The news that didn't fit the print ...

In case you didn’t see it, the New York Times travel section featured Kabul in its January 21 edition. There are a few things the article didn’t mention, that you might want to know before booking your adventure vacation here. If you only have one to two weeks to spare, you can sufficiently see Kabul in 2 days. Spend the rest of your time in other parts of Afghanistan. The reason being is that Herat (border city with Iran) is a far more beautiful and well-kept city. It offers all of the cultural charms that Kabul does minus the muddy streets, lack of electricity, and open sewers. You will also want to spend a few days in Bamyan in the center of the country. This area is famous for having the huge Buddha statutes that were blown to smithereens by the Taliban during their rule. Bamyan is also full of natural beauty with mountain lakes and air that has been described as crystal clean. The travel author also neglected to mention what it would be like for a woman to visit Kabul. Unless you don’t mind being gawked at, pointed at, rushed, or have your photo taken by hundreds of strangers, a woman does not engage in a “walking tour” of Kabul unless she is Afghan or in a burka. The author writes of the beggars, but what is worth noting is that Afghanistan is probably in the "top 10" in number of amputees (due to years of civil wars and use of landmines), so many of those beggars are coming at you on rollerboards outfitted with steering wheels. A few other notes .. the author mentions “Cabul Coffee House”, which is a fun place to hang if you want to be around expats, but what was not mentioned is that the coffee shop was started by Debbie of “Beauty School of Kabul” fame. She is an American who came to start a beauty school (still in operation and soon to relocate in to the posh Serena Hotel) and a documentary was done of her school by the same name. The restaurants that are mentioned in the article, are all tasty, but are all for expats only. Meaning you must show your passport to get in and you cannot bring any Afghan friends in with you. Also, the restaurant Red Hot Sizzlin’s bathrooms are in a house not attached to the main restaurant, so you have to put on your jacket if you want to use the loo. To create the allure of warm water, a heating element is submerged into a tub of water which creates this dry ice, foggy type of setting which is cool for a disco but not for a bathroom .. after all, a bathroom is not the place you want to feel your way around in! Finally, should you decide to visit Afghanistan, I would recommend coming in the spring or fall as the summers are stifling (allegedly) and the winters are harsh (at least in the capital city). And pack sunglasses (although Afghans don't wear them) as the sun shines brightly when it is not barfing.