THE AFGHAN SERIES, DAY 8
BAMIYAN – MAZAR-E-SHARIF
Body search, Soviet exploits & the Salang Pass. Part of the fun in countries which are off the beaten path is always the long drives around the country, you just don’t know what you will expect to find.
IF I DIDN’T KNOW ANY BETTER I WOULD HAVE THOUGHT HE WAS LOOKING FOR SOMETHING ELSE DOWN THERE…
Today we had a hellish 12hour drive from Bamiyan up to the north of the country to a city called Mazar-I-Sharif, which was once the safest city in the country.
WHERE IS THE SALANG TUNNEL?
Salang Tunnel
One of Afghanistan’s many traits is the many different landscapes you get to see and going from Bamiyan or Kabul up over and through the Hindu Kush showcases some of the best you will see, from snow-capped mountains to incredible lush valleys where farming is life.
Body search, Soviet exploits & The Salang Pass
DAILY INFO….
- MILES COVERED –
- HOTEL –
Rahat Guest House $50/night 6.5/10 - RESTOS –
Golden Fork Restaurant 8/10 - ATTRACTIONS –
Sakhi Shrine
Lunch – Bukavu
Bush Bazaar
Bird market
Ice cream
Booksellers of Kabul
Chicken street – rug
Dinner – juimerah - STEPS – 14,200
CHALLENGING QUESTIONS
We had left early, around 5am and started the long trip up north but once we reached Parwan Valley, just an hour in we reached one of the many many checkpoints. After seeing the white skin and blue eyes I was immediately asked a few questions via my interpreter.
Why do your country and NATO not recognise our country?
All that was going through my head was “don’t f**k this up and give him something good.” I didn’t want to cop out and lie I wanted to give him something to think about, seeing as he thought I had all the answers!
“I am not the government so it’s a difficult question to answer and I also don’t vote for those who are currently in power and who make these decisions. Personally I judge a country on its own merits and my experience. I have little faith in a lot of the news outlets in the west so I tend to make my own opinion as I travel, explore the country and meet the people. Besides the checkpoints I have nothing but good things to say about Afghanistan.”
I have no idea what my interpreter told him but most likely softened it.
LUNCH, TANKS & THE TALIBAN
My guide is fantastic, he quickly judges what I will and will not like and offers me more ideas and attractions where it would have been easy just to stick with the itinerary. One of these places was a tank graveyard at the side of the main road. Unfortauntyely like most of these places, the Taliban had it pretty much locked down bad at a major compound nearby.
However after a bit of persuasion by my guide we were allowed in for a walk around but on the basis of no photos. We had an escort, fully equipped with an AK47 guide us around, not sure what he expected might happen but better safe than sorry I suppose. He was young, 20 years old and had been a member for 3 years. From my own account he was decent. We came across a few stray dogs who took us all by surprise but he gladly forced his way passed me and my guide and cleared the way.
Body search, Soviet exploits & The Salang Pass
LUNCH
After our short walk we were invited for some tea and I thought there would be no better place to have our lunch too. So we sat for the next 30 minutes, breaking bread and chatting to the Taliban. I’m keen to dig a bit but appreciate I have to start some surface level chat first.
However within no time the commander was telling me about his soviet war exploits. His unit had come across a lone soviet tank, scaled the machine and shot all but the driver. Instead of shooting the driver and moving on with the mission they ordered him to drive off the nearby cliff to which he obviously had little choice.
Body search, Soviet exploits & The Salang Pass
RELATED READ: INTERROGATED and STRIP SEARCHED IN ISRAEL
SALANG PASS
Keen to move on as we still had most of the journey left we approached the infamous Salang Tunnel. Built by the soviets during their war in the 80s it was to allow easy access between the north and south of the country which could often be inaccessible during the winter months. This gave the soviets road access from the northern border of the USSR into Kabul and beyond.
Body search, Soviet exploits & The Salang Pass
FACTS ABOUT SALANG TUNNEL:
- The tunnel is known for its hostile and toxic environment due to dust and fumes that reduce visibility to only a few meters.
- The Salang Tunnel was built in the 1960s by the Soviet Union and is often shut for days because of accidents and avalanches.
- The tunnel has been the site of several disasters including a fire in December 2022 that killed at least 19 people and injured dozens more.
SALANG TUNNEL
As part of the Salang Pass, a short 2km tunnel was created at the peak of the route. With its countless potholes, non-existing lighting, inadequate ventilation and unstable terrain This tunnel has to be in the worst state you could imagine. Although its only short it’s common for people to be stuck there for 7 or 8 hours, my driver got caught in it for 24 hours, I cannot imagine!
AFGHAN CAR WASH
Thankfully we made it out the other end and it’s amusing to see the hugh number of hand car washes and mechanics on the otherside ready to fix up and clean the many vehicles that come through. My driver, who was fairly fussy with his car waited a few more miles before dropping in to find one.
Even a car wash can be a lot of fun with the countless curious and friendly locals keen to have a chat. In my 20minutes of hanging around I met 4 kids cleaning shoes, 2 car sales men, a natural after shave seller and of course a member of the Taliban. Never did I think visiting places like this would give me more than some of the historical sites this country has.
SEARCHED
Before arriving into every city there is a major checkpoint where you have to show permits, passports and sign a few documents, however this one was slightly different and I could sense it immediately. After just a few minutes I was approached by the commander who asked me to follow him. My guide was already in some room doing paperwork which I found strange as he clearly wanted us apart. Then the other guide (he’s on work experience with us) went to follow me and had the door shut on his face. Somethings definitely up.
Once in the room the guard searched me, paying particular attention to an area he probably shouldn’t. A lesser person would have cried sexual harassment would have had a case if it were back home but we’re in Afghanistan and I stayed strong in the hope my semi might scare him off.
MONEY
After his fondle (I joke of course) he then asked to go through my very masculine shoulder bag. The search didn’t last very long as it stopped as soon as he found my money and for some reason decided to count it while often pointing at my camera at the same time. However, my eyes were not moving from the find Afghan paper and in the end he handed it back and asked me to count.
What I later learned in the car was the same commander stole $350 dollars from another guest of my guide. Well, it would have been good to know this before he fingered my…money! All was good though, another story for the book!
TODAY’S YOUTUBE VIDEOS
If you want to see today from a different perspective, and catch a few different stories from the front row, then check out today’s YouTube videos below.
FINAL THOUGHTS
After a quick fix of a flat tyre we were in Mazar and ready for a few days of sightseeing. What a day, never did I think it would be as action packed as it was, and I even got a bit of action in Afghanistan, who would have thought!
NEXT UP
Playing volley ball with the Taliban!!! Click to read.
SAFE TRAVELS, DS x
159/229
This post was part of The Afghan Series, for the entire series click here or for episode 1, click here.
To watch the video of my trip, head to my highlights on my Instagram.
