After this, I’ll never be the same

After my Taliban encounter in Kandahar, my last days in Afghanistan were comparatively easy. The Bus ride back to Kabul in the morning went well, no breakdowns, no drama and the road was actually good for about half of the ride too. I was dumped off on the side of a traffic jammed road in the middle of Kabul in late afternoon and negotiated my way through exhaust fumes and the mayhem of rush hour. It took a long time to find a hotel, but when I finally got to my room I flopped onto the bed and didn’t move till morning. I struggled to get out of bed, but knew I needed to eat something, so I picked myself up and force-fed myself at the nearest restaurant. The food was nothing special, but I ate and finally had a little energy. I decided to head over to Chicken street to look for some travel agents, since that was the closest thing to a tourist section. I had accepted the fact that my “over land route” was finished and was too sick and tired to even be disappointed, I just knew that I had to leave the country soon.

Dubai and Istanbul were my first two choices, since I wasn’t going back to Pakistan and I couldn’t step foot in Iran. Istanbul became the obvious choice as soon as I looked at a map though, as if I needed to be reminded that I still wanted to get to France, by land preferably, even if my land route was broken up for the second time with a flight. So, Istanbul it was and if my energy levels had been low for the last few days, they soon would be topped up by the scalper travel agents annoying me with extortionate prices! In my fruitless search for the actual airline offices, I ended up bumping into an American I met in Peshawar, Pakistan and he was with two writers for the Lonely Plant, it was good to have some company, but they were on their way out of town. They showed me a REAL map of Kabul before they left and I traced a route to the Ariana offices on my old lonely planet map. After walking past the gridlocked Embassy streets, with all of there road blocks, blast absorbing walls, machine gun nests and razor wire, I finally found the Ariana office. Satisfied with their price, I bought my ticket to Istanbul.

Once I held the ticket in my hand, any disappointment I might have had about my failed “land route” disappeared for good. I was suddenly excited at the thought of an airport, flying again and most of all Istanbul, half European, half Asian, one of the most beautiful cities in the world with not just good, but amazing food!! At the time it felt much closer to home as well, a comforting thought for me. The rest of my time was spent getting stamps from the post office (some cool one’s), post cards and Afghan money to take home as souvenirs.

I arrived early at the airport the next day, before the check in desk opened. I read my book until I noticed the line forming at the same time as the check-in counter opened and all at once, the line became a mosh pit! I just stood behind the madness in no hurry until an Afghan security officer came up to me and told me in English to follow him. So I did and ended up around the corner at a second check in desk with only one person in front of me. within a minute I was checked in, and my passport stamped! I went up stairs and sat next the window overlooking the foggy runway. Then the security officer who got me through the mosh pit came up to me with a gentle smile and demanded money from me… I was already getting rusty, that wouldn’t have happened to me in India! It turned out that out of all the people to try to get baksheesh from I was the worst one. Not because it annoyed me, but because the only money I had on me was small Afghan notes as part of my souvenirs. After some arguing I gave him a about 50 cents worth of money, the rest was sitting next to me, hidden in my little backpack.

So that was it, the hardest travel I had even done and some of the most hard core experiences I had ever been through were behind me now, just outside of the airport I was sitting in and also to the south of Afghanistan and to the east of Pakistan. No more Orangutans breaking my door down in the night, no more Cannibals in my dorm, no more snow blindness to suffer through or Taliban to worry about… God I would miss all of that, but it was time to leave it all behind. I had left home 20 months ago and though I didn’t realize it at the time, I was changed forever. I was on my way to Istanbul to get healthy again and finish off the rest of my trip over land, what I didn’t know was how I would react to being back in the “modern world” after so long.

Wooohooo! I’ve finally made it to Pakistan!

My sister flew to Europe a few days ago, we had an amazing time together and I’m glad I had the opportunity to travel with her, even if it was in one of the craziest, hardest, noisiest, dirtiest countries in the world! I’ll never forget it… I’m fully energized again and ready for the toughest leg of the trip. Thanks Sara!

My friend Jacques, who I met in Pushkar, oh and also happens to be a ninja, is in Pakistan now. We plan on traveling Pakistan, Iran and Turkey together, but we’ve both had visa problems with Iran. We were told that Americans and Australians (Jacques is Australian) are not issued tourist visa’s to Iran, but 7 day transit visa’s are possible, just not in India for some stupid reason. So, if I’m unable to get my Iranian visa in Pakistan, I might just fly home from here??? Don’t know one way or the other, there are always other interesting routs, but I’ve got to draw the line some where. Although, heading into China from Pakistan and then taking the trans Mongolian railway to Moscow sounds pretty damn tempting, but a lot of work. Either way, my Asia trip is coming to an end kinda soon (within 2 – 5 months, that really narrows it down), so I’ll let you know what’s up.

Anyway, after Sara flew out of Hellhi, I mean Delhi, I got the hell out of there too. It’s crazy enough in the winter time, but now it’s over 40 degrees (over 120 degrees for all those Americans) and hard to do anything except sit and drink cold esprites (that was for Sara). From Hellhi, Delhi, I caught a sleeper train to Amritsar and stayed in the free dorm at the Golden Temple, (Mecca for Sikhs) and ate free food in the canteen. I had been in India for to long (7 months) at that point, but it was the best possible way to leave. The Temple complex, as well as the people and their religion, was/were beautiful. I left India on a huge positive note and was more than ready to see what Pakistan had in store for me.

So, I took a half an hour bus to boarder, an hour at customs and immigration, then another 45 minute bus to Lahore (Pakistan), where I’m at now. It’s pretty damn hot here too, but I like it (the city) alot! I got to explore the city last night, wandering till 2 AM. I found, of all things, a skate park! It’s the funniest thing I’ve seen since I looked in the mirror and saw my big beard! I rented a smashed up, shitty, cheap board for 50 Rupees and hour ($=60 rupees) and got out there with my teva’s on and although I totally sucked (compared to what I should be able to do) I had a HUGE crowd of people around, cheering every time I did anything! On purpose, I started doing the stupidest tricks I could think of, the stuff I did when I first learned, just to see if they would cheer for that. They did and I actually sat down in the middle of the park laughing me arse off! I retired early, do to bloody toes. Poor things (my toes), they’re destroyed and will never be the same after this trip, it’s amazing that I still have them…

Besides acting like Tony Hawk for 15 minutes, I met a palmist, who just may have been the weirdest dude I’ve ever met, besides the cannibal. he didn’t read my palms or anything, we just talked an drank tea. I won’t repeat what was said, but he’s pretty hard core, a bit loony, but hard core none the less. Anyway, I’m gonna have a great time here, I can already tell. I’ve met some very friendly people (even after I tell them I’m American), who want to buy me stuff?? It’s strange, but they insist, so I except a Coke or tea and listen as they lecture me on how and why America will be destroyed. Everyone’s pretty pissed off about the whole Koran (spl?) in the toilet thing (and rightfully so) in Guantanamo Bay (again spl?). Everyone has been praying for another 9-11, so keep your fingers crossed…

I’m outta here, just wanted to let everyone know where I’m at and I’m loving it.