Watan Jaan (Dear Afghanistan)

Kabul
Kābul (Persian: کابل, former English: Caubul), is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan, with population of about 3 million people. It is an economic and cultural center, situated 5,900 feet (1,800 m) above-sea-level in a narrow valley, wedged between the Hindu Kush mountains along the Kabul River. Kabul is linked with Ghazni, Kandahar, Herat and Mazari Sharif via a long beltway (circular highway) that stretches across the country. It is also linked by highways with Pakistan to the southeast and Tajikistan to the north.

Kabul's main products include munitions, cloth, furniture, and beet sugar, though, since 1978, a state of nearly continuous war has limited the economic productivity of the city.

Kabul is over 3,000 years old. Many empires long fought over the city, due to its strategic location along the trade routes of Southern and Central Asia. In 1504, Babur captured Kabul and made the city his headquarters. Finally, in 1776, Timur Shah Durrani made it the capital of modern Afghanistan.[3] The population of the city is multi-cultural and multi-ethnic, reflecting the diversity of the entire country. Kabul is currently in the process of being rebuilt following decades of wars and chaos.

Nuristan Nuristan (also spelled Nooristan, Nurestan, or Noorestan) (Persian/Nuristani: نورستان) is one of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. It was formed in 2001 from the northern parts of Laghman Province and Kunar Province. The ethnic Nuristanis make up the majority of the population of this province.

Located on the southern slopes of the Hindu Kush mountains in the northeastern part of the country, Nuristan spans the basins of the Alingâr, Pech, Landai Sin, and Kunar rivers. Its capital is Nuristan. It is bordered on the north by Badakhshan Province, on the west by Panjshir Province, on the south by Laghman and Kunar provinces, and on the east by Pakistan.

Until the 1890s, the region was known as Kafiristan (Persian: Land of the unbelievers) because of its inhabitants: the Nuristani, an ethnically distinctive people (numbering about 60,000) who practiced animism. The region was conquered by Amir Abdur Rahman Khan in 1895-96 and the Nuristani were converted to Islam. The region was renamed Nuristan, meaning Land of the Enlightened.

Nouristan is one of the country's most unusual regions. Set in striking mountains near the Pakistani border, this dramatic, forested area features wooden hillside homes. (The Greek god Dionysus figures prominently in Nouristani legend.) 125 mi/200 km northeast of Kabul.

Kunduz Kunduz (Persian: قندوز) also known as Kundûz, Qonduz, Qondûz, Konduz, Kondûz, Kondoz, or Qhunduz is a city in northern Afghanistan, the capital of Kunduz Province. It is linked by highways with Mazari Sharif to the west, Kabul to the south and Tajikistan's border to the north. In the 1979 census, Kunduz had a population of 53,251 people, which is now estimated to have risen to 95,000 (2002 official estimate). Kunduz is located at 36.73°N, 68.86°E, at an elevation of 397 meters above sea level.

This town was known as having one of the most fascinating bazaars in the country before hostilities broke out. The nature of the bazaar has undoubtedly changed, but Kunduz's beautiful setting in the mountainous Badakhshan region is a permanent attraction. Kunduz is also home of the Spinzar Cotton Company, whose founder collected many Greco-Bactrian artifacts. They are displayed in a local museum. 257 km north of Kabul.

Kandahar Kandahar or Qandahar (Pashto: کندهار, Persian: قندهار) is the second largest city of Afghanistan, with a population of 450,300 people (2006 official estimates). It is the capital of Kandahar province on the Arghandab River, approximately 3,297 feet (1,005 meters) above sea level. It is linked by highways with Herat to the west, Ghazni and Kabul to the east, Tarin Kowt to the north, and Quetta in Pakistan to the south.

Kandahar is a major trading center for sheep, wool, cotton, silk, felt, food grains, fresh and dried fruit, and tobacco. The region produces fine fruits, especially pomegranates and grapes, and the city has plants for canning, drying, and packing fruit. Kandahar has an international airport and extensive road links. Together with Peshawar in Pakistan, Kandahar is the main city of ethnic Pashtuns.

Alexander the Great founded Kandahar in the 4th century BC and named it Alexandria, a popular name given to cities that he discovered during his conquests. Many empires have fought over the city, due to its strategic location along the trade routes of Southern and Central Asia. In 1748, Ahmad Shah Durrani, the founder of the Durrani Empire (Afghan Empire), made Kandahar the capital of Afghanistan.

Jalalabad Jalālābād (Pashto/Persian: جلال آباد) is a city in eastern Afghanistan. Located at the junction of the Kabul and Kunar rivers, Jalalabad is the capital of Nangarhar province. It is linked by approximately 90 miles of highway with the city of Kabul to the west and about the same distance with Peshawar in Pakistan to the east. The population of Jalalabad is 96,000 people (2002 official estimate).

The modern city of Jalalabad was built by Jalal-uddin Mohammad Akbar, the third ruler of Mughal Empire.

Seraj-ul-Emarat, the residence of Amir Habibullah and King Amanullah was destroyed in 1929; the other sanctuaries however, retain vestiges of the past and offer a peaceful afternoon's crunch. The mausoleum of both rulers is enclosed by a garden facing Seraj-ul-Emart.

The capital of Nangarhar Province was an attractive winter resort, with many cypress trees and flowering shrubs. This ancient walled town of 58,000 guards the western end of the Khyber Pass. A playground for the rich and famous of the ancient world, Jalalabad continued to serve as a resort for the wealthy during the winter - Afghanistan's last king had a palace there. More recently, the city was the site of fierce battles and drawn-out sieges in the Soviet war. 113 km east of Kabul.

Herat (Aria) The country's third-largest city (pop. 165,000), Herat was once occupied by Alexander the Great. Enormous defensive walls and earthworks remain from ancient times. Destroyed in the early 13th century by Genghis Khan, it was later rebuilt. Although much of the old town is in ruins again, remaining sites include the 10th-century Friday Mosque, a synagogue, minarets, monuments and the impressive 444-column Masjid-e-Jame. The tomb of Queen Gawhar Shad was damaged during the war -- it was a government artillery position. Herat is also famous for its hand-blown blue glass; artisans can be seen creating delicate works of art in the shop across from the Friday Mosque (the proprietor gives tours). Nearby, at Gazergah, is a 1,000-year-old monastery and mausoleum. 645 km west of Kabul

Ghazni
Ghazni City was a thriving Buddhist center before and during the 7th Century AD. In 683 AD, Arab armies brought Islam to the nearby regions.Yaqub Saffari from Zaranj reigned over the vast region. After the city was rebuilt by Yaqub’s brother, it became the dazzling capital of the Ghaznavid Empire from 994 to 1160, encompassing much of northern India, Persia and Central Asia. Many iconoclastic campaigns were launched from Ghazni into India. The Ghaznavids took Islam to India and returned with fabulous riches taken from both prince and temple god. Contemporary visitors and residents at Ghazni write with wonder of the ornateness of the buildings, the great libraries, the sumptuousness of the court ceremonies and of the wealth of precious objects owned by Ghazni’s citizens.

The city was sacked in 1151 by the Ghorid Ala'uddin but then made into their secondary capital from 1173. It again flourished but only to be permanently devastated, this time in 1221 by the Mongol armies of Genghis Khan led by his son Ögedei Khan.[4]

Ghazni City is famous for its minarets built on a stellar plan. They date from the middle of the twelfth century and are the surviving element of the mosque of Bahramshah. Their sides are decorated with geometric patterns. Upper sections of the minarets have been damaged or destroyed. The most important mausoleum located in Ghazni City is that of Sultan Mahmud's. Others include the Tombs of poets and scientists, for example the Tomb of Al Biruni. The only ruins in Old Ghazni retaining a semblance of architectural form are two towers, about 43 m (140 ft) high and some 365 m (1,200 ft) apart. According to inscriptions, the towers were constructed by Mahmud of Ghazni and his son.

In the 1960s a 15-meter female Buddha was discovered lying on its back and surrounded by empty pillars that once held rows of smaller male Buddhas. Parts of the female Buddha have been stolen. In the 1980s a mud brick shelter was created to protect the sculpture, but the wood supports were stolen for firewood and the shelter partially collapsed.


The Battle of GhazniDuring the First Anglo-Afghan War, the city was stormed and taken over by the British forces on July 23, 1839 in the Battle of Ghazni. The Afghan Civil War and the continued conflict between the Taliban and the Afghan Northern Alliance during the 1990s put the relics of Ghazni in jeopardy. The Taliban placed Fazl Uddin in charge of protecting the artifacts.

Ghazni’s strategic position, both economically and militarily, assured its revival, albeit without its dazzling former grandeur. Through the centuries the city figures prominently as the all important key to the possession of Kabul.

(pop. 32,000) Was one of the most powerful capitals in the world during the time of the Ghaznavid Empire, which stretched from the Tigris to the Ganges. Today Ghazni is not very large, but it does have a fabulous minaret shaped like a double star, a museum, a palace, a mausoleum and the tomb of Ahmad Shah (founder of Afghanistan). The city is also known for the beautiful Afghan sheepskin coats made there. 130km south-southwest of Kabul..

Bagram This out-of-the-way place was once known as Kapisa, capital of the Kushan (Indo-Greek) kings. Sights include the remains of a fort built by Alexander the Great. A number of other sites are waiting to be excavated. 32 km north of Kabul

Band-e-Amir holds its place among the wonders of the world. The most famous things often fail to move, Band-e-Amir is above matters of taste, it is beauty itself. The barren Band-e-Amir region offers deep blue lakes set amid treeless desert and hills at an elevation of 9,800 ft/3,000 m. Up to two days could be spent exploring the area, probably in a sturdy 4-wheel-drive vehicle.The waters of the lakes are a shockingly unique blue that seem very bizzare. But it's genuine natural freshwater. 200 km west of Kabul

Bamiyan

Extensively bombed during the war, Bamian (pop. 50,000) is of interest as an ancient center for Buddhist learning. This beautiful (if arid) site on the Kunduz River is historically significant as the place where an indigenous Afghan religion developed during the 1st-6th centuries. The area has some 10,000 caves (and assorted tunnels), ancient cave dwellings and the Red City fortress (and its other mountaintop companions). Two huge Buddhas (one 53 m tall and the other 35 m tall) carved into a mountainside are still standing but badly damaged by the war. Nearby are the ruins of Zohak and Gholghola and the lakes of Band-e-Amir.130 km west of Kabul.

Balkh
Balkh is an ancient town that served as headquarters for Alexander the Great for two years after his invasion in 328 BC. Destroyed in 1221 by Genghis Khan, the town was rebuilt by the Mongol conqueror Tamerlane almost 200 years later. The ruins of the Madjide Haji Pivada (Piyada) Mosque (one of the world's oldest mosques), the Arch of Nawbahar and the remains of a Buddhist stupas are some of Balkh's attractions. It was here that Zoroaster was born and raised. Also called Zarathustra, he was the founder of Zoroastrianism, the state religion of ancient Persia. 322 km northwest of Kabul, only a few kilometers north of the Balkh provincial capital city of Mazar-i-Sharif.
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