Watching television news is very depressing, especially if you're in America. I could get rich predicting the day-to-day news reports. "New housing crisis, Iran warned against nuclear program, unemployment up in Europe, US economy not growing as fast as predicted, 2 soldiers killed in southern Afghanistan." The happiness goes on....
Talking about Afghanistan, all people ever see are the negative stories. While a lot of bad things do happen here here is what I've become use to seeing on a daily basis that you won't see on cable news.
- A crowd of school children waiting for school to open while they buy snacks near my house.
- A man selling coconuts and breaking them open.
- A donkey pulling a carriage with an old man with a long beard along Darul Aman road.
- University students of both sexes mingling in the school courtyard as if no war had ever happened.
- Mothers dressed in a burka or a scarf walking with their children along the streets.
- Men and women working in tailor shops, produce shops, grocery stores, hair salons, and outdoor markets.
- People bargaining over prices of melons and freshly picked pomegranates or 'anaar' as they say in Dari.
- School boy in their teens playing soccer at night in the road with rocks acting as goal posts.
- The overwhelming beauty of the smiles that people have despite living in poverty in a country with no certain future beyond 2014.
- Police officers and army personnel with Klashkinov riffles guarding the city while shaking hands with other people as if forgetting their duty at times.
- Traffic officers directing traffic in a hopeless and thankless job in a city with jam packed roads.
- The smile and grace of a street girl or boy begging and seeing their faces light up at any slight offering that you give them, or game that you play such as 'paper, rock, scissors'.
- The emerald eyes of some of the people here, rumored to be from the Greek invasions of Alexander the Great.
- The endless offerings of tea or 'chai' being offered to me from any local I meet.
- The 'naan' (flat bread) store workers who sit next to a tandoori oven and sell some of the most delicious and cheapest (20 cents) naan I've ever had.
- The hard work of a Kabul butcher hacking away at meat while smiling at me with a big grin on his face because I'm a foreigner.
- The delicate needle work of local tailors as they make the baggy pants and shirts that Afghans are known for.
- The sight of a carpet shop owner laying out his rugs, kilims, and mixed hybrids in hopes of striking a big deal while carefully explaining the intricate work and mastery of how each one was made by hand while simultaneously serving you chai.
The list goes on. The point that I want to make is this country is just like anywhere else, minus the war. People live normal lives and go about their day like anyone back home. As I continue to live here, I will make an increased effort to do the same.
- Jesse
Talking about Afghanistan, all people ever see are the negative stories. While a lot of bad things do happen here here is what I've become use to seeing on a daily basis that you won't see on cable news.
- A crowd of school children waiting for school to open while they buy snacks near my house.
- A man selling coconuts and breaking them open.
- A donkey pulling a carriage with an old man with a long beard along Darul Aman road.
- University students of both sexes mingling in the school courtyard as if no war had ever happened.
- Mothers dressed in a burka or a scarf walking with their children along the streets.
- Men and women working in tailor shops, produce shops, grocery stores, hair salons, and outdoor markets.
- People bargaining over prices of melons and freshly picked pomegranates or 'anaar' as they say in Dari.
- School boy in their teens playing soccer at night in the road with rocks acting as goal posts.
- The overwhelming beauty of the smiles that people have despite living in poverty in a country with no certain future beyond 2014.
- Police officers and army personnel with Klashkinov riffles guarding the city while shaking hands with other people as if forgetting their duty at times.
- Traffic officers directing traffic in a hopeless and thankless job in a city with jam packed roads.
- The smile and grace of a street girl or boy begging and seeing their faces light up at any slight offering that you give them, or game that you play such as 'paper, rock, scissors'.
- The emerald eyes of some of the people here, rumored to be from the Greek invasions of Alexander the Great.
- The endless offerings of tea or 'chai' being offered to me from any local I meet.
- The 'naan' (flat bread) store workers who sit next to a tandoori oven and sell some of the most delicious and cheapest (20 cents) naan I've ever had.
- The hard work of a Kabul butcher hacking away at meat while smiling at me with a big grin on his face because I'm a foreigner.
- The delicate needle work of local tailors as they make the baggy pants and shirts that Afghans are known for.
- The sight of a carpet shop owner laying out his rugs, kilims, and mixed hybrids in hopes of striking a big deal while carefully explaining the intricate work and mastery of how each one was made by hand while simultaneously serving you chai.
The list goes on. The point that I want to make is this country is just like anywhere else, minus the war. People live normal lives and go about their day like anyone back home. As I continue to live here, I will make an increased effort to do the same.
- Jesse
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