I don't recall exactly how we came across each others' blogs, but Rachel of My Life in Spain and I have been in contact for a little while now through emails and reading each other's blogs. She is a former Philadelphia resident who now resides in Spain. She and her husband were in Pakistan when the quake hit three weeks ago. Needless to say, it's changed their lives. Here's an excerpt of an initial recounting of the first moments.
Just before the earthquake struck, I decided to go to the edge of the river, which was down a small bank below our stone cabin, to take in a bit of the tranquil setting before breakfast, which we were to have at 9 am. When the earthquake began at 8:50, it took a couple seconds for me to realize exactly what was happening, the ground below me twisting and turning like the floor of an amusement park funhouse. There then was a series of very loud cracks as rock began to free itself from the mountain just opposite our cabin and then begin its long freefall into the valley. I watched some boulders fall into the river, realized the danger, and then turned around toward the cabin. The pine trees that lined the bank were moving in such a way that made them appear like figures sliding back and forth on a fussball table. For several moments, I was frozen as I tried to figure out how I was to escape. There was a sensation of being trapped by the falling boulders on one side and the girating trees on the other.
Her full post is here with some incredible photos of the area.
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