Another thought that struck me just before leaving Kabul was that I think Afghanistan would be better off if their women had more power. Of cause this is a general opinion of mine, but I believe it is even more valid in Afghanistan. At the airport you have to go through countless bag and body searches. Most of them are completely inefficient, but still you just have to let them do it. And as it impossible that a man should body search a woman or even see anyone do it there is often a small shed where the women go in to get searched. And whereas the men got more and more upset after each search and said they were more and more annoyed by the ruthless and unfriendliness of the officers, I had the completely opposite experience. At the first shed the woman referred to me as “sister”. Later I was offered watermelon and got some compliments for my bracelet and some new dari words. Therefore I believe the women are more compassionate and friendly and would have a very positive influence on the politics.
And anyway, I just had another proof of that men are completely impossible to understand. Completely unreliable and irrational…
Saturday, June 28, 2008
The Internationals
It is quite funny, but no matter how different Afghanistan and Dubai are, they have one thing in common; they would not cope without their expats. However there are very different types of international. In Afghanistan you find the “humanitarians” and the “cowboys” travelling from one disaster or war zone to the other and like to talk about and comparing the misery in different places, the one place being worse than the other. In Afghanistan noting is really simple or clean. In Dubai everything is shiny and beautiful and they seem to believe it is possible to build away all problems and act as if there are no worries in this world; it is all a big party. Instead of moving from disaster to disaster people move from one financial centre to the other. In Afghanistan there are few parties and little investment and finance is more a question of funding. So what makes those people do what they do? What is their motivation? Money? Kicks? On the average maybe these two groups of people are not so different after all. The other day someone commented my trip to Afghanistan with: “That must be interesting, it is great that there are people who work with things that is not just about making money.” That made a huge gap very visible. I never thought of it like that. Not that I would mind making a lot of money, but I could not imagine spending my time on a job that I don’t find interesting.
Report from Dubai
I haven’t been blogging so much from Dubai because I did not have internet access in my hotel room, so here are some concluding reflections on Dubai etc.
I must say I have mixed emotions for Dubai. In a way I like it, as I like big modern cities, and I do like the hot climate and the beaches and the shopping etc. But it is so artificial. And it is still one huge construction site, I wonder what it will be like when it is “ready”. I fear it will be a little too perfect. It is all so clean, tidy, neat and well-organised. Of cause it is nice, but it is a little boring and annoying. It would get me on my nerves after some time. I would miss the “chilli in the sauce”; the unexpected and uncontrolled. Ok, I really haven’t seen much of the place, as my supposed guide stood me up or at least suddenly got busy elsewhere (men!!), but all I have seen goes in that direction, that is perfection. What really would annoy me if I stayed here longer is that there is no place where you can walk. Ok, when it is over 40 degrees outside you might not want to walk much, but the city is really only made for transportation in cars. The place is very wide-stretched and there are not much of sidewalks and the junctions are all but pedestrian-friendly and there is nowhere to go, no nice areas to stroll in, lest for the beach and the shopping malls. I guess there must be some parts where you can still see and feel some of the history, but all I read in the tourist brochures seem to be about “new” constructions in “old” or “traditional” Arabian style, nothing seems to be genuine.
As I did not get the private guided tour I was promised, I booked myself on one of the arranged tours. First of all I realise how unused I am to go on those things; I almost lost the group all the time and was nearly left behind at the end of it!! Anyway I got to see some of the “older” parts of the city and some souqs and the historical museum. There they had some quite fascinating exhibits in see how people lived in straw huts just 50-60 years ago! Then there was almost nothing there!
Of cause I visited some of the malls too, the one said to be the biggest outside US (I doubt it though as I think some that I saw in China felt bigger) Mall of the Emirates, where they have the famous indoor ski-slope, which I of cause had to try.
It was quite fun and it was surprisingly good skiing, but it was only fun for about 30-40 minutes and than that’s it.
The slope from the outside.
Maybe that what happens with all the artificial stuff, you get tired of it quite soon. I wonder how that affects people who live here. Maybe they too get artificial and superficial (and obviously unreliable, yes I am a little annoyed!).
Anyway everyone I met was very friendly, but on the other hand I mostly met foreigners working in the tourist service industry, mostly Indians. 80% of the inhabitants in Dubai are foreigners and from those 80% I believe 40% are Indian. The service level is very high, to me sometimes annoyingly high. You can not just look around on your own for a while, before there is someone asking if you need help, and what ever you do there is someone to tell you how to do it right, or what way to go or asking if you need help etc.. To me that is very American (although I never been in America) and I recognise it from Manila and it gets me on my nerves after a while.
I must say I have mixed emotions for Dubai. In a way I like it, as I like big modern cities, and I do like the hot climate and the beaches and the shopping etc. But it is so artificial. And it is still one huge construction site, I wonder what it will be like when it is “ready”. I fear it will be a little too perfect. It is all so clean, tidy, neat and well-organised. Of cause it is nice, but it is a little boring and annoying. It would get me on my nerves after some time. I would miss the “chilli in the sauce”; the unexpected and uncontrolled. Ok, I really haven’t seen much of the place, as my supposed guide stood me up or at least suddenly got busy elsewhere (men!!), but all I have seen goes in that direction, that is perfection. What really would annoy me if I stayed here longer is that there is no place where you can walk. Ok, when it is over 40 degrees outside you might not want to walk much, but the city is really only made for transportation in cars. The place is very wide-stretched and there are not much of sidewalks and the junctions are all but pedestrian-friendly and there is nowhere to go, no nice areas to stroll in, lest for the beach and the shopping malls. I guess there must be some parts where you can still see and feel some of the history, but all I read in the tourist brochures seem to be about “new” constructions in “old” or “traditional” Arabian style, nothing seems to be genuine.
As I did not get the private guided tour I was promised, I booked myself on one of the arranged tours. First of all I realise how unused I am to go on those things; I almost lost the group all the time and was nearly left behind at the end of it!! Anyway I got to see some of the “older” parts of the city and some souqs and the historical museum. There they had some quite fascinating exhibits in see how people lived in straw huts just 50-60 years ago! Then there was almost nothing there!
Of cause I visited some of the malls too, the one said to be the biggest outside US (I doubt it though as I think some that I saw in China felt bigger) Mall of the Emirates, where they have the famous indoor ski-slope, which I of cause had to try.
It was quite fun and it was surprisingly good skiing, but it was only fun for about 30-40 minutes and than that’s it.
The slope from the outside.
Maybe that what happens with all the artificial stuff, you get tired of it quite soon. I wonder how that affects people who live here. Maybe they too get artificial and superficial (and obviously unreliable, yes I am a little annoyed!).
Anyway everyone I met was very friendly, but on the other hand I mostly met foreigners working in the tourist service industry, mostly Indians. 80% of the inhabitants in Dubai are foreigners and from those 80% I believe 40% are Indian. The service level is very high, to me sometimes annoyingly high. You can not just look around on your own for a while, before there is someone asking if you need help, and what ever you do there is someone to tell you how to do it right, or what way to go or asking if you need help etc.. To me that is very American (although I never been in America) and I recognise it from Manila and it gets me on my nerves after a while.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Change of Environment
I have now arrived in Dubai and I must say it feels great!! I still haven’t seen much of the city, although it felt like it took ages from the airport to the hotel, but it all looks like one huge construction site.
My hotel; Oasis Beach Hotel, from the street.
The street outside the hotel.
But the hotel is so nice!! As I never go on “normal” holidays it is the first time I ever stay in a hotel like this one.
It is directly on the beach, a beautiful beach, and has a huge pool area and all the amenities you can expect from a nice hotel.
My room and my balcony overlook the pool and the beach, very nice. Almost directly after checking in I went swimming, at sunset. The water was so warm; I have never swum in such warm water, much warmer than the air at that time. A sign said it was 27 degrees in the sea!
As I completely mixed up the days of my arrival here, I thought I would arrive the 25and only this morning I was made aware of the fact that today is the 24.th, my guide will not have that much time for me tomorrow.
I guess I will be satisfied with just lying on the beach with my book, but maybe I will go out for some sightseeing on my own as well. No matter how nice the hotel, I am starting to get a little bit fed up at hanging out in hotels. But I do think I could live in a place like Dubai. I definitely have to come up with a plan on how to move to a warmer country anyway, because 13 degrees and rain does not sound to tempting!
My hotel; Oasis Beach Hotel, from the street.
The street outside the hotel.
But the hotel is so nice!! As I never go on “normal” holidays it is the first time I ever stay in a hotel like this one.
It is directly on the beach, a beautiful beach, and has a huge pool area and all the amenities you can expect from a nice hotel.
My room and my balcony overlook the pool and the beach, very nice. Almost directly after checking in I went swimming, at sunset. The water was so warm; I have never swum in such warm water, much warmer than the air at that time. A sign said it was 27 degrees in the sea!
As I completely mixed up the days of my arrival here, I thought I would arrive the 25and only this morning I was made aware of the fact that today is the 24.th, my guide will not have that much time for me tomorrow.
I guess I will be satisfied with just lying on the beach with my book, but maybe I will go out for some sightseeing on my own as well. No matter how nice the hotel, I am starting to get a little bit fed up at hanging out in hotels. But I do think I could live in a place like Dubai. I definitely have to come up with a plan on how to move to a warmer country anyway, because 13 degrees and rain does not sound to tempting!
Kabul Traffic
Just before I left Kabul today I saw a programme on Al Jazeera about the traffic situation in Kabul. The report said that during the Soviet time there were 60 traffic lights in Kabul and only 50 000 cars, now there are 600 000 cars but only one (newly rehabilitated) traffic light. I suppose that says something about the traffic situation. But considering that I must say it works surprisingly well!
Monday, June 23, 2008
Afghan Star
At the hotel I found a small magazine called Afghan Scene. It is exactly what it sounds like; an attempt to create a feeling of a scene in Kabul. A scene for the young, beautiful and successful (although the picture on the cover shows an old man with a thick grey beard and the traditional pakul hat). It was very interesting reading indeed. Especially one article about a woman who made a documentary on the Afghan version of the TV-show Pop Idol; Afghan Star. It was amazig reading! I did not even think there was anything like that. But as the filmer said, almost everything you hear from Afghanistan is miserable Taliban related stories about war and fighting and number of dead. But this country has a population where 60% are under the age of 20, of cause they want to hear and know something else. Of cause you can then say; is this really what they need?! Is this not only superficial popular culture. It might very well be, but maybe that is exactly what you need sometimes, maybe especially when life in itself is hard and challenging. And to quote the documentary maker Havana Marking again; There is huge unemployment and gossip is a serious problem. If people can talk about this, then they might not talk about the woman who has to go to work, or other “scandals”.
I haven’t checked it, but maybe you can read the article on: www.afghanscene.com
I haven’t checked it, but maybe you can read the article on: www.afghanscene.com
Kabuli Recreation
Our driver took us to a lake just outside Kabul (on the way to Kandahar, where we’d rather not go!) that is a very popular picnic and recreation spot for the Kabulis. It was quite a surreal experience.
Around the small lake there were some holiday cottages, a fun park, food stalls and you could even hire swan-shaped paddle-boats!! It looked like some kind of tourist resort!
On the way there we also passed the Kabul golf course! That was also quite an experience.
It looked more like some cross country course, with a lot of small stones everywhere and not much green. We actually only saw the greens (that are anything but green) and no tees so I could not really figure out how to play it.
He also took us up to the hill with the swimming pool, where I went also last time in Kabul.
To my big surprise there was water in it! It was far from full though, but enough for the little boys (no girls!!) to jump, splash and swim in. He also told us he too used to go swimming there when he was a kid.
From that hill it was also very obvious how much greener the city is now than it was in March.
I have read a lot about how famous Kabul used to be for it’s gardens, roses and orchards and I believe that if there only will be peace for some time, they will be able to get there again, there is definitely a gardening tradition to build on.
Tomorrow we will leave Afghanistan, but the way this trip have worked out we might be back soon again… But now I most of all look forward to a couple of relaxing days in Dubai.
Cultural Confusion
Today I had some cultural considerations. Before we left Kabul I met with the driver who was driving us the last time and he then asked when I would come back to Kabul. I answered I would return on Sunday and leave again on Tuesday. Then he invited me to dinner with his family on Monday evening. I found it very flattering and thanked and agreed. But we never decided on the details, we only changed phone numbers, but did not say who would call who.
At the same time as I am very flattered and happy to be invited and really wanted to meet his family again and hopefully would have some more time to talk to them and hear more about how they live and think, I also felt a bit hesitant. I know it is against all security recommendations to go out alone like that with someone you don’t really know. But I do trust him and I have been there before. But this time it would have been more planned which in a way is riskier and it would also mean movement after dark which normally is recommended to avoid. And I also did not really know how to get there and back. Last time he drove me, but I am not sure whether he has a car of his own and I don’t think he would be able to use the company car in the evening.
Anyway; now when we came back to Kabul I did not know if I should call him or not. I felt that my colleague was not too thrilled about me moving around on my own with an Afghan at night, but I mostly wondered what would be the most culturally acceptable. Was I to call and let him know I was back? Or would that be like inviting myself? Should I just wait and see if he called or would it be pushy and not correct to call an international woman? Was it very rude not to make this invitation happen? I just did not know what to do so I just did not call and neither did he. It is a bit sad; I would really have liked to visit his family again. They all seemed so nice and I even bought a small gift for them in Mazar, but I did just not know what would have been the correct thing to do.
Ok, we had some meeting quite late and after that our other driver took me and my colleague out for a small sightseeing, so I had some other nice things to do, but it would have been such an opportunity to speak to some “normal” Afghans under nice circumstances.
I managed to make some small cultural blunders in the evening as well. While we were having dinner at the Serena some high shot person dressed in the traditional clothes from the Gulf came in. You could tell he was a VIP both from his two body guards and from the way the staff reacted. For one they immediately turned down the rather annoying music (pan-flute versions of Beatles songs!). Then it happened that I went to the dessert buffet at the same time as the VIP and he started talking to me and explaining one of the desserts, what it contained and that it is very common in Egypt. As he repeated Egypt a couple of times I eventually asked if he came from Egypt. Then he told me that he was the ambassador of UAE and pointing to his clothes saying “this you only see in the Gulf”. I felt so stupid. Of cause I know, but it just came across in the wrong way. Later I wanted to tell him that I really liked the dessert and thank him for the recommendation and I asked once more what it was called. Obviously he misunderstood me and thought I asked what his name was and answered “Mohammed”. That made me fell very stupid again as I then did not know whether to introduce myself or just tell him that I was actually more interested in the name of the dessert. I opted for the latter option. After that I thought I’d better stay away and not talk to him more in case his body guards would start to regard me as an annoyance and have me thrown out.
At the same time as I am very flattered and happy to be invited and really wanted to meet his family again and hopefully would have some more time to talk to them and hear more about how they live and think, I also felt a bit hesitant. I know it is against all security recommendations to go out alone like that with someone you don’t really know. But I do trust him and I have been there before. But this time it would have been more planned which in a way is riskier and it would also mean movement after dark which normally is recommended to avoid. And I also did not really know how to get there and back. Last time he drove me, but I am not sure whether he has a car of his own and I don’t think he would be able to use the company car in the evening.
Anyway; now when we came back to Kabul I did not know if I should call him or not. I felt that my colleague was not too thrilled about me moving around on my own with an Afghan at night, but I mostly wondered what would be the most culturally acceptable. Was I to call and let him know I was back? Or would that be like inviting myself? Should I just wait and see if he called or would it be pushy and not correct to call an international woman? Was it very rude not to make this invitation happen? I just did not know what to do so I just did not call and neither did he. It is a bit sad; I would really have liked to visit his family again. They all seemed so nice and I even bought a small gift for them in Mazar, but I did just not know what would have been the correct thing to do.
Ok, we had some meeting quite late and after that our other driver took me and my colleague out for a small sightseeing, so I had some other nice things to do, but it would have been such an opportunity to speak to some “normal” Afghans under nice circumstances.
I managed to make some small cultural blunders in the evening as well. While we were having dinner at the Serena some high shot person dressed in the traditional clothes from the Gulf came in. You could tell he was a VIP both from his two body guards and from the way the staff reacted. For one they immediately turned down the rather annoying music (pan-flute versions of Beatles songs!). Then it happened that I went to the dessert buffet at the same time as the VIP and he started talking to me and explaining one of the desserts, what it contained and that it is very common in Egypt. As he repeated Egypt a couple of times I eventually asked if he came from Egypt. Then he told me that he was the ambassador of UAE and pointing to his clothes saying “this you only see in the Gulf”. I felt so stupid. Of cause I know, but it just came across in the wrong way. Later I wanted to tell him that I really liked the dessert and thank him for the recommendation and I asked once more what it was called. Obviously he misunderstood me and thought I asked what his name was and answered “Mohammed”. That made me fell very stupid again as I then did not know whether to introduce myself or just tell him that I was actually more interested in the name of the dessert. I opted for the latter option. After that I thought I’d better stay away and not talk to him more in case his body guards would start to regard me as an annoyance and have me thrown out.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Sad News
Some of the countries that I have spent some time working in, have captured my interest a little more than others and I like to follow what happens there a little closer. Today almost all of them made it to the headline news. Unfortunately not in any positive manner. In the Philippines a ship stranded and lot of people died and at the same time a typhoon is making others homeless and probably kills more. Zimbabwe is sinking even deeper into chaos and despair and the opposition is being cracked down on even harder. And well, I sit and watch it all on BBC in my hotel room in Afghanistan that makes it to the news almost every day, but hardly ever any good news.
Of cause one can not really compare disasters and say one is more tragic than the other, but somehow what is happening in Zimbabwe makes me the saddest. Floods and powers of nature are hard to completely avoid and the situation in Afghanistan is so complex that it is difficult to see a feasible solution. But what is happening in Zimbabwe just seems so unnecessary. I am sure it could be such a nice country. Right now there is a longer reportage on BBC on the situation in Zim and they were just talking to a group of people that had been badly beaten and harassed to the extent that they had fled their homes and hid in the bush, but still they were all convinced to vote for the opposition. That is impressive and brave!! Unfortunately Tzwangirai has now decided not to run in the elections as there is no chance that the election will be fair, so what choice do the poor people have??
Of cause one can not really compare disasters and say one is more tragic than the other, but somehow what is happening in Zimbabwe makes me the saddest. Floods and powers of nature are hard to completely avoid and the situation in Afghanistan is so complex that it is difficult to see a feasible solution. But what is happening in Zimbabwe just seems so unnecessary. I am sure it could be such a nice country. Right now there is a longer reportage on BBC on the situation in Zim and they were just talking to a group of people that had been badly beaten and harassed to the extent that they had fled their homes and hid in the bush, but still they were all convinced to vote for the opposition. That is impressive and brave!! Unfortunately Tzwangirai has now decided not to run in the elections as there is no chance that the election will be fair, so what choice do the poor people have??
Pathetically vulnarable
It is amazing how handicaped we are. I feel I can not do my job because my internet connection is too slow!!
I am back in Kabul and very surprisingly the internet at the Serena is so much slower and less reliable than it was at the much more modest hotel in Mazar. I can read my mail, but I can not send any from my job address. To post my blogs is quite ok as I can write the text in Word and then juste paste them here and that does not require many clicks, but trying to search things on the net or download documents makes you crazy.
So, I can write a little on my report, but I will have a lot to do when I get back and it is a bit frustrating not to be able to use the time here better. How pathetically vulnarable we are...
I am back in Kabul and very surprisingly the internet at the Serena is so much slower and less reliable than it was at the much more modest hotel in Mazar. I can read my mail, but I can not send any from my job address. To post my blogs is quite ok as I can write the text in Word and then juste paste them here and that does not require many clicks, but trying to search things on the net or download documents makes you crazy.
So, I can write a little on my report, but I will have a lot to do when I get back and it is a bit frustrating not to be able to use the time here better. How pathetically vulnarable we are...
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Golf Aid?
After having been to a load of meetings with different UN-organisations, NGO:s and other stakeholders in the development and international aid community, you realise that there are a lot of different kinds of devolopment projects going on and some of them rather strange or odd. I just heard on a local tv-channel that there is a German project or cooperation aiming to popularise golf in Afghanistan! They said that golf had a 50-years history in Afghanistan, but fell in despair during the three decades of war but now there is rehabilitation going on. Amazing! That might be someting for me in case our projects would not work...
The fabolous Kabul Golf Course, Afghanistan's best; and only! I can really recommend a visit to the wed site: www.kabulgolfcourse.com
The greens are browns. Talking about extreme sport!
But actually that is not so weird as it might sound. Of course it wont help the poor people who are on the brink of starvation because of the draught, nor will it empower women or improve the childrens education, but I hope the money for this comes from other sources than development aid and will not crowd out projects on those issues too. In a way i think it is important to work on things that makes life a little more bearable for the ones who are not really starving. I belive that might give them a little hope for the development of the country. On the other hand I have absolutely no idea who is playing golf here, maybe it is only the international community...
Anyway, I heard that there are people, Afghans too, who do rock-climbing in the mountains, at the Salang pass. It makes me feel good to hear that, that there are some "normal" and enjoyable things to do and that people do it. I can not really explain why, but it gives a feeling of some normality to a situation that often seem very hopeless.
The fabolous Kabul Golf Course, Afghanistan's best; and only! I can really recommend a visit to the wed site: www.kabulgolfcourse.com
The greens are browns. Talking about extreme sport!
But actually that is not so weird as it might sound. Of course it wont help the poor people who are on the brink of starvation because of the draught, nor will it empower women or improve the childrens education, but I hope the money for this comes from other sources than development aid and will not crowd out projects on those issues too. In a way i think it is important to work on things that makes life a little more bearable for the ones who are not really starving. I belive that might give them a little hope for the development of the country. On the other hand I have absolutely no idea who is playing golf here, maybe it is only the international community...
Anyway, I heard that there are people, Afghans too, who do rock-climbing in the mountains, at the Salang pass. It makes me feel good to hear that, that there are some "normal" and enjoyable things to do and that people do it. I can not really explain why, but it gives a feeling of some normality to a situation that often seem very hopeless.
Friday, June 20, 2008
Almost in Uzbekistan
Today was a very interesting day. I and one of our consultants were taken on a field trip by the Ministry of Energy and Water to look at some flood protections they have built along the Amu Darya. I was a bit worried before the trip, not so much about the security; that we were travelling on our own, with people we had just met, to an area we don’t know with out any precious security clearance. I felt that was all ok. According to all available information that area should be quite ok and we were travelling on a very low-key, with local people in an unmarked, local car. What worried me more was that we would be five people in an old Toyota Corolla, which I thought had no AC, on partly very bad roads. Not that I distrust the ability of a Corolla, they are very good cars!! But this just might be one size to big. On top of that I woke up at four this morning with a rather unhappy stomach. Oh, no! This is the absolutely wrong day for that. It was not very bad, but I took some loperamid as a precaution and it all went well. To my surprise the car even had AC so the trip was quite ok.
The drive took about an hour straight north, the first stretch of the road was very good, nicely paved with asphalt, but the last stretch was still under construction and we were driving on gravel. The landscape is very flat and basically pure desert. Approaching the river it got a little greener. Leaving the main road and driving to the bands that we were there to look at we were driving at what could at the most be called paths. That was a hard test for the Corolla, but she stood the test. My head also stood the test although it got quite a few hits while we bumped along the paths.
I must say it was a rather special feeling to stand on the bank of Amu Darya. Having read quite a lot about Afghanistan and Central Asia one realise the river played an important part in history; as a transport route and a border. Although in history it is probably more known as Oxus. Even Alexander the Great crossed it! We did not cross however, but i got a sms welcoming me to Uzbekistan, that was cool enough for me.
We also went to see the village that the band was suppose to protect from the river. That was really something! I had never before been in a rural Afghanistan village. We wanted to speak to the head of the village, but he was not there. But the kids had a field day.
As always they were very curious and excited, but we also noted that they seemed a bit afraid of the car and ran away, much further than would have been normal safety precautions.
Our guide said they had probably never seen a car before. It seems a bit unlikely as it was not so far from the somewhat bigger town of Hiayraton, but on the other hand, the village was still quite far off the main road and I suppose the kids don’t get to go into the town. I don’t think we saw a woman the whole day. Not even in Hiayraton were we went afterwards.
A shepard watching his sheep and goats by the river.
The village and the houses looked rather different from the houses closer to Mazar and in Kabul, and their walls were a bit lower so you actually could see the houses. They houses are a bit higher and they are wider at the base and almost look a bit like towers. The Amu Darya forms the border between Afghanistan and Uzbekistan so I guess the culture is a bit different. I think it is a bit cool to almost have been in Uzbekistan. I even got a sms saying Welcome to Uzbekistan.
You can really tell that Hiayraton is a border town. There is a big bridge over the river and into Uzbekistan and it is both a road and railroad bridge. So the small stretch of railroad leading from the bridge and into the big yard were there stood loads and loads of rusty wagons and tank wagons, is actually the only piece of railroad in all of Afghanistan. The wagons have probably been standing there since the Soviet troops withdrew. Just outside of the town there were also lots and lots of trucks and lorries, waiting for cargo I guess. Most of them, as the bus, were old German trucks, but also quite a few were old Russian. My favourite was the big Mercedes Benz with “Corolla” written all over the front. That really says something about the status of Corolla in this country!
When we came back to Mazar we just had a quick shower and then we went to the camp to catch up on the midsummer celebrations. We missed the herring lunch but got dinner and had some good chat with people. Somehow it felt a bit weird to be there again. It was all so familiar, everything looked the same as in March, but all the people had changed. Strange!
Not even here did we get a beer though! It seems there are more strict restrictions on import all of a sudden.
The drive took about an hour straight north, the first stretch of the road was very good, nicely paved with asphalt, but the last stretch was still under construction and we were driving on gravel. The landscape is very flat and basically pure desert. Approaching the river it got a little greener. Leaving the main road and driving to the bands that we were there to look at we were driving at what could at the most be called paths. That was a hard test for the Corolla, but she stood the test. My head also stood the test although it got quite a few hits while we bumped along the paths.
I must say it was a rather special feeling to stand on the bank of Amu Darya. Having read quite a lot about Afghanistan and Central Asia one realise the river played an important part in history; as a transport route and a border. Although in history it is probably more known as Oxus. Even Alexander the Great crossed it! We did not cross however, but i got a sms welcoming me to Uzbekistan, that was cool enough for me.
We also went to see the village that the band was suppose to protect from the river. That was really something! I had never before been in a rural Afghanistan village. We wanted to speak to the head of the village, but he was not there. But the kids had a field day.
As always they were very curious and excited, but we also noted that they seemed a bit afraid of the car and ran away, much further than would have been normal safety precautions.
Our guide said they had probably never seen a car before. It seems a bit unlikely as it was not so far from the somewhat bigger town of Hiayraton, but on the other hand, the village was still quite far off the main road and I suppose the kids don’t get to go into the town. I don’t think we saw a woman the whole day. Not even in Hiayraton were we went afterwards.
A shepard watching his sheep and goats by the river.
The village and the houses looked rather different from the houses closer to Mazar and in Kabul, and their walls were a bit lower so you actually could see the houses. They houses are a bit higher and they are wider at the base and almost look a bit like towers. The Amu Darya forms the border between Afghanistan and Uzbekistan so I guess the culture is a bit different. I think it is a bit cool to almost have been in Uzbekistan. I even got a sms saying Welcome to Uzbekistan.
You can really tell that Hiayraton is a border town. There is a big bridge over the river and into Uzbekistan and it is both a road and railroad bridge. So the small stretch of railroad leading from the bridge and into the big yard were there stood loads and loads of rusty wagons and tank wagons, is actually the only piece of railroad in all of Afghanistan. The wagons have probably been standing there since the Soviet troops withdrew. Just outside of the town there were also lots and lots of trucks and lorries, waiting for cargo I guess. Most of them, as the bus, were old German trucks, but also quite a few were old Russian. My favourite was the big Mercedes Benz with “Corolla” written all over the front. That really says something about the status of Corolla in this country!
When we came back to Mazar we just had a quick shower and then we went to the camp to catch up on the midsummer celebrations. We missed the herring lunch but got dinner and had some good chat with people. Somehow it felt a bit weird to be there again. It was all so familiar, everything looked the same as in March, but all the people had changed. Strange!
Not even here did we get a beer though! It seems there are more strict restrictions on import all of a sudden.
Thursday, June 19, 2008
In Mazar again
If I felt there was a different feeling being in Kabul this time compared to the last time, that is nothing compared to the difference it is being in Mazar this time. This time we don’t live at the camp, but stay in a hotel in town. And we rent normal cars with drivers and are not dependent on the military for transport and hence also not on their security restrictions. That is so nice! It gives you so much more freedom.
Today we even took a walk in the streets and in a market and I finally got to see the blue mosque. Still from the outside the gates, but closer than the 500 metres as last time. It is truly beautiful!
We actually got behind the gates too and saw the famous white pigeons. A grey pigeon that lands on the mosque is said to turn white within seven (?) days because of the purity and the holiness of the mosque. Maybe it also has something to do with the fact that they keep loads of white pigeons just behind the mosque... While posting this picture I noticed that I had also captured the man laying in the middle of the picture. We saw him when we were there and wondered if he was actually dead. It is not so unusual that people sleep in the streat or in parks, but this man was lying in a somewhat strange position and in the blazing sun, which is unusual. Maybe he lay down for a rest while there was still shadow, but by the time the sun turned the man had died.... well, I don't know.
Walking in the market was nice. Of cause you get a lot of attention and my colleagues noted that the men stared at me. I did my best not to care or to even notice and I am quite good at it.
An old man was selling knives in the street, I believe we were good customers.
There are more burqa clad women here and I suppose the people in general are less used to westerners in the streets. On the other hand it is nice to meet the women without burqa, they look you in the eyes and I can meet their gaze and often they smile back and say salaam. That is nice!
The place were we are staying is also very different. It is a hotel, but it is a little more like the guest house we stayed at last time and very far from the five star Serena. But I like it! It feels much more genuine, and the internet connections are far better than at Serena. Who would have guessed that?! The hotel restaurant is obviously the only (or one of the very few) hangout for internationals in the city. So at dinner we had almost the whole young, international NGO and UN-crowd of Mazar at the table. Here you also can drink alcohol, which you can not at Serena. It is funny how much you can long for a cold beer. Especially in the heat and dust here, it is ca 40 degrees and very dry and dusty. We were all really looking forward to having a cold beer in the evening, but then it turned out that they were out of beer as the transport from Kabul was delayed. Speak of disappointment!! The wine was also out so we had to drink gin tonic…
The flight here was also very different. Although it is very dry and the predominant colour of the land is sand, it is still much greener than in March. From the air you could really see where there is some water. In the valleys where there is a small stream of water it is green and all of a sudden some of the villages that I spotted the last time make sense. But still, many of the villages are incredibly isolated. We heard today that some villages are cut off from the rest of the world for five to six months during winter! I don’t understand how people survive here.
Before we left Kabul I met with the same driver that drove us the last time, which was a very nice surprise. It was good to see him again, we chatted for a while and then he invited me for dinner with his family on Monday evening. That is of cause very sweet and I am very flattered and I was actually thinking that it would be nice to have some more time to talk to his family. At the same time it feels a bit weird. I don’t know if it was just me he invited or if I should ask the others. And I don’t know if it is wise, safe and what I should bring or what to wear etc etc, but of cause I can not reject such an invitation!
Tomorrow we are going on a field visit together with the ministry for energy and water to some villages at the Amur, where they have some flood prevention projects. That will be very exciting. I will actually get to see the Oxus that I have read so much about.
After that we are invited to the camp for midsummer celebration, so some midsummer I will get after all…
Today we even took a walk in the streets and in a market and I finally got to see the blue mosque. Still from the outside the gates, but closer than the 500 metres as last time. It is truly beautiful!
We actually got behind the gates too and saw the famous white pigeons. A grey pigeon that lands on the mosque is said to turn white within seven (?) days because of the purity and the holiness of the mosque. Maybe it also has something to do with the fact that they keep loads of white pigeons just behind the mosque... While posting this picture I noticed that I had also captured the man laying in the middle of the picture. We saw him when we were there and wondered if he was actually dead. It is not so unusual that people sleep in the streat or in parks, but this man was lying in a somewhat strange position and in the blazing sun, which is unusual. Maybe he lay down for a rest while there was still shadow, but by the time the sun turned the man had died.... well, I don't know.
Walking in the market was nice. Of cause you get a lot of attention and my colleagues noted that the men stared at me. I did my best not to care or to even notice and I am quite good at it.
An old man was selling knives in the street, I believe we were good customers.
There are more burqa clad women here and I suppose the people in general are less used to westerners in the streets. On the other hand it is nice to meet the women without burqa, they look you in the eyes and I can meet their gaze and often they smile back and say salaam. That is nice!
The place were we are staying is also very different. It is a hotel, but it is a little more like the guest house we stayed at last time and very far from the five star Serena. But I like it! It feels much more genuine, and the internet connections are far better than at Serena. Who would have guessed that?! The hotel restaurant is obviously the only (or one of the very few) hangout for internationals in the city. So at dinner we had almost the whole young, international NGO and UN-crowd of Mazar at the table. Here you also can drink alcohol, which you can not at Serena. It is funny how much you can long for a cold beer. Especially in the heat and dust here, it is ca 40 degrees and very dry and dusty. We were all really looking forward to having a cold beer in the evening, but then it turned out that they were out of beer as the transport from Kabul was delayed. Speak of disappointment!! The wine was also out so we had to drink gin tonic…
The flight here was also very different. Although it is very dry and the predominant colour of the land is sand, it is still much greener than in March. From the air you could really see where there is some water. In the valleys where there is a small stream of water it is green and all of a sudden some of the villages that I spotted the last time make sense. But still, many of the villages are incredibly isolated. We heard today that some villages are cut off from the rest of the world for five to six months during winter! I don’t understand how people survive here.
Before we left Kabul I met with the same driver that drove us the last time, which was a very nice surprise. It was good to see him again, we chatted for a while and then he invited me for dinner with his family on Monday evening. That is of cause very sweet and I am very flattered and I was actually thinking that it would be nice to have some more time to talk to his family. At the same time it feels a bit weird. I don’t know if it was just me he invited or if I should ask the others. And I don’t know if it is wise, safe and what I should bring or what to wear etc etc, but of cause I can not reject such an invitation!
Tomorrow we are going on a field visit together with the ministry for energy and water to some villages at the Amur, where they have some flood prevention projects. That will be very exciting. I will actually get to see the Oxus that I have read so much about.
After that we are invited to the camp for midsummer celebration, so some midsummer I will get after all…
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
By Different Standards
The last couple of days I have been to quite a few meetings at different Afghan ministries, universities and NGO:s It is very interesting to visit Afghan institutions. Often they have rather spacious offices, partly because they don’t have that much furniture. Although all the offices I visited had desks, chairs and laptops. Often it is very difficult to find the person you look for, even though you have an appointment. There are often no signs or listings on where to find people. Fortunately there are always a lot of people around to ask. Unfortunately the often have no idea about where to find the person you look for. Sometimes it is a little difficult not to start laughing. Not at the persons themselves n. b.!! They are all very nice and friendly and helpful and, I am sure, doing their best under very difficult circumstances. What makes me want to laugh is the enormous difference to offices in Sweden and how absurd it somehow seems. In every office you meet a lot of people who just seem to linger in the hallways. Often they look as if they had been sleeping in the street, a bit dirty and rugged, some limping, many missing teeth or having very black teeth. Some of the old men in beard and traditional clothing look as if they would be hundred years old and you really wonder what they do there. Maybe many don’t really do much there, maybe they just do linger.
On the other hand there are a lot of people doing different kind of services. It is a huge difference between the people you meet in the corridors and the ones we meet in the meetings. The ones we meet are all better dressed, healthier looking (although some of them also miss teeth) are well educated, often abroad and speak good English. You also notice a very big difference in hierarchy. The guys (they are all men!!) that we meet seem to have an army of office attendants. Whenever they want something they just call, or even ring a bell! And immediately there is someone at the door, ready to bring some more tea, get some documents or make a copy. You will not find any like that in a Swedish office!
When you ask someone for the way to someone they often point in some direction only for you to meet someone there who sends you back. Often they even choose to walk with you, even though they don’t know where to go, they just walk with you and do the asking for you. So not only do the traffic situation often make you come to late to the meetings, the walking around on huge office areas delays you even more.
The Kabul University area was also huge! But it was actually very nice. It is the greenest place I have seen so far in Afghanistan. It is in a huge lush park. Of cause the buildings are quite run down and the equipment and furniture is really nothing like we are used to, but the area was very nice. The professor in geology that we met was contemplating the situation of his country compared to what he had seen in Europe (Germany) and disapprovingly wondered how long it would take for his country to get to 50 or maybe even 30% of the level we have in our countries. He looked a bit sad when he said that and I can understand him and felt that there was nothing we could say to cheer him up.
On the other hand there are a lot of people doing different kind of services. It is a huge difference between the people you meet in the corridors and the ones we meet in the meetings. The ones we meet are all better dressed, healthier looking (although some of them also miss teeth) are well educated, often abroad and speak good English. You also notice a very big difference in hierarchy. The guys (they are all men!!) that we meet seem to have an army of office attendants. Whenever they want something they just call, or even ring a bell! And immediately there is someone at the door, ready to bring some more tea, get some documents or make a copy. You will not find any like that in a Swedish office!
When you ask someone for the way to someone they often point in some direction only for you to meet someone there who sends you back. Often they even choose to walk with you, even though they don’t know where to go, they just walk with you and do the asking for you. So not only do the traffic situation often make you come to late to the meetings, the walking around on huge office areas delays you even more.
The Kabul University area was also huge! But it was actually very nice. It is the greenest place I have seen so far in Afghanistan. It is in a huge lush park. Of cause the buildings are quite run down and the equipment and furniture is really nothing like we are used to, but the area was very nice. The professor in geology that we met was contemplating the situation of his country compared to what he had seen in Europe (Germany) and disapprovingly wondered how long it would take for his country to get to 50 or maybe even 30% of the level we have in our countries. He looked a bit sad when he said that and I can understand him and felt that there was nothing we could say to cheer him up.
The News and the Reality
It is quite a strange situation to sit here in Kabul and hear the news about the violence in the southern part of the country. There are the hundreds of imprisoned Taliban that escaped prison in Kandahar the other day and there are the Afghan and international forces stepping up their offensive on Taliban strongholds to the level it almost sounds as outright war and there are news about people fleeing their homes in fear of the fighting. And here I sit in the capitol and it feels absolutely calm and safe. I was not nervous or afraid in March when I was here, but I felt the atmosphere was tenser then, now it feels more relaxed. This time I have not visited so many UN-organisations as last time, which might be one of the reasons why I find the situation more relaxed than last time. I haven’t had to pass as many as rigorous security checks and have met less nervous international staff.
I know it can be very deceptive. There have obviously been more serious rumours about attacks against Serena again, but here I sit looking out my window over the sun setting and casting a beautiful light over the hills. All I hear through my open window is the hum of the generator, some birds and in the distance the sounds of the city.
Tomorrow we are leaving for Mazar again and we will have to leave rather early which is not very great. As movements early in the morning is normally recommended to avoid. And the road to the airport is of cause a strategic target. But I am sure it will be no problem. This time we won’t be staying in the camp in Mazar, which is good. That means we will be able to see some of the city and hopefully we will also be able to go on some visit to the field.
I know it can be very deceptive. There have obviously been more serious rumours about attacks against Serena again, but here I sit looking out my window over the sun setting and casting a beautiful light over the hills. All I hear through my open window is the hum of the generator, some birds and in the distance the sounds of the city.
Tomorrow we are leaving for Mazar again and we will have to leave rather early which is not very great. As movements early in the morning is normally recommended to avoid. And the road to the airport is of cause a strategic target. But I am sure it will be no problem. This time we won’t be staying in the camp in Mazar, which is good. That means we will be able to see some of the city and hopefully we will also be able to go on some visit to the field.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Fancy Kabul - Fancy Germany
Well I continue to investigate the German-Afghan connection.
Maybe not in a very serious way, because there are of cause many serious connections too, but they are far less fun to write about. (Although the German police officers staying at the hotel seem very nice and the professors from the Kabul University faculty of Geology we met with today, seemed very happy to have a cooperation with the University of Bonn). I like much better to write about the fun, weird and unexpected.
Already the last time I was here I noted all the old German tourist busses cruising the streets of Kabul and I believe also the roads of the rest of the country. Today, just outside the university, I saw a lot of them again. One of them had the olympic rings painted on it. We laughed and asked ourselves from what olympic games those were. Then we realised they, and the bus, are probably from Munich 1972!! I had to make a picture of the bus!
When I arrived to Kabul i noticed I had forgotten to pack a hair brush. I thought it must be possible to buy on at such a fancy hotel as the Serena, but they had none. Of cause they offered to send someone out to buy one for me, but I felt that was asking a little too much. I just could not see myself sending someone out to buy a hairbrush for me. But after having tried to untangle my hair with the weak plastic comb provided in the hotel bathroom for two days, I realised I have to get a hair-brush or I will either look like a troll or have no hair at all at the end of the week.
Today we had some time after the meeting and anyway had to go into the Safi Landmark (another bubble, by the way) to get some money from the ATM. There they had a lot of cosmetics shops so I went in to one and asked for a hair brush. The first one he offered me was light blue and had terribly sharp brushes. I realised that would probably make my scalp bleed and asked if he hadn't any other. He said he would get one and sent a young boy out of the shop to get one. I suppose he just went over to the shop next door and that they are all cooperating and therefore it would be no point in going somewhere else. After a couple of minutes he came back with two brushes. The one was a round brush and that I didn't wnat. The other was actually rather fantastic. It was baby pink, with some gold details and golden brushes!! I could not really see myself buying a gold and pink hair-brush, but I also could not see myself sending the guy away again, after all the extra effort! And I do need it and only for this week. I don't really even need to take it with me home, so I bought it.
Back at the hotel when I wanted to try it I noticed what was written on it. On the golden ribbon it says: Dancer professional!! Wow! I have a dancer's hair brush!!
Further down on the plastic handle it is written in white letters: Fancy Germany.
I am stunned! I don't have an explanation for that one!
But now I know I will definitely take it with me home and it will be a treasured souvenir!
Maybe not in a very serious way, because there are of cause many serious connections too, but they are far less fun to write about. (Although the German police officers staying at the hotel seem very nice and the professors from the Kabul University faculty of Geology we met with today, seemed very happy to have a cooperation with the University of Bonn). I like much better to write about the fun, weird and unexpected.
Already the last time I was here I noted all the old German tourist busses cruising the streets of Kabul and I believe also the roads of the rest of the country. Today, just outside the university, I saw a lot of them again. One of them had the olympic rings painted on it. We laughed and asked ourselves from what olympic games those were. Then we realised they, and the bus, are probably from Munich 1972!! I had to make a picture of the bus!
When I arrived to Kabul i noticed I had forgotten to pack a hair brush. I thought it must be possible to buy on at such a fancy hotel as the Serena, but they had none. Of cause they offered to send someone out to buy one for me, but I felt that was asking a little too much. I just could not see myself sending someone out to buy a hairbrush for me. But after having tried to untangle my hair with the weak plastic comb provided in the hotel bathroom for two days, I realised I have to get a hair-brush or I will either look like a troll or have no hair at all at the end of the week.
Today we had some time after the meeting and anyway had to go into the Safi Landmark (another bubble, by the way) to get some money from the ATM. There they had a lot of cosmetics shops so I went in to one and asked for a hair brush. The first one he offered me was light blue and had terribly sharp brushes. I realised that would probably make my scalp bleed and asked if he hadn't any other. He said he would get one and sent a young boy out of the shop to get one. I suppose he just went over to the shop next door and that they are all cooperating and therefore it would be no point in going somewhere else. After a couple of minutes he came back with two brushes. The one was a round brush and that I didn't wnat. The other was actually rather fantastic. It was baby pink, with some gold details and golden brushes!! I could not really see myself buying a gold and pink hair-brush, but I also could not see myself sending the guy away again, after all the extra effort! And I do need it and only for this week. I don't really even need to take it with me home, so I bought it.
Back at the hotel when I wanted to try it I noticed what was written on it. On the golden ribbon it says: Dancer professional!! Wow! I have a dancer's hair brush!!
Further down on the plastic handle it is written in white letters: Fancy Germany.
I am stunned! I don't have an explanation for that one!
But now I know I will definitely take it with me home and it will be a treasured souvenir!
Life in a Bubble
So, I am back in Kabul again. Somehow it feels both different and familiar at the same time, I can not really tell why. Ok, it is summer; it is warmer, greener, but also dustier. Statistically the security situation might have worsened, but I think it feels more relaxed. Maybe because it is my second time, I don’t know. I feel more relaxed and interact more with local people. Being here with a bigger delegation also makes it different, everything takes more time and more time is needed for coordination and briefings etc. It feels less efficient.
The biggest difference though is that we are staying in a very fancy hotel. We wanted to stay at the same guest house as last time, but it was fully booked. Then there was another hotel that was the second choice, but that too was full. Due to the security requirements and general standard then there are not so many choices left. Therefore we are staying at the Kabul Serena. It is VERY nice!
The view from my room.
The rooms are very big and comfortable; the service excellent, the food delicious and it has all facilities of a fancy hotel (pool, gym, spa, beauty salon etc). But somehow and quite honestly I can not really enjoy it. I find it feels very strange to live like that in a place like Kabul, with the immense poverty just out side the walls.
The pool area.
In here it is a completely different world, you really live in a bubble, in here you don’t even hear the noises of the city. You don’t hear the muezzin, the traffic and all the people shouting and yelling, although the hotel is right in the city centre. I also get a guilty conscience for living here. I feel I waste too much water in a country fighting draught, even though I try to be sparse. I feel bad about the constant supply of electricity because I know it is from a generator running constantly and I can see the dark cloud of diesel fumes coming out from it all day and night. Ok, the guest house as well as all who can afford it have a generator because of the poor electricity supply, but in the guest house the generator was not running constantly and I could tell when the normal power fell out and the generator started, here you never notice any black outs. Of course I hade a nice shower with hot water also in the guest house, but the flow of the water was less generous so it made you remember how scarce water is here and made you automatically take shorter showers. Here the water flows everywhere. Of course it is comfortable, but it feels wrong and it makes you almost forget where you are. I honestly would have preferred to stay at a more low key place.
The biggest difference though is that we are staying in a very fancy hotel. We wanted to stay at the same guest house as last time, but it was fully booked. Then there was another hotel that was the second choice, but that too was full. Due to the security requirements and general standard then there are not so many choices left. Therefore we are staying at the Kabul Serena. It is VERY nice!
The view from my room.
The rooms are very big and comfortable; the service excellent, the food delicious and it has all facilities of a fancy hotel (pool, gym, spa, beauty salon etc). But somehow and quite honestly I can not really enjoy it. I find it feels very strange to live like that in a place like Kabul, with the immense poverty just out side the walls.
The pool area.
In here it is a completely different world, you really live in a bubble, in here you don’t even hear the noises of the city. You don’t hear the muezzin, the traffic and all the people shouting and yelling, although the hotel is right in the city centre. I also get a guilty conscience for living here. I feel I waste too much water in a country fighting draught, even though I try to be sparse. I feel bad about the constant supply of electricity because I know it is from a generator running constantly and I can see the dark cloud of diesel fumes coming out from it all day and night. Ok, the guest house as well as all who can afford it have a generator because of the poor electricity supply, but in the guest house the generator was not running constantly and I could tell when the normal power fell out and the generator started, here you never notice any black outs. Of course I hade a nice shower with hot water also in the guest house, but the flow of the water was less generous so it made you remember how scarce water is here and made you automatically take shorter showers. Here the water flows everywhere. Of course it is comfortable, but it feels wrong and it makes you almost forget where you are. I honestly would have preferred to stay at a more low key place.
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Freezing in Dubai
So now I am sitting waiting for a long time at the Dubai International Terminal 2 again. It is no hit! There is really not much to do. We landed at terminal 1 shortly after one o’clock (night), took a taxi and are now sitting on hard wooden chairs waiting for the check-in desk to open. The flight is scheduled for 07:30. God knows when it actually will leave. It is now 04:00.
It is so ironic; Outside it is steaming hot, but inside it is freezing cold. I am wearing all my warm clothes and still freezing. Ok, we know you have AC, but can you please learn to regulate it?!?! Ok, it might also depend on the fact that I haven’t slept for ages. I am considering joining the Pakistanis and Afghanis who are waiting outside the terminal. Sometimes I wonder why I do this. Have I reached a point where I have had enough of travelling?!
It is also something of an irony to hear them play Swedish music at the airport with all the flights to places like Kabul, Luanda, Peshawar, Kandahar, Bagdad, Teheran, Kish, Mashad, Gheshem. For the first hour we were sitting here they played only Roxette.
I hope we won’t have as much delay as last time as I have a meeting already on Sunday afternoon and I really feel I could do with some sleep before that meeting.
However, this time I think I will really try to get a stopover here in Dubai on the way back and this time it might actually work out…
It is so ironic; Outside it is steaming hot, but inside it is freezing cold. I am wearing all my warm clothes and still freezing. Ok, we know you have AC, but can you please learn to regulate it?!?! Ok, it might also depend on the fact that I haven’t slept for ages. I am considering joining the Pakistanis and Afghanis who are waiting outside the terminal. Sometimes I wonder why I do this. Have I reached a point where I have had enough of travelling?!
It is also something of an irony to hear them play Swedish music at the airport with all the flights to places like Kabul, Luanda, Peshawar, Kandahar, Bagdad, Teheran, Kish, Mashad, Gheshem. For the first hour we were sitting here they played only Roxette.
I hope we won’t have as much delay as last time as I have a meeting already on Sunday afternoon and I really feel I could do with some sleep before that meeting.
However, this time I think I will really try to get a stopover here in Dubai on the way back and this time it might actually work out…
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Über-international
Somethimes you need other peoples comments to get perspectiv on your own life. That happened to me today (actually even twice).
I was telling a friend of mine, that while passing Dubai on the way back from Kabul, I will to try to catch up with a German, who I met on the flight from Stockholm to Milano a couple of weeks ago and who is living in Dubai. My friend then replied by coining a new expression and said that my "über-international" way of life should be able to compensate for the miserable place where I live at the moment. Maybe she is right. I am not sure. But I kind of like the expression.
Über-international.
I was telling a friend of mine, that while passing Dubai on the way back from Kabul, I will to try to catch up with a German, who I met on the flight from Stockholm to Milano a couple of weeks ago and who is living in Dubai. My friend then replied by coining a new expression and said that my "über-international" way of life should be able to compensate for the miserable place where I live at the moment. Maybe she is right. I am not sure. But I kind of like the expression.
Über-international.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
The Great Game
Anyone who takes an interest in the historical and political development of Afghanistan will come across the expression The Great Game or The New Great Game. It refers to the fight between Russia and Great Britain over influence over the region in the 19.th century or the struggle for power after the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan in 1989 respectively. The person accredited for coining the expression is normally Rudyard Kipling in his novel Kim, although it was actually the British Captain Arthur Conolly and Kipling only made it more well-known.
Therefore I felt obliged to read Kim and I did a while ago. It was indeed interesting and exciting although the fact that it was written in rather archaic English made it a little hard to digest for me. However, I am now reading another book on the same theme that I can highly recommend to anyone interested in the matter.
It is Peter Hopkirk’s book “The Great Game; The Struggle for Empire in Central Asia”. This is not a novel but is the story about the real players of the Great Game, such as Arthur Conolly. It is more exciting than any spy or agent story. I don’t even think you have to be very interested in either history, politics or military or diplomatic matters, although it contains very interesting details on all those areas. It is truly enjoyable reading and I think you can enjoy it also simply as a fascinating agent story. It is also a proof of that fact often supersedes fiction.
Therefore I felt obliged to read Kim and I did a while ago. It was indeed interesting and exciting although the fact that it was written in rather archaic English made it a little hard to digest for me. However, I am now reading another book on the same theme that I can highly recommend to anyone interested in the matter.
It is Peter Hopkirk’s book “The Great Game; The Struggle for Empire in Central Asia”. This is not a novel but is the story about the real players of the Great Game, such as Arthur Conolly. It is more exciting than any spy or agent story. I don’t even think you have to be very interested in either history, politics or military or diplomatic matters, although it contains very interesting details on all those areas. It is truly enjoyable reading and I think you can enjoy it also simply as a fascinating agent story. It is also a proof of that fact often supersedes fiction.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Welcome Afghanistan!
Finally I saw on the cluster map in the margin, that someone in Afghanistan have been reading my blog. That makes me happy! Welcome!
While I was in Afghanistan myself I thought that me logging on to the blog would leave some traces, but it did not! But now finally someone there has found my blog. Please feel free to leave a comment!
I will be going to Afghanistan next week again so maybe soon there will be more posts from Afghanistan on this blog.
While I was in Afghanistan myself I thought that me logging on to the blog would leave some traces, but it did not! But now finally someone there has found my blog. Please feel free to leave a comment!
I will be going to Afghanistan next week again so maybe soon there will be more posts from Afghanistan on this blog.
Sunday, June 08, 2008
Italy
Just felt I wanted to post some pictures from my trip to Italy last week. Sorry for the poor quality, but as I currently do not have a camera, the pictures are taken with my mobile phone.
Florence
View from the dome
Ponte vecchio
The famous David (or at least a copy of him, believe the real one is now inside)
Green Rome
Florence
View from the dome
Ponte vecchio
The famous David (or at least a copy of him, believe the real one is now inside)
Green Rome
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