Earlier this week I arrived in Afghanistan. The trip was a long one but we made it safe and sound if not a bit exhausted. Our first stop was the Kandahar Air Field (KAF) for some training and acclimatizing. A few of our members are assigned to Kandahar and, after saying our goodbyes, the bulk of our members made the flight north to Kabul. Once in Kabul we made our way to our respective assignments. The mission for Canadian Civilian Police (CivPol) has changed substantially this year and ours is the first group to work under this new strategy. More on that later though. In this post I’d like to show some images of the stunning Afghan landscapes and share my first impressions of the Afghans I have met.
I knew that Afghanistan was a mountainous country but I did not expect to see all the snow on the mountaintops. I know that soon all the snow I see will be melted and before long temperatures will soar to the 40’s and 50’s Celsius. I consider myself fortunate to have seen the snow capped mountains when I did. This morning I woke up to light snow and overcast skies. The cold can be a significant challenge in Afghanistan because there is no natural gas utility to heat people’s homes. Most rely on burning wood which as you can see is scarce. By then end of winter anything that is combustible has been burned for heat including dried manure, a measure not unlike that which Canadian homesteaders had to rely on. A very fortunate few can use an electric heater but electrical service is often scant and unreliable.
I’ve met only a few Afghans so far. One of my colleagues is a young Afghan who speaks 7 languages and is very literate and computer savy. Another is a young person born and raised in Kabul, immigrated to Canada, and is back in Afghanistan working for the Canadian Government. Its clear to me already the potential and determination in the Afghan people, of all ages. I feel fortunate to be here and assisting them in renovating their nation into the kind of country they seek.Thanks for checking in.
Ken.
