Destination: Bamiyan
For most people, planning a holiday in Afghanistan might seem bizarre or dangerous. But, one area of the country is trying to resurrect itself as a centre for tourism, internationally and locally.
Bamiyan Province, almost three kilometres above sea level, is recognised all over Afghanistan for its outstanding natural beauty.
Only last year, Afghanistan's first national park was opened in the Band-e-Amir valley as a conservation area by the province's female governor, Dr Habiba Sarabi.
“Bamiyan has a lot of potential for tourism”, says the former haematologist who has governed the province since 2005. “We have the Scream City, we call it Shahr-i-Gholghola, we have the Red City, we have tons of other historical sites. That is very attractive for tourists.”
Back in the 60s and 70s there were several commercial flights to Bamiyan a week, filled with Afghan sightseers keen to see its famous Buddha statues. The statues were destroyed in 2001 by the Taliban and after thirty years of war and destruction, flights are scarce and the roads in bad condition. Dr Sarabi has pledged to address this problem with construction of sealed roads all over the province during the next few years.
The Director for Culture and Information, Mohammad Ibrahim Akbary agrees. He is responsible for overseeing the place where the Buddhas used to stand and hopes that the trickle of tourists that visit the heritage site will increase with the new initiative.
“If we have good security in the highways for the tourists, I am one hundred percent sure that we will have thousands of tourists here every month,” he says.
One of the more high-profile efforts to encourage tourism in Bamiyan has been the creation of a ski lodge in Bamiyan city. Run by an Afghan tourism company, it offers ski breaks to internationals and locals alike with lessons provided by a fully-qualified Italian mountain guide employed by the agency.
“To start skiing with all the problems we have in Afghanistan may seem absurd, but it's also a local development project, a travel agency that we have helped to grow”, says Ferdinando Rollando, a ski instructor with over twenty years of experience. “We've made sure that we have real income for the economy.”
Tobogganing has a long history in Bamiyan with competitions between villages common in winter, but skiing is a new sport to the Afghan locals. They've taken to it easily, however and Ferdinando can usually be seen with a line of young skiiers trailing behind him around the mountains.
While Ferdinando gives lessons to local children in his spare time, Rah-e-Abrisham Tourist & Travel Agency Manager and Bamiyan native, Jawad Wafa, explains how important tourism could be for Bamiyan. “It's not just for us”, he says. “If you have more tourists it's going to help the locals, the restaurants, drivers, translators for the companies, for everybody.”
So far, the lodge has had enough customers - mainly foreign workers looking for a break from Kabul - to provide their Afghan employees with a decent income. But Jawad's ambitions extend much further. He wants Bamiyan to become a tourist destination for international travellers the world over and says that Bamiyan's reputation for being a peaceful province should make it an attractive place to visit. Jawad emphasises the fact that Bamiyan has enjoyed peace for nearly 10 years, with no bombings or kidnappings that could discourage tourists. “Bamiyan is like their home”, he says. “They should be relaxing and feel safe in here.”