Gateway to Afghanistan

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TOday we hired a minivan and bussed our asses down the Khyber Pass. After the initial hassle of getting our permits we picked up our armed guards (who were actually shorter than me!). And set off.

First we drove through the smugglers market where the store windows are filled with A47s, rocket launchers and heineken. Standing under the concrete arch which marks the beginning of the pass was pretty surreal, and soon we entered the tribal lands. Outside we passed the refugee camps full of Afghanis in their mudbrick homes, children playing the dust and the colourful local string beds for sale on the roadside.

The landscape was stunning: winding roads through rocky passes, forts dotting the hillsides and goats and donkeys grazing on the little grass that grew. Wherever we stopped we attracted the attention of curious locals, though all were friendly and loved posing for photos.

The checkpoint at Michni has been all done up and is a great viewpoint, with a presentation done by the members of the Khyber Rifles to explain the history of the region. Looking down on Afghanistan was totally surreal and beautiful beyond belief. It was hard to believe it was just there, only a few kms away - especially with the binoculars which were so powerful you could see the expressions on the faces of the people in the market on the Afghan side of the border.

It was a great day.....

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Photos

Into the Tribal Lands
Corb and our armed guard

Looking into Afghanistan
It was beautiful, though sad that we couldn't cross

Comments

[Nic Crowther]

Khyber Pass
Great blog, guys! I'm an Aussie travelling solo and was quite keen on making the trek through the Pass. How hard was it to secure guards? How much did you pay? What was the atmosphere of the crossing and if you were there, Peshawar? Any info is gratefully recieved as I am about a week away from the crossing [e-mail]

[dave]

wow
Enjoyed reading your advntures. Nice trip