Shopping for the day is over. I got very little from my list but now I know where to go to and that was the objective more than completion of the list. One of the things I picked up was cashews. Nuts are prevalent in this region. You can get just about any type of nut you want. They are very fresh. My favorite is cashews. Let me tell you fresh cashews are much different than those roasted ones you buy in a can. I can tell you I think I prefer canned cashews but these are pretty good. As I sit here eating some and drinking a can of you know what….Mt. Dew.
Someone asked me what kind of food they have here. They have a lot of what you can think of back home, that is if it comes out of a can. Canned spaghetti, ravioli, and all sorts of spaghetti sauces are readily available. Some of the strange things I saw but did not buy canned hot dogs they called them. One can said “All Day Breakfast” and it was canned beans and franks. Very interesting. I will try them one day. Good, edible, fresh meat is hard to find here. For the most part at home I have been a non carnivore. Other than the nasty pulled beef bbq (see above) that I had at La Cantina the other night that is.
Fresh fruit and vegetables here though are prevalent. They are sold along the side of the road and in fresh vegetable markets. Those of you that know me well would say that I am not a vegetable guy except for a few select ones. I am more the meet and potato guy but it has not always been so and for a period in my life I limited my red meat intake to only one day per week and only ate chicken and fish rarely. I ate a lot of stir fry during that period of my life though. I did feel healthier all around then so this is a good thing. A very good thing it is indeed.
I was able to visit one of the main malls in Kabul and actually found a working ATM. It would not dispense U.S. currency but would dispense as in equivalent amounts. 50 afs is equal to one dollar. I withdrew $200 so I got 10,000 afs. I was warned that working ATMs were hard to find. I was not warned of ATM fees. Almost $15 was the fee that I was charged. The charge did not appear on the slip so I came home and immediately checked to find that the additional fee was pulled out and that it had already been debited from my account. All of Afghanistan is a cash only market by the way. No credit or debit cards.
The mall, although small by comparison to most U.S. malls, was rather neat none the less. It went up several stories high. However, the stores are very small. Three of us in our party could barely move around in one store. Electronics stores are very prevalent. Many on each level selling all sorts of electronics the most popular of which are cell phones.
From a human interest standpoint, the trip was more of the same. Quite a few folks, of course, were begging as we exited the stores to enter the car. The escort had his hands full at time. I did see for the first time older beggars and beggars without limbs sitting or standing in the road begging. The latter, of course, a side effect of poverty and war. We also encountered some gypsies who actually travel throughout the region begging. It is what they do. They are dressed differently from the Afghans as they are wearing very colorful clothing. Except for party apparel Afghans dress is a lot of earth tones. Black, browns, women are much they same except many add blues and white to their wardrobe.
Children, here like everywhere, seem to not know any difference and they are bouncy and smiling. Even when they are begging for money, or a Pepsi as in today, or food, the children are all very cheerful. It almost seems a game to them. For some I am sure it is, especially those after candy, sodas, and gum. Much like Halloween they probably get together in an alley or back street and compare and even share perhaps. They also love to have their pictures taken. I am told the funny thing is that they will smile and egg you on to even take their picture but when it comes time to click the shutter they get solemn looks on their faces because that is how a picture should look. In the pictures, however, you will notice that I happened to catch a group of fun loving boys that actually hammed it up a bit today.
A good day overall. It was great to get out of the confines. As I say check back later for pictures as I must edit them down…..
Someone asked me what kind of food they have here. They have a lot of what you can think of back home, that is if it comes out of a can. Canned spaghetti, ravioli, and all sorts of spaghetti sauces are readily available. Some of the strange things I saw but did not buy canned hot dogs they called them. One can said “All Day Breakfast” and it was canned beans and franks. Very interesting. I will try them one day. Good, edible, fresh meat is hard to find here. For the most part at home I have been a non carnivore. Other than the nasty pulled beef bbq (see above) that I had at La Cantina the other night that is.
Fresh fruit and vegetables here though are prevalent. They are sold along the side of the road and in fresh vegetable markets. Those of you that know me well would say that I am not a vegetable guy except for a few select ones. I am more the meet and potato guy but it has not always been so and for a period in my life I limited my red meat intake to only one day per week and only ate chicken and fish rarely. I ate a lot of stir fry during that period of my life though. I did feel healthier all around then so this is a good thing. A very good thing it is indeed.
I was able to visit one of the main malls in Kabul and actually found a working ATM. It would not dispense U.S. currency but would dispense as in equivalent amounts. 50 afs is equal to one dollar. I withdrew $200 so I got 10,000 afs. I was warned that working ATMs were hard to find. I was not warned of ATM fees. Almost $15 was the fee that I was charged. The charge did not appear on the slip so I came home and immediately checked to find that the additional fee was pulled out and that it had already been debited from my account. All of Afghanistan is a cash only market by the way. No credit or debit cards.
The mall, although small by comparison to most U.S. malls, was rather neat none the less. It went up several stories high. However, the stores are very small. Three of us in our party could barely move around in one store. Electronics stores are very prevalent. Many on each level selling all sorts of electronics the most popular of which are cell phones.
From a human interest standpoint, the trip was more of the same. Quite a few folks, of course, were begging as we exited the stores to enter the car. The escort had his hands full at time. I did see for the first time older beggars and beggars without limbs sitting or standing in the road begging. The latter, of course, a side effect of poverty and war. We also encountered some gypsies who actually travel throughout the region begging. It is what they do. They are dressed differently from the Afghans as they are wearing very colorful clothing. Except for party apparel Afghans dress is a lot of earth tones. Black, browns, women are much they same except many add blues and white to their wardrobe.
Children, here like everywhere, seem to not know any difference and they are bouncy and smiling. Even when they are begging for money, or a Pepsi as in today, or food, the children are all very cheerful. It almost seems a game to them. For some I am sure it is, especially those after candy, sodas, and gum. Much like Halloween they probably get together in an alley or back street and compare and even share perhaps. They also love to have their pictures taken. I am told the funny thing is that they will smile and egg you on to even take their picture but when it comes time to click the shutter they get solemn looks on their faces because that is how a picture should look. In the pictures, however, you will notice that I happened to catch a group of fun loving boys that actually hammed it up a bit today.
A good day overall. It was great to get out of the confines. As I say check back later for pictures as I must edit them down…..
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