Smile at your sister

Dani Bily, art director and founder of smile at your sister, asked me a couple of questions on my impressions from my stay in kabul. the interview can be read here.

Plureality Graffiti

More street art amongst Kabul.  

Empty Village

150km outside of Kabul, towards the Hindu Kush mountain range lays the Panjshir Valley. A stunningly beautiful landscape and home to the largest concentration of Tajiks. The recent conflicts ruined villages along the river and people started to move to the close by capital city leaving the area empty and isolated. 

Tarvelers

Afghanistan is home for three millions Kuchis, at least 60% still remaining fully nomadic. Most of them keep goats and sheep and the produce of the animals is exchanged or sold in order to purchase vegetables and other products of a sutlers life. Trough the agent art of Kuchi trading an extensive network of exchange has developed along the main rotes trough Afghanistan.

The Afghan nomads used to move annually from the Afghanistan mountains to the valley of the Indus and hence deep into Inida. These long-distance migrations were stopped in the early 1960 when the boarder with Afghanistan and Pakistan were closed. In the recent times of conflict and natural disasters such as flood and drought over 100.000 nomads have been displaced and are housing in refugee camps.

They travel by foot, horse, donkey or camel although colorful trucks now often being used to transport livestock and family from A to B.

The old city

The oldest party of Kabul is about 3.500 years old and was mainly ruined over the recent years of conflict. Now, the Scotland based NGO "Turquoise Mountain Foundation" rebuilds homes, puts infrastructure in place and preserves historic buildings.

Two birds on a bike

During my time in Kabul, I have seen a variety of things being transported on motor bikes. Toilet bowls, piping, death sheep, women in burka and several children, huge sacks of rubbish, plastic garden chairs for transporting passengers and and and. Sadly I often don't get my camera out fast enough but yesterday I managed to captures those two birds. The white one was still alive and kept on trying to escape.

Afghan Football

The other day Afghan National Army played a football match against Kabul Bank in the Ghazi Stadium, Kabul. Many spectators lined the stadium with a big crowed supporting the ANA. At the end of the match Kabul Bank was leading with a 2:0 victory.