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Bamiyan and Band-i-Amir
IntineraryDay 1: London to Kabul via Dubai. Emirates EK 002 departs LHR 1400 arrives Dubai 2355
Day 2: Arrive Kabul. Kam Air RQ 006 departs Dubai 0600 and arrives in Kabul 0900. Transfer to Kabul Lodge Guesthouse. We spend the afternoon exploring some of the sites of this fascinating city. Since the recent war and the fall of the Taliban there has been substantial investment in this unique city but many of the old interesting areas including the destroyed street of Jadi Maywan, the curiosity shops of Chicken Street and the ruined Bala Hazar fort remain. As it is Friday, there may be an opportunity to watch a Buzkashi game in the afternoon. Dinner at Kabul Lodge Guesthouse.
Day 3: Fly from Kabul to Heart. Kam Air RQ 903 departs Kabul 1000 arrives Herat 1100. We transfer to our guesthouse and have lunch on arrival. We suggest spending the afternoon on an orientation tour including the Citadel (Qala-I-Ikhtiyaruddin). Once it cools down and the light becomes better, we make a late afternoon visit to the Friday Mosque (Masjid-I-Jami). This is one of the finest examples of Ghorid and Timurid tiling to be found anywhere in the world – arguably the most stunning mosque in the world, though the inhabitants of Mazar-I-Sharif and Samarqand might disagree. There is an opportunity to see a famous 14th Century bronze cauldron, alleged to be Tamurlane’s sherbet bowl, in the courtyard. You will also be able to see the tile factory, which claims to be the oldest in the world and probably dates back to the twelfth century, where tiles are still made in the traditional manner.
Day 4: For the early risers, there will be a visit to the old town to explore the bazaar. The rest of the morning will be spent visiting the 15th century Musalla complex that includes the Minarets of Gohar Shad and her Mausoleum. Gohar Shad was the wife of Shah Rukh, son of Tamerlane. Herat is a great place to go carpet shopping. There are opportunities to purchase both new and antique carpets from a number of different establishments including a large building filled entirely by carpet sellers. For most Afghans, carpets are a major purchase; equivalent to a westerner buying a car and the negotiation may take a number of visits. In the late afternoon we will visit the tomb of the two princes Qasim and Abdullah (Shazar Dahar) followed by a picnic dinner at Gazagah.
Day 5: For the keen photographers, we recommend an early morning visit to the Friday Mosque before a midday flight to Kabul: Kam Air departs Herat at noon and arrives in Kabul at 1300 when we will return to transfer to the Kabul Lodge Guesthouse. In the afternoon we will visit the Sandy Gall Afghanistan Appeal centre.
Day 6: After an early morning departure from Kabul we drive north across the Shomali Planes through the vineyards to Charikar where we will have an early lunch in a Chaikhana. After lunch we drive over the Shibar pass (3285m), the watershed of the Indus and Oxus river systems, and then down to Bamiyan. About 8 hours driving. Here we will stay in a guest house.
Day 7: The early risers may want to take the opportunity to take some photographs of the Hindu Kush, the remains of the Buddhas and the early morning activities of the inhabitants of Bamiyan. After breakfast we will visit the Buddhas; and if we are still able, explore the surrounding cliffs that are riddled with caves that contain carvings and frescos. Unfortunately the Taliban destroyed almost all of this. We then drive a short distance to the base of the Shahr-I-Golgola, which was destroyed by Genghis Khan in 1221. Genghis had destroyed Balkh and sent his teenage Grandson with an army to capture Bamiyan. The people of Bamiyan resisted and Genghis’s Grandson was killed. Genghis besieged and destroyed Golgola in revenge. If we did not explore the Shar-I-Zohak on the way to Bamiyan we hike up it too. After lunch in the new Bazaar, we drive off to the Valley of the Dragon (Darya Ajdhahar). This massive rock formation is alleged to be the remains of a dragon that persecuted the villagers until Hazrat Ali, cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet Mohammed, killed it. The story is reminiscent of St George and the Dragon.
Day 8: Band-I-Amir. Another early start before a three-hour journey takes us to the extraordinary chain of lakes at Band-I-Amir. They are astonishingly beautiful – the water varies in colour from turquoise to deep blue-black from lake to lake. Don’t assume that photographs of the lakes have had their colour touched up - they really are these colours, tinted by the mineral salts in the springs that feed the lakes. We camp here for the night.
Day 9: We spend the day trekking round these astonishing lakes before returning to Bamiyan for any last minute sites and photos.
Day 10: An early start allows us to travel in the cool through the stunning countryside as we make our way via Doab to the Ajar Valley. This is a long day but the magnificent views more than compensate. On arrival at Ajar we will stay in tents or possibly in the Head Man’s guest room. We hope to meet the King’s Hunter (Shikari).
Day 11: After the long drive we have a day on foot to explore the Ajar valley. We see the remains of the King’s hunting lodge, the villagers’ farming activities and walk up the valley to the spring which is the source of water in this fertile valley which feels as though time has stopped still. For the strong, there is a walk above the spring through a series of gorges and a juniper forest.
Day 12: We drive east following in the footsteps of Alexander the Great until we join the main road north of the Salang Pass at Doshi and then on to Pul-I-Kumri. We spend the night at Baghlan Guest House, one of the finest Afghan hotels to survive the wars.
Day 13: From Baghlan it is a short drive to Mazar-I-Sharif. Mazar-I-Sharif means ‘the Tomb of the Exalted’ and is believed to be the burial place of the prophet’s son-in-law Ali. The tomb is in a magnificent tiled building surrounded by crowds of white doves. If a grey dove joins them, it is said, it will become white in a month. Mazar is not only a centre of carpet production in Afghanistan but also one of the centres of the Central Asian carpet trade and the most beautiful bargains from all over Central Asia can be found in the bazaars.
Day 14: We spend the day exploring Mazar-I-Sharif. If we made good time on the journey from Pul-I-Kumri and have seen enough of Mazar we may make an afternoon excursion to Balkh.
Day 15: After a morning in Mazar-I-Sharif, we drive back to Pul-I-Kumri and spend the night at Baghlan Guest House.
Day 16: Another prompt start and we drive south to cross the Hindu Kush via the 3363m high Salang Tunnel. This tunnel was built by the Soviets from 1958 and opened in 1964. In 1979 they used it to transport their tanks over the Hindu Kush before the advance on Kabul. A vital strategic prize in the civil war, the tunnel has now been repaired and allows an easy crossing back into Southern Afghanistan. We then drive part of the way across the Shomali plain before turning northeast and entering the Panjshir. The Panjshir has always been most people’s introduction to Afghanistan. When Afghanistan was on the tourist trail, its nearness to Kabul combined with its astonishing natural beauty, made it most people’s first destination in the country. It was also conveniently accessed from Pakistan by journalists covering the Russian and Taliban wars when its geographical situation, and the brilliance of its mujihadeen commander, the great Ahmed Shah Massoud, made it unconquerable. Massoud defeated the Russians here fifteen times, and so comprehensively that they stopped trying to capture it. Most of the television footage of the war shown in the West was shot here. The river has a narrow and extremely fertile flood plain and is famous for its fruit. But the sides are steep mountains, which is why it is so defensible. In the spring, watered by the melting snow these mountainsides are dark green giving an impression of overwhelming fertility. We will visit Massoud’s grave and stay in his guesthouse at Astana or camp in a particularly beautiful meadow and orchard by the side of the Panjshir River.
Day 17: We will spend the morning in Panjshir exploring and if time permits we may visit one of the emerald mines before an afternoon drive back down the valley and across the Shomali plain to Kabul. We spend the night at the Kabul Lodge Guesthouse.
Day 18: Kabul -> Dubai -> London. We have a morning in Kabul for sightseeing and shopping before the mid-afternoon flight to Dubai and then transferring to our Emirates flight to London.
Day 19: We are scheduled to arrive in London at 6am.