Kabul north towards the Tajik border

Days 60, 61 and 62, 11’215 km

Day 60 - The caves housing the Buddhas of Bamyan are empty these days. Recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, this location was once a sacred place for Buddhists along the Silk Road, representing historical Afghan Buddhism. Tragically, in March 2001, both statues were obliterated by the Taliban, following an edict issued on February 26, 2001, by Taliban leader Mullah Muhammad Omar, which mandated the destruction of all statues in Afghanistan "to prevent any future worship or reverence towards them." There is nothing further to add; a crime against humanity's cultural heritage. We proceeded towards Kabul. The number of Taliban checkpoints increased; we must have encountered at least 15. We observed police, Taliban Central Intelligence, and the Army; it felt as though we had seen them all. Always professional and friendly. Upon entering Kabul, the city still appears to be in a state of war. Large fortified shooting positions line the road on both sides every fivehundred meters. Within the city, every significant building, including ministries, embassies, and hotels, remains encircled by 20-foot-high concrete blast walls - although the city has managed to dismantle hundreds of these barriers in recent years everything seems bomb and blast protected here. After checking in at our hostel, we made our way to the Intercontinental Hotel Kabul for coffee. It no longer surprises us to pass the "Weapons handover point" (we had nothing to declare in this regard), navigate through a metal detector, and go through another Taliban checkpoint before we could savor our latte with a splendid view of Kabul and its surrounding hills.

Day 61 - We set off early to head north towards Kunduz, which is just a few hours away from the Tadjik border that we plan to reach tomorrow. Most of the 345 km stretch is still gravel, even up the Kaoshan pass. We ride through the darkness of the Saolang tunnel at 3400m, navigating through the Hindu Kush mountains, and then bask in the full midday sun as we descend to the low plains and continue on to Kunduz. The temperature down here has soared to a sweltering 46 degrees Celsius, and we felt like we were being cooked in our motorcycle gear. Goulasch, kind of. Riding in such heat for a grueling ten hours requires stops every 30 minutes… once for water in and then again for after out… kind of. We were relieved to arrive in Kunduz by 20h00 and decided to call it a night in our air-conditioned room. Well, at least until 22h00. "These gentlemen want to talk to you." Déjà vu? Two Taliban entered, sat down, and spent about an hour going through all our gear, baggage, counted our cash. We had to bring out ALL the remaining luggage we had left on the motorcycles. To say we were thrilled with the experience would be an understatement. The gentlemen were from the Bamyan Intelligence. A drone had been spotted there a few days ago, and they were determined to track down the tourist responsible. Drones are not allowed in Afghanistan, understandably. Around 23h30, they apologized for the "inconvenience," and we packed up and went to sleep. It was definitely a smart move to leave our drone and satellite phones at home before starting this trip, considering the interrogations we faced in Iran and now here.

Day 62 - "Welcome to Tadjikistan," said the Tadjik captain with a friendly grin after we crossed the Amu Darya river at the Shir Khan border point. Russkiy? No, Swiss, we replied, realizing we were back in an ex-SSR. We loaded our bikes in Kunduz at 7:00 AM, had some fried eggs and bread, and headed to the border. We absolutely loved Afghanistan. But we really needed a break after the long ride and the rough off-road tracks. In Afghanistan, there’s no such thing as a break. After 10 hours in the saddle, you sit on the hard floor to eat. There are no chairs anywhere around. You’ll only find cold showers or a nearby stream to clean up. Electricity is either nonexistent or available only between 8 PM and 10 PM. You have to squat, and forget about toilet paper. Often, a hand gesture pointing to the nearest trees is the best you can get asking for a restroom. You’ll sleep on rugs or hard beds without a mattress. You always wake up by the sun at 5 AM because you either sleep outside or in a room without curtains. Due to all this, you soon look like a zombie due to lack of shut-eye. There’s no cold beer to ease the back pain from last night or wash the sand out of your throat. You eat with your hands, or at best, with a spoon and fork. But you also get a smile, a genuine and warm welcome, and everyone is always willing to help. You’ll find that washing your hands, face, and feet in the local sink is often all you need to feel refreshed. We realize that a sincere smile and sharing bread mean more than a soft bed. Still, we hope that in Dushanbe, we can enjoy an ice-cold beer over some burgers. Inshallah. We love you, Afghanistan.