Guess what! There really was a man by the name of Ali Baba of Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves (or dakots as the locals call them) fame. The story of Ali Baba comes from the book "The Thousand and One Nights", a collection of tales written and added to by several Muslim, Arab authors over the centuries, but Ali Baba lived in the Hindu Kush mountains of the North West Frontier Peshawar, north of the Khyber Pass, not in Africa or the Middle East. Ali Baba may have been a poor man but he was a giant in spirit, so much so that his story travelled across the mountains and deserts of many countries with the Arabs eventually appropriating him as one of their own ;-)

This is a photo of my father (Glen Johnston), my brother (Frank Johnston) and me (Clifford Johnston in the middle) at the shrine of Ali Baba where he is buried. His burial site is attended around the clock by guardians, possible descendants of his family. Ali Baba is buried behind us in the simple shrine. Pigeons are kept in underground coops. As you can see, it is rugged country where only the strong can survive.

The shrine is in the Hindu Kush mountains of Pakistan near the northern border with Afghanistan. It is Pathan tribal country. These proud people are noted for their fighting skills, hospitality and keeping their word of honor, if given. On the other hand, some would just as soon rob & kill you as look at you. We were treated well by them.

If you look carefully at the upper right corner of the mountains you will see the outline of a Pakistani fort and a switch-back trail [called a road by the English ;-)] leading up to it and built by the British occupying forces way back when, but still manned today by the Pakistani army.