Afghanistan Today
July 10, 2019
Afghanistan, July 10, 2019 A portrait gallery – where older women usually flatly refused, older men acquiesced and younger people were happy to pose, as were the children.
Month: July 2019
The Throne that is no Throne
July 8, 2019
Samangan, Afghanistan July 8, 2019 Some hundred kilometers southeast of Mazar-i-Sharif is the provincial town of Samangan. A nondescript town now, but it was once a flourishing Buddhist center with a monastery and an unusual stupa built in the Kushan period of 4th to 5th centuries. Predictably, it was on my wish list to visit … More The Throne that is no Throne
Famed Mosques of Balkh
July 7, 2019
Balkh, Afghanistan July 7, 2019 Green Mosque The Green mosque, colloquially called Haji Parsa is supposedly one of its highlights, but it is a battered sight. The damage suffered during the civil war shows in the jagged edges rearing against the sky. It was commissioned in the 15th century by Queen Gowhar Shad, wife of … More Famed Mosques of Balkh
In the Kingdom of Bactria
July 6, 2019
Balkh, Afghanistan July 6, 2019 On the plains between the western edge of the Hindu Kush and northern shores of Amy Darya or Oxus, is a plain that was once the kingdom of Bactria. Looking at the scruffy, rough-at-the-edges areas of Balkh, you would hardly think this was once a grand city and the capital … More In the Kingdom of Bactria
Blue Mosque of Mazar
July 5, 2019
Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan July 5, 2019 The crown jewel of Mazar-i-Sharif is the famous Blue mosque. The four gates lead into the vast inner courtyard, dwarfing the people walking, sitting, chatting on the marbled floor. Thanks to shrines added onto it over time, it does not have the rigid symmetry of Islamic architecture and is perhaps … More Blue Mosque of Mazar
City of Screams
July 4, 2019
Bamiyan, Afghanistan July 4, 2019 Entering Bamiyan from the east, a small hillock is visible close to the center of town. This, all locals will tell you this is the Shahr-i-Ghoulghoula which translates as the City of Screams. Their eyes light up as they tell you the ghoulish tale. Some add pregnant pauses and dramatic … More City of Screams
In Search of Unknown Treasures
July 4, 2019
Bamiyan, Afghanistan July 4, 2019 This entire valley has caves dug out of the mountain ridges, some excavated, many not. Many have housed families since ancient times and some still do. What a grand place to feed my penchant for poking around in old ruins. I was in conversation with a local, droning on about … More In Search of Unknown Treasures
Lakes of Band-i-Ameer
July 3, 2019
Bamiyan, Afghanistan July 3, 2019 Leaving the town of Bamiyan, the road goes west toward Band-i-Ameer. Asphalted for the most part and a dirt track for the rest, we drive past small villages, past the occasional fort-like old buildings. As little as a couple of generations, people still lived in these buildings. Plots of land … More Lakes of Band-i-Ameer
The Buddhas of Bamiyan
July 2, 2019
Bamiyan, Afghanistan July 2, 2019 The long ridge is visible just about from almost everywhere in town. Pockmarked with caves, it is famous for once having housed the largest standing Buddha statues in the world. But they are no more. In 2001 when the Taliban occupied this district, they tried using rifles and artillery shells … More The Buddhas of Bamiyan
Incognito in a Burqa
July 1, 2019
On the road from Kabul to Bamiyan Afghanistan July 1, 2019 Before arriving in the country, I had read that road travel in Afghanistan is to be avoided. Many roads are within Taliban-held territory and road blocks are a common tactic to kidnapping foreigners. Nor are foreigners the only targets; well-known or affluent Afghanis are … More Incognito in a Burqa
ITCHY FEET TRAVELS 