Hollywood creates dreams, demons and destruction -- on screen. A theme park in Los Angeles County puts some of these creations into the real world and what results is a production that involves audience as well as actors, performers and their numerous artefacts. Visiting the park is like walking through an interactive theatrical production with Brechtian props -- coming as warnings against over-extending the limits of interaction. Even then the production is so intensely realistic that the danger of overstepping lurks behind every turn of the script. Consider the case of a young boy who tried to hit 'Dracula' and was detained for a while for his daring act. Or think about those desiring to be as close to the action as they possibly can and getting hit in the act. Sometimes over-reaction by the audience greatly enhances the dramatic effect, though.

Of course, the park is not for the faint-hearted. Still, scared screams can be heard emanating from its every nook and cranny -- maybe not everyone around has as strong a heart as they believe they have.

The theme park is an entertainment facility conceived and run by the Universal Studios, one of the best known movie houses in Hollywood. It's, in fact, a life-size re-creation of some of the sets, effects and props that the studio has used in its blockbuster movies and hit telly serials. It's a whistle-stop tour through dwellings -- animal and human -- and the natural and man-made scenery known to movie-goers and TV-watchers across the world for having made some memorable appearance in some memorable scene. For its size and its abundance of offerings, the park does not seem costly for a $50 entry ticket which is good for a whole day and allows as many rides and shows as you can possibly have in that short span of time. The variety and the scale of the entertainment the park offers is so huge that no one can claim to have seen all in a single visit.

This is partly due to how the park is built, how it operates and how many people it attracts in a day. Covering a very large area, the park has its facilities so scattered that it takes some time to move from one to the other. Maybe this is because rides and shows need to be distant from each other to ensure that their effects don't mix. So, walking down from Dracula's castle to the Jurassic Park invloves many flights of escalators and a distance about a kilometre or so. This 'travel' time is augmented by the time spent in waiting in very long queues for taking rides and watching shows. In most cases, the actual act of being in a show lasts for just a fraction of the time queuing takes. Yet, no one jumps the queues or jostles for space. This allows the park's operations to run in an amazingly accurate clockwork regularity -- something essential for the trouble-free running of a place which entertains many thousand people day in day out.

Now the itsy bitsy details of half a day spent at the park in the middle of April last.

The run up: The excitement was overwhelming, mainly because of the impression that the visit will be to a studio where they will actually be rolling the cameras and flashing the lights on some scene in a coming movie. None of the hosts, in fact, ever mentioned any word resembling an amusement park, during the preparations for the visit. To enhance the illusion they suggested going to Hollywood Boulevard before moving to the park, still calling it a studio. From the footprints and hand impressions of Hollywood's who's who, historical theatres turned exhibition halls for movie-making gadgets, and the high white arch that affords a unique look at nine white letters painted on a hill, the difference between a working film studio and its 'amusing' version seemed very blurred.

The headstart: Another word of advice handed down, moments before the entry: Take the train tour, before anything else.

The tour: After queuing up for more than half an hour, the train was finally boarded, still with the nervous expectation that it will land straight into whirring cameras. It did not but the journey did not turn out to be a damp squib, though it involved a lot of dampness. The train went through ponds and lakes which have passed as rivers and oceans in movies, it whistled through fibreglass facades of houses and streets made famous by screens big and small. One devastated street carried the wreckage of the plane used in the War of the Worlds and another showed a Mexican settlement which suddenly got flooded as the train passed through. The train was attacked by a shark while passing along a 'sea', it was jolted and was infested by ants as it passed through a tunnel. Then it was taken through a couple of 'studios' where it almost collided with a train coming from the opposite direction and was met by a fire at the rail station. But the most moving part of the tour came at the very start -- as the train rolled on. "Wave to the people still in the queue. You will never see them again," is how the tour guide started her lively chat. What a strange sense of being the part of a moving crowd, one part of which never meets the other while even being in the same time and space!

The shows and rides: Dracula's scary castle, a three-dimensional viewing of Terminator 2, a perilous boat ride through the leafy world of Jurassic Park, riding a futuristic vehicle to travel through time and space and gunfights, explosions, fires and physical prowess shown at the Water World... The variety is amazing and the scientific and technological level of the facilities even more so. The illusions they create can be easily taken for the real, so real that they scare and delight, amuse and frighten though they are what they are -- illusions -- and everyone knows that.

Street performance: As the visitors enjoy their icecreams and popcorns, characters from cartoon shows and movies suddenly appear from nowhere and re-enact what they do in their celluloid roles. A Laurel accompanied by a Hardy, a Charlie Chaplin walking with his signature swagger and distinctive moustache...

The exit: It's not for want of choice or desire to see more that people finally leave the park. On the contrary, as the level of energy goes down, the level of disappointment at not being able to explore still unseen sections of the facility goes up. Unlike movies which have 'The End', the park does not have anything close to that. The 'reality' it conjures up is much closer to life in this respect than to its dreamy cinematic presentation -- with the only difference that you exit at the time of your own choosing.

The News on Sunday: When was NATCO established?

Zafar Iqbal: The Northern Areas Transport Corporation was established in 1974 with the registered office at Lahore to provide road transport to the people of Northern Areas. In 1976 the registered office was transferred from Lahore to Islamabad and in 1979 it was shifted to Gilgit. NATCO was voluntarily dissolved as per orders of the government and board of directors and then it was registered with Registrar Joint Stock Companies Gilgit in 1989 under the Companies Ordinance 1984. Since then NATCO is functioning under the direct control of the Chief Secretary, Northern Areas.

TNS: What are the objectives of NATCO?

ZI: The main aims and objectives of the corporation are to establish a road transport system in the Northern Areas, to link Northern Areas with rest of the country and to provide reliable transport facilities to the people of Northern Areas on subsidised charges as well as providing goods transport. To assist and encourage tourism in the Northern Areas directly or in association with other undertakings is also very important for us.

TNS: Which are the main areas in which NATCO operates or focuses?

ZI: NATCO operates in the entire Northern Areas and links the Northern Areas with the rest of the country. Although the entire public requirement cannot be met with the limited resources, but with the available number of vehicles NATCO has been able to keep the fare structure at a reasonable level. It provides facilities to the people when the private sector is either non-existent or charging exorbitant rates. NATCO operates on unmetalled roads and less travelled routes in the Northern Areas and gives 50 per cent concession to students on all routes as per the standing orders and policy of the government.

TNS: On how many routes is NATCO operating in Northern Areas?

ZI: At present NATCO operates on 33 routes. Of these, only six, Gilgit-Rawalpindi, Gilgit-Skardu, Skardu-Rawalpindi, Skardu-Khaplu-Rawalpindi, Chillas-Mansehra and Sost-China, routes are profitable. There are many routes where we are earning less than 70 per cent of the original expenditure, like Gilgit-Yaseen, Gilgit-Ishkoman, Gilgit-Gahkuch and Chillas-Goherabad. NATCO is operating on less travelled and non profitable routes in the Northern Areas as per policy and orders of the government of Pakistan and local administration for the benefit of people and sustaining losses on such routes. These routes are being subsidised by NATCO from the profit of other routes.

TNS: Are you facing competition from private sector transport companies?

ZI: Karakoram Highway (KKH) is the only profitable route for NATCO. On the KKH NATCO is facing cutthroat competition from private operators. After metalling of roads by NAPWD and FWO in the Northern Areas the private operators are starting to compete with NATCO, whereas they do not operate on the unmetalled and unprofitable routes.

TNS: Do you have an adequate fleet of vehicles for managing all the routes you operate?

ZI: The corporation has a total of 318 vehicles including 70 buses, 165 trucks, 11 Land Cruisers, 11 coasters, 19 station wagons and 13 pickups. But not all of these are on the road, a large number are off the road for engine overhauling and repairs. We ply vehicles on difficult hilly routes and they need overhauling regularly.

TNS: What are the peak months of business for NATCO?

ZI: Business is seasonal and starts in May and ends in November due to climatic constraints. NATCO earns profit in the summer season and sustains losses from November to April. Being a public utility service organisation NATCO keeps welfare of the common people in mind rather than operating on purely commercial consideration. However, financially the corporation is very sound.

TNS: If most of the routes are non profitable how do you manage financially?

ZI: Karakoram Highway routes are mostly very profitable. NATCO received a major setback after 9/11. The situation further deteriorated after attacks on Afghanistan by the coalition forces. Passengers have dropped by about 50 per cent. NATCO reduced services and started operating five daily passenger services between Gilgit and Rawalpindi, down from twelve. Services of 200 employees were terminated. It was also decided by the board of directors in 2004 that NATCO should adopt commercial approach in operations and also reduce reliance on government funding. We have established two fuel stations to generate more income. The goods transportation service is also earning profit for us.

TNS: When is Gilgit-Kashgar bus service starting?

ZI: The first bus carrying officials and journalists is scheduled to travel from Gilgit to Kashgar on June 15. The bus will initially operate every two weeks, but if the number of passengers increases we will also increase the service frequency. The fare, one way, is $44.

TNS: How will this bus serve to restore tourism activity in Northern Areas and between Pakistan and China?

ZI: This route will be a very good opportunity for not only people of Pakistan and China but also for people of neighbouring countries to have access to this region by road. But to make this route successful both countries' governments should offer visa relaxation.

TNS: Are there any plans to resume Lahore-Gilgit service and to start bus service to other cities of Pakistan?

ZI: Federal Minister of Kashmir and Northern Areas Major (retd) Tahir Iqbal has already advised us to restore this service and also to start a bus service between Karachi to Gilgit. We are working on starting both services.

TNS: How much has tourism been affected due to the earthquake?

ZI: The earthquake has had least effect on tourism in this area. After 9/11 the tourism activity in these areas has almost completely stopped. The sectarian clashes in these areas are also a big problem for tourists. Since the last three to four years, the number of tourists has decreased to less than 10 per cent of the original numbers and the situation is not getting better. We should learn to respect tourists, then we will be able to promote tourism in these areas.

TNS: Was NATCO's infrastructure affected by the earthquake?

ZI: We have faced no such problem.

TNS: Is NATCO working with PTDC to promote tourism in Northern Areas?

ZI: In 2004 we signed an MOU with PTDC to promote tourism in Northern Areas, however, the PTDC did not show much interest in working jointly with us.

TNS: What type of transportation service are you providing for far flung areas like Deosai Plains?

ZI: We do not have a regular service to Deosai but we arrange transport for tourists who want to go there.

TNS: Which are the most popular tourist areas?

ZI: Hunza valley is the most popular spot; although there are many places even more beautiful than Hunza.