaks of more than 8000 metres high, 5 of which in Pakistan. It is the only Bulgarian, so far, to have ever done so.
Boyan is resilient and brave. Not only because he did most of these summits without "bottled Oxygen" or support from high altitude porters, but also because despite being a Diabetic, whenever let that condition hinder his literally high climbs and even higher ambitions. On 24thAugust 2016, he was hit by a car in the Kresna Gorge in Bulgaria, resulting in many serious injuries including many fractured ribs and bones. He is lucky and we are fortunate that he is here with us today. He is still recovering bravely from those injuries and still has his eyes set on his favourite project to climb the remaining 6 peaks of 8000 metres high, completing climb of all 14 Eight-thousands on Planet Earth.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Pakistan is an ancient, mysterious and mystical land and cradle of Gandhara and 5000 years old Indus valley Civilization. It has attracted adventurers, scholars and mountaineers. Is has seen warriors like Alexander the Great and Genghis Khan and scholars like Fa-Hyun and Winston Churchill who stayed there. It is home to famous Khyber Pass, where the “Great Game” was and is still played again and again.
With about 200 million people, we are privileged to have vast fertile plains, blue ocean, immense deserts and very, very high mountains. In fact Pakistan is Mecca (or Vatican if you may), for High Mountain climbers. Out of the 14 peaks in the world of more than 8000 metres high, 5 are in Pakistan and that includes the second highest mountain in the world K-2.
We in Pakistan have 108 peaks which are higher than 7000 meters and countless peaks between 4000 and 7000 meters high. Three mountain ranges Himalaya, Karakoram and Hindukush, meet in Pakistan.
We are also fortunate to have 4 of the 7 longest glaciers in the non-polar regions. And we have our share of high mountain climbers including Samina Baig, the first Pakistani woman who climbed the Mount Everest in 2013 and Hassan Asad, who is the first Pakistani to have climbed 6 Eight-thousands including the world’s highest peak Mount Everest (8848 m).
Pakistanis living in these very high altitude mountain areas are indeed very resilient and courageous. Challenging environment poses more difficulties. But I am reminded of what Tommy Heinrich, the well know Mountaineer from Argentina, was told by a young son of his cook, " very cold sometimes, very hard sometimes, still, I enjoy the beauty, the magic, the life itself in these places".
Distinguished Guests,
Pakistan and Bulgaria have longstanding relations and these relations are marked by mutual respect, mutual interest and mutual trust. Both countries are the custodians of older cultures and ancient civilizations. According to one theory, even the ProtoBulgars came from the area near the Pamir Mountains and that is in the northwest of Pakistan. No wonder that Boyan keeps visiting there again and again. Our friendship is deep, Boyan is helping to literally take it to lofty, lofty heights of K2, Nanga Parbat, Gasherbrum and Broad Peak.
In Pakistan, the emphasis of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s government is on economic development. Almost all sectors of economy are open for partnership and collaboration. Both Bulgaria and Pakistan have mountains and mountaineers. So here is a possibility for cooperation and collaboration, win-win scenario in the highest of mountains, in the tourism and particularly mountain tourism sector.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Allow me to conclude by quoting John Muir - the world renown Naturalist, who writes and I quote: "I am losing precious days. I am degenerating into a money making machine. I am learning nothing in this trivial world of men. I must break away and get out into the mountains to learn the news - thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountains is going home; that wilderness is a necessity".
The magical and inspiring world of the mountains of Pakistan can be seen from the photographs of the exhibition. They show the greatness of the five Eight-thousands on the territory of the country, views from different points of the highest mountains on the planet - Karakorum and the Western Himalayas, and the faces of their inhabitants. The photos are made during the four expeditions of Bulgarian mountaineers in the Pakistani mountains between 2005 and 2016.
As a zoologist Boyan Petrov was represented at the event by his teacher and mentor from the National Museum of Natural History, Dr Petar Beron. He described his book "First Seven" as a textbook for climbing Eight-thousands. Because in it the alpinist tells about how he prepares, how he trains, how he selects equipment. He describes the life of the climbers in the camps, in which they spend more than 50 days. And the fauna - from the smallest invisible creatures to the largest. And his dreams - future plans.
During the night Boyan Petrov said that many people ask him why does he do all of this. He replies: "I do it to get inspired! To leave a trail!"
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Photos are provided by the Embassy of the Islamic Republic Pakistan.
First row: The opening of the exhibition "Nature and people in the mountains of Pakistan" and launch of the book "First Seven" by Boyan Petrov at BAS. Photos 1 and 2 - photographer Assen Tonev, photos 3 and 4 - photographer Assen Ignatov
Up and second row: the 5 Eight-thousands in Pakistan, conquered by Boyan Petrov and shot by him - K2, Nanga Parbat, Gasherbrum I, Gasherbrum II and Broad Peak.
