Five Days in Afghanistan
Nov 7, 2019, 4:33 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2019
Posts: 10
Five Days in Afghanistan
Below is a summary of my five days in the Afghan Wahkan Corridor. Follow me on Instagram @CraigShubin for more stories like it.
Day 1: Visit Afghan embassy in Khorog, Tajikistan first thing in the morning, write letter detailing that “I’m solely responsible for anything that occurs in Afghanistan”, get visa, then hop in shared taxi to border about three hours south. Cross border which requires waiting for guards to wake up from naps then take 3-mile $20 taxi into Sultan-Ishkashim; a town of predominately Ishmili Muslims. The women are wearing a variety of full Burqas, Hijabs, or no head cover at all, while men wear their Afghan handkerchiefs in various fashions with traditional long sleeve and pants. Once checked into the guesthouse find good signal from Tajikistan cell towers. Following an irrigation ditch about 5 min walk does the trick, proceed to text loved ones “I’m okay”. Spend evening with elevated levels of anxiety wondering why I thought it was a good idea to come to Afghanistan. Oddly enough sleep well.
Day 2: Wake up, wander around town greeting kids as they walk to school, wave at women as they fill water jugs in the canal and say “Saleem” to the men working the fields. One man impresses his friends by picking up a baby yak. Anxiety fades away with these simple encounters. Meet with guide, Safi, and negotiate a plan over tea. Spend rest of morning going from tourist office to local police to military base and back again seeking signatures, approvals and letters granting us passage. The process is less intimidating than it sounds, everyone is friendly but bureaucracy is king. Once we are certified, Safi gets the car and we head for the Wahkan Valley with some Afghan tunes on in the background. Outside the window tribesman harvest their fields with sickles, cows pull tills and wahki children chase the car screaming “Hello!”. These views are broken by military checkpoints with young men wielding automatic weapons and a smile, “Welcome to Afghanistan”. For several hours, the drive is along the Tajik border but we turn away and go deep into The Wahkan Corridor. At our destination Safi asks the local village “Boss”, Mir-sanad, if we may stay in his village and hike to Sargaz Pass in the morning. Boss Mir-sanad says yes, he will join us, and host us in the shepherd village located just before the pass.
Day 3: It’s my birthday. Spend morning handing out notebooks, colored pencils and markers to children. They begrudgely take them. I envisioned this going much different but whatever...at least there is no Taliban. Pack up donkey, drink tea, throw on Taylor Swift and begin hiking. After seven hours, we reach 15,000 feet and the village at Sargaz Pass which has five stone-homes and one yurt. We rest in the yurt where Safi tells me about Afghan laws, hunting Ibex, and his six years of working in tourism; three tours his first year and now over 100 this year. He wants peace with the Taliban so the country can grow and tourism pick up - a reasonable request. It feels like it’s going to be a chill night, I walk outside look left and see one of the villagers cutting the throat of a goat (They must know it’s my birthday). In the time it takes to walk up, it is dead. After watching them skin it, one of the kids signals to follow him. The (more fortunate, alive) goats are being brought in from their pastures and we assist by chasing them and screaming. I feel like I am turning seven, not thirty. The kid and his friends start chaos by riding, tackling, and slapping the goats. After, the meat is prepared in Boss Mir-Sanad’s home. He shows his sons how to cut it properly. Some of the kids chant in Farsi as it’s put on the stove. Tea is served and a fire started inside the yurt for heat. Dinner served inside as well - Delicious fresh meat, yogurt, rice and potatoes. Boss Mir-Sanad and Sofi chat as I doze off.
Day 4: Wake up, drink tea, eat bread, pack donkey, hike back. Hit the hot springs back in the village below. Relax and hand out more notebooks and pens as word has spread of the gifts (maybe the kids did like them). We’ve saved some for Safi’s family but give the remaining pens and notebooks to the boy who packed and drove the donkey. Safi says it was good to give to him because his father died two years ago and he has many brothers and sisters to look after. Safi washes the car by throwing water on it, then we start the journey back. We stop in the village of Urup for the night. A booming metropolis of three families.
Day 5: Five am, skip tea, hit the road. During the drive back Safi points to a flag where six men were killed a year ago in an armored truck robbery. Eight million dollars stolen that was suppose to be paid to teachers and build schools in the region. Tomorrow there is a presidential election so no police checkpoints, they are guarding the voting booths. Cell towers have been turned off to curb nefarious election actions. Arrive in Ishkashim for breakfast at Safi’s house. Wish him luck and safety in tomorrow’s election, cross border, hitchhike back to Khorog.
Day 1: Visit Afghan embassy in Khorog, Tajikistan first thing in the morning, write letter detailing that “I’m solely responsible for anything that occurs in Afghanistan”, get visa, then hop in shared taxi to border about three hours south. Cross border which requires waiting for guards to wake up from naps then take 3-mile $20 taxi into Sultan-Ishkashim; a town of predominately Ishmili Muslims. The women are wearing a variety of full Burqas, Hijabs, or no head cover at all, while men wear their Afghan handkerchiefs in various fashions with traditional long sleeve and pants. Once checked into the guesthouse find good signal from Tajikistan cell towers. Following an irrigation ditch about 5 min walk does the trick, proceed to text loved ones “I’m okay”. Spend evening with elevated levels of anxiety wondering why I thought it was a good idea to come to Afghanistan. Oddly enough sleep well.
Day 2: Wake up, wander around town greeting kids as they walk to school, wave at women as they fill water jugs in the canal and say “Saleem” to the men working the fields. One man impresses his friends by picking up a baby yak. Anxiety fades away with these simple encounters. Meet with guide, Safi, and negotiate a plan over tea. Spend rest of morning going from tourist office to local police to military base and back again seeking signatures, approvals and letters granting us passage. The process is less intimidating than it sounds, everyone is friendly but bureaucracy is king. Once we are certified, Safi gets the car and we head for the Wahkan Valley with some Afghan tunes on in the background. Outside the window tribesman harvest their fields with sickles, cows pull tills and wahki children chase the car screaming “Hello!”. These views are broken by military checkpoints with young men wielding automatic weapons and a smile, “Welcome to Afghanistan”. For several hours, the drive is along the Tajik border but we turn away and go deep into The Wahkan Corridor. At our destination Safi asks the local village “Boss”, Mir-sanad, if we may stay in his village and hike to Sargaz Pass in the morning. Boss Mir-sanad says yes, he will join us, and host us in the shepherd village located just before the pass.
Day 3: It’s my birthday. Spend morning handing out notebooks, colored pencils and markers to children. They begrudgely take them. I envisioned this going much different but whatever...at least there is no Taliban. Pack up donkey, drink tea, throw on Taylor Swift and begin hiking. After seven hours, we reach 15,000 feet and the village at Sargaz Pass which has five stone-homes and one yurt. We rest in the yurt where Safi tells me about Afghan laws, hunting Ibex, and his six years of working in tourism; three tours his first year and now over 100 this year. He wants peace with the Taliban so the country can grow and tourism pick up - a reasonable request. It feels like it’s going to be a chill night, I walk outside look left and see one of the villagers cutting the throat of a goat (They must know it’s my birthday). In the time it takes to walk up, it is dead. After watching them skin it, one of the kids signals to follow him. The (more fortunate, alive) goats are being brought in from their pastures and we assist by chasing them and screaming. I feel like I am turning seven, not thirty. The kid and his friends start chaos by riding, tackling, and slapping the goats. After, the meat is prepared in Boss Mir-Sanad’s home. He shows his sons how to cut it properly. Some of the kids chant in Farsi as it’s put on the stove. Tea is served and a fire started inside the yurt for heat. Dinner served inside as well - Delicious fresh meat, yogurt, rice and potatoes. Boss Mir-Sanad and Sofi chat as I doze off.
Day 4: Wake up, drink tea, eat bread, pack donkey, hike back. Hit the hot springs back in the village below. Relax and hand out more notebooks and pens as word has spread of the gifts (maybe the kids did like them). We’ve saved some for Safi’s family but give the remaining pens and notebooks to the boy who packed and drove the donkey. Safi says it was good to give to him because his father died two years ago and he has many brothers and sisters to look after. Safi washes the car by throwing water on it, then we start the journey back. We stop in the village of Urup for the night. A booming metropolis of three families.
Day 5: Five am, skip tea, hit the road. During the drive back Safi points to a flag where six men were killed a year ago in an armored truck robbery. Eight million dollars stolen that was suppose to be paid to teachers and build schools in the region. Tomorrow there is a presidential election so no police checkpoints, they are guarding the voting booths. Cell towers have been turned off to curb nefarious election actions. Arrive in Ishkashim for breakfast at Safi’s house. Wish him luck and safety in tomorrow’s election, cross border, hitchhike back to Khorog.
!
Nov 12, 2019, 9:07 pm
#12
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Body in Downtown YYZ, heart and mind elsewhere
Programs: UA 50K, refugee from AC E50K, Marriott Lifetime Plat
Posts: 5,132
Thanks for the TR! ^
How did you find Safi in the first place? I would imagine that "tour guide" is not exactly a common occupation in that corner of the world.
How did you find Safi in the first place? I would imagine that "tour guide" is not exactly a common occupation in that corner of the world.
Nov 13, 2019, 8:15 pm
#13
Original Poster
Join Date: Oct 2019
Posts: 10
It’s kinda hard to link photos while traveling. I’m currently motorcycling around north east India so I’ll try to link more photos when I’m in reliable WiFi. Easiest is check out Instagram @CraigShubin
I found the guide from a hostel in Korough (highly recommend Welcome Inn, if you find yourself there). But the border guards in Afghanistan actually call you a taxi and a guide so it’s nearly impossible not to find one. I just told the guide that came with the taxi that I didn’t need him. He still helped me get settled in a guesthouse free of charge.
I found the guide from a hostel in Korough (highly recommend Welcome Inn, if you find yourself there). But the border guards in Afghanistan actually call you a taxi and a guide so it’s nearly impossible not to find one. I just told the guide that came with the taxi that I didn’t need him. He still helped me get settled in a guesthouse free of charge.