usinessman Zaheer Hussain held a huge mango party at his house in F-6. The host is one of Islamabad`s oldest residents, having moved to the area in 1958, before it was made the country`s capital. Mr Hussein is one of the founders of the Islamabad Rotary Club as weII as of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the city.

More than a dozen ambassadors and diplomats attended the mango party along with their local and foreign guests.

`We are glad that children were also welcome,` said Samer Muhuddin Bahlool, the deputy head of the Embassy of Brunei.

`We have a seven-year-old son and it is nice for him to come along with us at times,` his wife said.

`A mango party is not meant to be a formal diplomatic event but it has become just that, especially after owners of the city`s largest hotels no longer hold such events. Many ambassadors, especially from South Asia, start asking about mango parties as soon as the mango season starts. Its a bit of a tradition,` the host said.

Those who wore formal wear and those wanting to avoid stains on their clotehs were given large napkins with a ribbon to tie around their necks.

`We hope that diplomats and everyone else who visits the city gets a chance to see some of its old charm such as the mango parties,` a guest said.

`It was avery special summer event, the memories of which I will always cherish,` said a young European diplomat.

Text and photos by Atle Hetland & Shahbaz Chaudary