executive summary by darmansjah
SOKABUL, Afghanistancivilizationcenter. Iset footin this placeaftertakinga long flightthat tookalmosttwodays. Upon arriving, Ihaveawaitedthe arrival ofSayed-which turned out to have alookfarbeyond my expectations. He is not along-beardedyouthand thicker,usingthe turbanon his headashelooksuphere. Sayedratherrepresentyoung peoplewhohave been exposed toKabultouch ofwestern culture. Sayedpicked me upwearing aT-shirt, jeans, and sneakers. The haircutwas split in two, likeAaronKwokmodelsthathad become a trendpasttenyears.
Sayedfluent in English. Hegreetedthe arrival ofmy"Welcome toKabul"as heescortedmeintoabulletproofcarwhich was parked infront of the airport.
The first objectivehere: homemeal!
Sayeddirectsvehiclesto the city center. Ilooked around. The journey tothe center ofthe crowddid not last long.
Wearrivedonabusyroadin thecenter of town. Along the wayfilled withshopsand restaurantsonboth sides of theroad. A row ofcars parkedon theside ofthe roadto makewaynohow wideitbecomesincreasinglynarrow.
LuckilyI set footonwhen the airwas cooland dry. Winter is over. Afghanistan fromentering thespring.Twigsfromovergrowntreesverdantfoliageandsmall flowersareblooming.
The seasonchangehas encouragedpeople togo out.Activity along thestreet was verycrowded. During thewinterschool holidayactivities. The pulse ofthe cityis notas fast asusual.Nowruzfeasthas just passeda few weeks ago. Known asNowruzPersianNew Yearwhich is celebratedin theState ofEastern Europe, Asiathe middle tobandageChina Sea, on the first dayof spring. That wasthe first day tostart thepulseKabul.
For me, at first, Kabulraisesmajorimpression: drydust-covered. City streetslinedbythickdust, the people on the streetlookshabby, poorhousingmud-walled material(not the wall) andground intothe base.The impressionseemed tobe true, akebablunchSayedownedthat I cantastecouldfeelthe grains of sandin it.
The phrasedid notknow then nosayingseems to apply tomeinKabul. Shadowlike that, I hasten to wipe outin my mind. Aftersearchingthe hallwaysandstreets of the city, Ihave the impressionthatrecentlysodifferent.
The phrasedid notknow then nosayingseems to apply tomeinKabul. Shadowlike that, I hasten to wipe outin my mind. Aftersearchingthe hallwaysandstreets of the city, Ihave the impressionthatrecentlysodifferent.
Apart from the problem of poverty, the number of foreign funds that came into the country is very large. Kabul city is waking up from a long hibernation, the devastation caused endless war. Although in general the infrastructure is very poor, partly cobbled streets began to be covered with asphalt complete with lampposts on either side illuminate when the sun began to set on the western horizon. Growth in the number of used cars imported from neighboring countries thronged the city and not proportional to the increase in the quality of the resulting congestion rayanya.
Like the other big cities are built vertically, tall office buildings and apartment emerging high beat remains of buildings of the Soviet era. Ariana, the only cinema that is forbidden during the Taliban rule, are now beginning to operate again. Local people visit the rollicking comedy pictures showing various films of India and Pakistan. The houses are brick like mushrooms in the rainy season. This building replaces the traditional residences many emerging citizens built using mud raw materials.
Foreign-flagged humanitarian organizations helped to enliven Afghanistan aviation market. One by one foreign airlines and local business opportunities. They began to open up new routes linking Kabul with major cities in Asia, the middle east, and even to some countries in Europe. Similarly, international air terminal funded Japanese society. Terminal was built to offset the surge of passengers who are not accommodated in the old terminal-which has now become a domestic terminal. Access to the outside world that Afghans increasingly open an opportunity for humanitarian workers from various countries began to migrate to the land of Afghanistan which automatically affects the changing habits of its people.
Heard thatthere isa mallin thecity center, Isoonfind out.KabulCityCenteris the onlymodern shopping centersacross the country. Nineentered the buildingfloor, everyvisitormust go througha rigorousexamination roomconsideringthe buildingwas once atarget ofterrorism.Shopping mallconsists of threefloors, while the restserved as alodging-which is above the shoppingplace. Glance,I sawa row ofmannequinsclad in adresswith the top open. Very strange, who canwear clothingwith a modellike that inAfghanistanHere are many women who leave the house without the use of a burqa, just use the veil covering her face and did not like what we find in Indonesia.
Apparentlybehind theburqa, Afghanwomenare likeother women. Theydressed up, wearing jewelryandfine clothesas manifestedfemale friendof mine whohadcome tothe weddingfeastof the Afghans. Amongwomen, theyshould notwear clothes thatdo notcover the entiresurface of thebodybecause ofinvited guestsseparated, womenareaccompaniedby the bridein a room, and the groomand hismaleguestsinanother room.
For somewomen,they wearthe burqaas freedom.That is,theburqano one wouldrecognize them, freelyleave home withoutendangeringthe safetyandsocialruinherreputation. Burqais alsousefulforequalizationamongwomen. Concludingthatbeautyhidesthe faceonceor flawscan notdistinguishsocialstatus, who isrichor poor.