The staff at the various Chancery guesthouses (as always in Pakistan, there are only male staff) try hard to be polite and respectful, but the usual attitude towards women seeps through; they treat single Western women as if they are freaks--or at least bizarre curiosities. I've been in two Chanceries over the course of 3 weeks, and whenever the staff knock on the door and I say "one minute" or "wait," they open the door anyway (long ago I stopped saying "coming" because it sounds like "come in"). Possibly their bad grasp of English is to blame, but I have tried different combinations of English words (I know, I should learn Urdu), and nothing has worked. Maybe I should just shout "no" or "stop"...

Considering that women must be draped in yards of fabric in Pakistan, it's not a good idea for any male staff to catch you in any state of undress, however modest by Western standards. And that's what keeps happening when... more