Welcome to Afghanistan, warts and all
LONDON – It may be one of the world’s most volatile nations, but that has not deterred Lonely Planet from releasing its first ever standalone guidebook to Afghanistan.
Researched and written by Afghanistan specialist Paul Clammer, the book also contains a special chapter on safety written by a Kandahar resident and former military officer.
Lonely Planet says the guide is a necessity for anyone thinking of going to the country, “and is therefore primarily designed for businesspeople and representatives of non-profits or NGOs who are travelling to Afghanistan for work or aid”.
“The guidebook aims to help travellers stay safe and get the most out of their time in the country, but also provides interesting reading for independent travellers and armchair travellers who are curious about the state of the nation.”
The author spent seven weeks on the ground conducting research, travelling from Kabul to Herat and Mazar, all by road, stopping in many remote towns along the way.
“It’s hard to think of a more demanding country to write a guidebook about than Afghanistan,” says Clammer. “It’s a nation with a broken infrastructure and serious security concerns. But the rewards are incredible.
“Despite the recent history, the Afghans are the most amazing and welcoming people on the planet, and the scenery from the mountains to the deserts is sublime.
Earlier this year, Lonely Planet founder Tony Wheeler visited Afghanistan for his book, Bad Lands: A Tourist on the Axis of Evil.
Afterwards Wheeler wrote, “Perhaps surprisingly, I had a great time in all my ‘Bad Lands’ and – apart from a little uneasiness in Afghanistan and Iraq – I was never particularly concerned for my safety. North Korea was easily the weirdest: a place alternating between horror and comedy, a Stalinist theme park, a gulag run by Monty Python.”
Afghanistan is published by Lonely Planet. (ISBN: 9781740596428). You can buy the book from the Lonely Planet website
Ian Jarrett
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