Side Streets

Eid has come and gone. Things are getting back to a normal rhythm and the days are getting shorter. I indulged in kebobs, naan and palau today for lunch. One can only drive past the kebob stands so many times without saying, "enough is enough! I'm hungry!"

One of the advantages we have in traveling around town is that we drive in unarmored vehicles that look like all the other Afghan vehicles. Which means we often travel where no armed convoys or patrols travel and that means getting to see "ordinary Afghans in their natural environment." We also get stuck in ordinary traffic, like we did last night for two hours getting home. It's often funny when the locals look in our vehicle and suddenly realize that we're not from around here.

So here's some shots of side streets in Kabul that you don't often see unless you leave the more popular/busy routes through town.

A talk by the sewer. Hard to escape the open sewers.

See what I mean? Another open sewer.

Or else one dodges pedestrians in torn-up muddy side streets.

Or, the really old part of town, no sewer at all. Just a dirt road.

In preparation for coming improvements, double sewer!

Then again, there's the dirt ditch in the dirt alleyway.

Ok, the open sewer is out of sight right now,
but it's right by the woman's feet as she inspects pears.
Note the more modern building surrounded by mud brick structures.

The goats get a brand new cement runway up the hill to the cliff houses.

College student emerging from alleyway on the way to school.

Another muddy road without proper drainage.
This one is one of the lower roads into the cliffhouses.

Another improved alleyway. These people must have connections.

Yes, there is electricity these days, even in the poorer parts of town.
Of course driving such roads is an adventure.

Which pretty much sums up the Afghan style of driving.
Yes, taken on the streets of Kabul just yesterday afternoon!

First Snow!

Ye Gads! Where does the time go? I can't believe it's been almost a month since my last post!

Anyway, to catch up on things...it's been Ramazan (Ramadan) since my last post. During Ramazan Muslims fast, pray, and abstain from tobacco and...well, "bedroom activities" from sunrise to sunset. In a couple days it will be Eid el Fitr, the breaking of the fast, so the town has been busy in the markets as people prepare for feasting and gift-giving.

On a weather note, we had our first snow last night (16 September). I do believe it is still "officially" summer. The mountains west of town saw the last of the snow melt on 27 August. So that means we went a mere 20 days without snow. It's shaping up to be one hell of a winter here.

Peaks to the west of town.
From 31 October 2008 until 27 August 2009,
there was snow on them hills.
After a 20-day break, it's back!

Kuchis on the move.
Kuchi means literally, "those who travel".
They are nomadic herders, primarily Pashtun, who are
regarded in some quarters with the same disdain as gypsies.

Note the dog in the lower left of the picture.
Kuchis rely on dogs for both herding and security.
You rarely see Kuchis without dogs.
This sets them apart from most Afghans.

This group of Kuchis started moving south two days before the snow.
Perhaps they were more attuned to the pending weather change than "city folk."

Lending a hand crossing the street.

Cliff house sidewalk.
I'm often asked how people get around in the cliff house neighborhoods.
This is how.

Wee one pooped out from pre Eid shopping.
Note the reddish hair.

Beggar trying a mark.
Since their vehicle looked more important than ours,
we got by without a second look.

The Day After

The Election has passed and votes are being counted.

Somewhere between 40 - 50 percent of the eligible voters cast ballots and that's under threat of dismemberment (the Taliban threatened to cut fingers off) and death (the Taliban threatened to kill people) and under fire (rocket attacks, gunmen and suicide bombers).

Despite all the doom and gloom forecasts, things weren't really all that scary yesterday. The Taliban propaganda machine (the Western media) failed to scare away voters.

So now we wait while votes are counted. We should give a nod to the millions of courageous Afghans who braved death and dismemberment to exercise their right to vote.

The Afghan people are the winners, even if the election was imperfect.

The Faces of Kabul

First, let me thank all of you who've stopped by while I've been "silent" and inquired about my well-being. Doing fine, but I needed a break. I went home on leave where I thought I'd have more time to blog...NOT! My last day at home I hauled 6.5 tons of mulch, but I left it to my dear wife to spread.

While there I did all my medical checkups. When next I return in December, I've got knee surgery scheduled...on Pearl Harbor Day.

As you may notice, I'm in Afghanistan past the one year mark. Right now it looks like I'll be here until the end of April 2010 or beginning of May 2010.

Weather here has been much milder than in many years. There is still snow on the peaks west of town. We hit 99°F yesterday, but for the most part the temps have stayed around the mid-90's for the hottest part of the year. We still have not broken 100°F for the year in Kabul.

We're expecting next week to get a little more dicey with the election. So far the town is quiet, but we doubt the bad guys are going to let the elections go unchallenged. They've certainly made their hostile intentions well-known.

Today I'm just posting a bunch of pictures I'm simply calling "The Faces of Kabul." Some you have seen before, but since they are among my favorites there here again.

You frequently see men and women with their scarf or burqha clenched in their teeth.

Old man begging in the middle of the road.

Ladies out shopping.

Telling a story.

Baker done for the day.

Another very talented woman.

Are you talking to me?

Yep, something stinky nearby.

Six Pashtun men.

Day laborers waiting for jobs.

Pashtun goat herder.

What's this? Boys, talking to girls! In public!

Walking home from the bus stop.

Begger boy.

Ok, there's a little bit of a story to this one.
The hottie on the left is my "girl friend" (it's a joke with my driver).
She frequently flashes me -- drops her veil and smiles when we see each other.
I almost caught her here.

For the guys, note the sexy eyes on the one in the pink shawl.
It's incredible how sexy a woman can look without revealing much.

Homeless old man.

Same little guy from the earlier picture, different day.

Woman begging in the middle of the street.

Crossing Guard.

School Girls.

Cool hippie dude. Note the shades.

Old woman begging.

Fashionably pink.

Blind man eating outside a mosque.

Some Street Shots

Not much to say today. I'll mostly let the pictures talk. Weather has been cooler than "normal" and it looks like we will escape the month of May without breaking 90°F. Forecast heading into the first week of June is continued cooler than "normal" with temperatures in the low to mid-80's.

Some Signs of Normalcy and Good in Town

A girl in a traditional Afghan dress.
She was almost too quick for me!

Soccer team out for 6AM run.

The entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well.
Get your tire's repaired or replaced anywhere along this pot-holed road.

The bazaar is bustling.

Browsing for books.

A Bookseller.
This country has an incredible thirst for knowledge.

Some Signs That There's Much Yet To Do

All the people in the following pictures line up along the same sidewalk almost every day just as the sun comes up.