Sorry folks for skipping a day, I got home from dinner out last night (See Below) and crashed. Things are normalizing a bit I am starting to get hungry when I am supposed to get hungry and to get sleepy when I am supposed to get sleepy. I have slept consecutively 7.5 hours each night for the past two nights with barely waking up both. WOW......
Weather, Storms, and the Speak Easy Experience
Many of you have sent me messages wanting to know what the weather is like in Kabul. Well I took it upon myself to add the rather neat current weather in Kabul gadget on the bottom of the page. If you have not noticed it check it out down there. Keep in mind, however, the 10.5 hour time difference. What that means is our night is day in the states. What is most useful for you all is to see the highs and the lows. You will see they are very comparable with D.C. The elevation makes us just a bit cooler but not a whole lot. Looking at Weather Underground Kabul you can check out the averages http://www.wunderground.com/global/stations/40948.html. Not too bad really if you see.
Kabul is a very arid or dry. As I said it lies between mountain ranges and it is not the rainy side of those ranges. Therefore the precipitation ends before it comes to us. We do get the winds often coming down from the mountain. Wind plus very dry ground means “storms” of blowing dust or dust storms. I had my first taste of a dust storm yesterday. They tell me it was a rather small one and I could not see the hundred yards across campus.
Occasionally, however, it does rain here. Two evenings in a row I have actually experienced rain and last night even a pretty big thunderstorm. We were sitting at dinner and the housemates and I debated if it was bombs going off or thunder and lightning then the rain hit and that settled that.
Speaking of dinner, I had the most interesting experience last night. I really felt I needed my mafia hat, double breasted pin strip suit, and my white tie. It was something right out of the roaring twenties. The housemates invited me to dinner. First of all let me tell you, small Toyotas here are very popular. Even as cabs they are popular. If you know me, try and imagine me climbing in the front seat and four others climbing in the back seat. No this is not illegal in Kabul. We tried this Thai place in town that is supposed to be really good. By the time we got there it was closed so we went to a place called La Cantina. When we got out of the cab we were at a metal door. Much like the speak easies of the 20’s a small door about Afghan eyelevel slid open. We told the guy La Cantina and he ushered us in a small room where he, complete with AK-47, asked me if it was ok to wand me (pass a metal detector over me). Like I am going to say no! This was a pretty complete metal detector search. Arms out, turn around, etc. Of course no metal detectors in the 20’s and the AK would be replaced with a Tommy Gun but you get the picture. Just in case here is a Wiki article about speak easies (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speak_easy) Then another little eye level door slid open, the man who did the search said something in Dari (the language of Afghanistan) and we were ushered in through a second door by a second man with an AK. WOW!
The establishment was really rather quaint. Very clean but rather quaint. Nice candle lit tables on what would be a large screened in porch which of course had been closed off due to the weather turning colder. Cozy wood burning stoves throughout, etc., it was really a rather nice place. The food on the other hand was not to my liking. I was told the BBQ was good. I do have to disagree with that analysis; however, as it was some of the worse BBQ I have had in my life. It was a pulled beef roast smothered in BBQ sauce. Those of you that know me well would agree that there are two things I am an aficionado of that is after 14 years in pizza restaurants, a good pizza, and second I love me some BBQ. Yuck.
The food sucked, ok, but the most important thing was getting out and seeing Kabul by night. Although not lit up like a major U.S. city there are pockets of areas there are lit up like Christmas trees and others that are lit up with Christmas tree like lights. During the day you can barely make out the houses that are partially up the mountains surrounding Kabul but let me tell you at night the areas are flickering with lights making it absolutely beautiful. Add to that the brief thunderstorm I spoke of above and I can say it was a wonderful night despite the yucky bbq.
Many of you have sent me messages wanting to know what the weather is like in Kabul. Well I took it upon myself to add the rather neat current weather in Kabul gadget on the bottom of the page. If you have not noticed it check it out down there. Keep in mind, however, the 10.5 hour time difference. What that means is our night is day in the states. What is most useful for you all is to see the highs and the lows. You will see they are very comparable with D.C. The elevation makes us just a bit cooler but not a whole lot. Looking at Weather Underground Kabul you can check out the averages http://www.wunderground.com/global/stations/40948.html. Not too bad really if you see.
Kabul is a very arid or dry. As I said it lies between mountain ranges and it is not the rainy side of those ranges. Therefore the precipitation ends before it comes to us. We do get the winds often coming down from the mountain. Wind plus very dry ground means “storms” of blowing dust or dust storms. I had my first taste of a dust storm yesterday. They tell me it was a rather small one and I could not see the hundred yards across campus.
Occasionally, however, it does rain here. Two evenings in a row I have actually experienced rain and last night even a pretty big thunderstorm. We were sitting at dinner and the housemates and I debated if it was bombs going off or thunder and lightning then the rain hit and that settled that.
Speaking of dinner, I had the most interesting experience last night. I really felt I needed my mafia hat, double breasted pin strip suit, and my white tie. It was something right out of the roaring twenties. The housemates invited me to dinner. First of all let me tell you, small Toyotas here are very popular. Even as cabs they are popular. If you know me, try and imagine me climbing in the front seat and four others climbing in the back seat. No this is not illegal in Kabul. We tried this Thai place in town that is supposed to be really good. By the time we got there it was closed so we went to a place called La Cantina. When we got out of the cab we were at a metal door. Much like the speak easies of the 20’s a small door about Afghan eyelevel slid open. We told the guy La Cantina and he ushered us in a small room where he, complete with AK-47, asked me if it was ok to wand me (pass a metal detector over me). Like I am going to say no! This was a pretty complete metal detector search. Arms out, turn around, etc. Of course no metal detectors in the 20’s and the AK would be replaced with a Tommy Gun but you get the picture. Just in case here is a Wiki article about speak easies (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speak_easy) Then another little eye level door slid open, the man who did the search said something in Dari (the language of Afghanistan) and we were ushered in through a second door by a second man with an AK. WOW!
The establishment was really rather quaint. Very clean but rather quaint. Nice candle lit tables on what would be a large screened in porch which of course had been closed off due to the weather turning colder. Cozy wood burning stoves throughout, etc., it was really a rather nice place. The food on the other hand was not to my liking. I was told the BBQ was good. I do have to disagree with that analysis; however, as it was some of the worse BBQ I have had in my life. It was a pulled beef roast smothered in BBQ sauce. Those of you that know me well would agree that there are two things I am an aficionado of that is after 14 years in pizza restaurants, a good pizza, and second I love me some BBQ. Yuck.
The food sucked, ok, but the most important thing was getting out and seeing Kabul by night. Although not lit up like a major U.S. city there are pockets of areas there are lit up like Christmas trees and others that are lit up with Christmas tree like lights. During the day you can barely make out the houses that are partially up the mountains surrounding Kabul but let me tell you at night the areas are flickering with lights making it absolutely beautiful. Add to that the brief thunderstorm I spoke of above and I can say it was a wonderful night despite the yucky bbq.
TGIT?
The work weak in Afghanistan and many Islamic countries is Sunday through Thursday. So it is Thank Goodness Its Thursday here. Tommorrow is the first day of the weekend. I am going to experience full shopping trips Kabul style on both days, I hope. I also hope to get some pictures for you all to finally see...... I am not sure how much I will be posting over the weekend but we will have to find out.
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