The videos document my pilgrimage from Indonesia to the African continent by land (no airplane!). The route: 1.) Indonesia: Traveling through Sumatran Mountains and Prehistoric Sites 2.) Malaysia: Meeting with the Aborigines of the Malay Peninsula 3.) Thailand: Tracing the Southeast Asian Ancient Empires 4.) Laos: Experiencing the Lao-China Railway 5.) China: Backpacking the Tibetan Plateau to the Edge of the Silk Road 6.) Kazakhstan: First Contact with the Central Asians 7.) Uzbekistan: Pilgrimage in the Land of the Timurids 8.) Tajikistan: Lost in the Fenn Mountains 9.) Afghanistan: Visiting Afghanistan after the Taliban Takeover 10.) Iran: Surrounded by the Ancient Civilization of Persia 11.) UAE: Short Transit in Futuristic Cities 12.) Saudi Arabia: Pilgrimage in the Holy Land of the Muslims 13.) Jordan: Catching a Glimpse of Jerusalem 14.) Egypt: Ending in the Land of Pharaohs
Curated by: Bang Jago (174 videos)
On day 136 I explored Kunduz, the largest city in northeastern Afghanistan. The morning started with a visit to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs office to validate the visa issued at the border. After that, I toured the ancient city which the locals call "Little Afghanistan" because all the elements of Afghanistan can be found in Kunduz. Kunduz is a city of master artisans who have honed their techniques for making everyday items by hand. Home industry dominates the city. Interestingly, in various corners of the city you can find Chinese flags (and some Malaysian flags). It seems China is Afghanistan's main trading partner. I walked north of the city where there is the Kunduz Citadel. which has been a military base for hundreds of years. Previously, this fort was controlled by the Americans until it was taken over by the current government. I was warmly welcomed by the fort guards who showed me American relics that were now controlled by the Taliban. In the afternoon my friends and I continued by taxi to Mazar-i-Sharif, the largest city in northern Afghanistan. The journey leads south along the fertile Kunduz Valley. Kunduz Province is the main agricultural province in Afghanistan. After reaching Pol-e Komri, we met the Mazar-Kabul highway. We saw hundreds of trucks lining for a few kilometers because the road to Kabul was closed. We continued northwest and the sun was almost setting when we entered Aybak, Samangan province, so we decided to spend the night in this town. We found a cheap hostel (400 Afghanis/$5) but were eventually forced by the Taliban to move to a hotel with better security. Tomorrow we plan to visit Takht-e Rustam, a Buddhist stupa from the 4th century, before continuing our journey to Mazar-i-Sharif. ___ Stage 1 Route - Sumatra (DONE!): Jakarta - Bandar Lampung - Baturaja - Lahat - Pagar Alam - Bengkulu - Lebong Tandai - Kerinci - Jambi - Kuala Tungkal - Batam - Johor Bahru Stage 2 Route - ASEAN Mainland (DONE!): Johor Bahru - Kuala Tahan - Kota Bharu - Su-Ngai Kolok - Nakhon Si Thammarat - Chaiya - Nakhon Pathom - Bangkok - Nakhon Ratchasima - Phimai - Nong Khai - Vientiane - Vang Vieng - Luang Prabang - Chiang Rai - Chiang Mai - Pai - Chiang Mai - Chiang Rai - Boten - Kunming, China Stage 3 Route - China (DONE!): Kunming - Dali - Lijiang - Shangri-La - Shambala - Litang - Chengdu - Leshan - Chengdu - Xi'an - Zhangye - Jiayuguan - Dunhuang - Turpan - Urumqi - Almaty, Kazakhstan Stage 4 Route - Central Asia (DONE!): Almaty - Shymkent - Tashkent - Nukus - Muynak - Turtkul - Khiva - Bukhara - Samarkand - Tashkent - Khujand - Fann Mountains - Dushanbe - Kunduz, Afghanistan Stage 5 Route - Afghanistan: Kunduz - Samangan - Mazar-i-Sharif - Balkh - Kabul - Bamiyan - Band-e Amir - Yakawlang - Lal - Chagcharan - Herat - Mashhad, Iran *Follow my Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/obeysianipar/) for direct messages **Message me for sponsorship --- Music Credits: And Awaken - Stings by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.