Paparazzi, V-Day

My co-worker and I wanted to leave work a bit early to attend a conference sponsored by the Youth in Action Association, but she thought there might be some objection to our little excursion, so we told our boss we were going to visit a research institution to pick up some material. While we were at the youth conference, we were filmed by the local and national news networks, who put it (and us) on the evening news. Our whole unit at work saw us, including our boss. Damn paparazzi.

28 April kicks off a 3-day break for us in honor of Victory Day, which I am slightly unclear on, but might mark the day the mujahideen descended on Kabul following a 3-year period of civil war after the ousting of the Soviets in 1989, or might celebrate the victory over the Soviets themselves. One of my co-workers told me a little piece of the Ministry for Urban Development was blown up early this morning, which is an interesting way to commemorate a victory, but I guess we all have our methods of celebration. In 2008, an attempted Karzai assassination killed some parliamentarians at a V-Day event, so I don't know if they hold those high-profile events anymore, but I'll probably celebrate this Victory Day quietly and away from large crowds, which is coincidentally how I celebrate every day.

Tim McGirk, you ruiner-

13 April: Time Magazine publishes an article written by Tim McGirk about the "manic craziness" of Kabul's nightlife, patronized, according to him, by spies and mercenaries who make an excess of $100,000 to blow on hookers and booze.

You can review the article online, Kabul Nightlife: Thriving in Between Bombs, and read about what a spectacular time everybody used to have.

15 April: Several bars and restaurants popular with foreigners around town are raided by the police. Over 6,000 bottles of alcohol are confiscated. Some of the establishments close. Some reopen dry, some don't reopen at all. The Minister of the Interior issues warnings to all relevant businesses in Kabul, i.e., bars, restaurants, and hotels, that alcohol is illegal to sell or consume. I hear word from the underground about plainclothes spies strategically placed around town.

Now we're all under Sharia. Thanks a lot, Tim McGirk.

I had frequented a popular expatriate bar a few times and can testify to witnessing several instances of possible moral decay as suspected by the Afghan government, ranging from bare women's arms to a lively fistfight, but the government seemed content to leave the foreigners to their own devices before Tim McGirk came along.

Since the ban on alcohol I had been wrapping my headscarf a little bit tighter anyway, which might come in handy since Iranian cleric Hojatoleslam Kazem Sedighi announced a link between the lack of modesty among women and earthquakes some days ago. Now, I've never noticed that particular causality, but you never know. Plate tectonics always seemed a little implausible too.

Traveling Afghanistan

Conversations in Afghanistan

At a business appointment in Kabul, 30 March-

CT: Would either of you like some hash?
Me: No...no thanks. You know, I don't want to do anything that would interfere with my ability to run away from something.
CT: You'd be surprised how the adrenaline kicks in. Anyway, sometimes it's about knowing when to run away and when not to.
Me: Yeah...but didn't you get shot?
CT: Well, it's a judgement call.


On a road trip to Istalif, 2 April-

Mark: Is it safe?
Me: Yeah, of course it's safe. And anyway, (pointing to the driver) we've got Massoud's bodyguard here to protect us. (Referring to Ahmad Shah Massoud, military commander of the Northern Alliance.)
Mark: Does he have a gun?
Me: No, but he's got his hands.
Greg: Didn't Massoud get killed?
Me: ...yeah. Shit. Yeah. They assassinated him.

Saving Paul Junior: Part 1

Paul Junior used to be an embedded military journalist. He managed a fairly successful article publication, after which his contracting newspaper group entirely failed to pay him. His visa expired. His money ran out. He got sick. He was just another American illegal immigrant in Afghanistan knocking on death's door until Greg and I intervened.




Next time on the blog: Saving Paul Junior Revisited. I delve into the Afghan business world and meet a second American mujahideen in the process. Job offers ensue.