Senate chairman hosts dinner for Chinese envoy

Islamabad :Farewell events for the ambassador of the Peoples Republic of China, Sun Weidong and his spouse, Diana Bao have been taking place ever since it was learnt that he is leaving Pakistan after his tenure. Invitations for lunch tea or dinner kept them busy going from one event to another and – as one of their hosts, Senator Mushahid Hussain said – sometimes there were multiple events and they graciously accepted all because as the ambassador said, “We have many friends in Pakistan and I hope they will visit us in Beijing.”

 The final dinner and one of the most relaxing was hosted by Chairman of the Senate and Mrs Raza Rabbani. The dinner was held at their residence and attended by a few senators as well as other members of different political parties; the High Commissioner of Britain and Mrs Thomas Drew; the ambassador of Palestine and Mrs Walid Abu Ali; Executive Director, Lok Virsa, Fauzia Saeed and a few other couples – the right mix of people with diverse views to ensure interesting and meaningful conversation, which ensure the success of any get-together. There were no formal speeches but good wishes and mementoes were exchanged when the guests of honour arrived.

After a period to allow all the guests to arrive – the Senate was in session Tuesday evening - dinner was served out in the side lawn where it was pleasant weather wise, with a gentle breeze making one forget the unusual warmth of the day.  Adding to the ambience, Pakistani musicians on the flute and ‘tabla’ played a variety of music that was easy on the ears and good to listen to between spurts of conversation. They were applauded by the ladies, who clearly appreciated their contribution to making the evening a success, though I noticed the host did go up and express his thanks as well when the evening came to an end.

Some guests left after dinner but a handful stayed on for a while, including the guests of honour, indicating that they were in no hurry to leave despite the fact that it was their last night in Islamabad and they may have been exhausted after attending so many events!