The Sweet Pea Chronicles

If you watch the news much, you’ve probably heard recently about the ceasefire between government and Taliban fighters in the Swat Valley of Pakistan.

I’m not too excited to hear about it, except for the fact that civilians are no longer in the crossfire. Given the history of such ceasefires … it is unlikely to last - and the imposition of Sharia Law [and likely closing of girls schools] signals the lack of governmental control. To my cynical eye, it would appear al-Queda has also heard about how beautiful and lush Swat is … and have decided it’s a lot nicer place to live than in caves along the Afghani border, which it is in nearly every way.

The spread of militancy is sad to see, as it never seems to leave an area untouched. As I read the stories - I think of the people who welcomed me into their homes, shared tea or a meal or a bed to sleep, always a warm smile and incredible hospitality.

Busride in Mountains, view looking southwest towards Mingalaur

In 1995, I spent a number of days in Swat - including a night out in a mountain village, well beyond power or hotels. Swat was well known as a lovely place to vacation [the Switzerland of Pakistan, with a ski hill during winter] - and it’s reputation was accurate. Lush and green, with ranges of hills rising up to snow-capped peaks, plenty of history, and an incredible hospitality.

Of my trip in 1995, Swat remains my fondest memory. The last few years have had significant fighting between Taliban and government forces in Swat - with many families leaving the valley and important tribal elders and government officials killed. It’s sad to realize that while many people are the same, circumstances have made Swat a no-go area for Westerners and things have changed there.

Busride in mountains, looking northwest, towards Malam Jabba

The photos here are from the ride up to Kass Valley, a small valley up in the hills. Given the weather was fine, I rode on top of the bus as young men will often do in Pakistan. It was stable, a bit windy … but the views were incredible.

I’m getting near the end of scanning all my photos from my Pakistan trips … and this Swat news has my planning to get some posted moving along. Hopefully soon I’ll be putting them up, though whether here or Flickr or a photo blog is uncertain now.

Today, Richard Holbrooke visits Pakistan as start of his tenure as special envoy to the Pakistan-Afghanistan region.

[Hilltop Fort Ruins, Udegram, Swat Valley]

He’s got a lot of work ahead of him. I’ll be eager to see what kind of progress he can make, and wish him the best of luck. I’m thrilled to have serious attention being paid to this region, as relations have deteriorated greatly in the last years … along with conditions on the ground.

[From top of bus, Kass Valley, Swat]

These pictures are all from Swat Valley, which was a lush, hospitable, and famous tourist destination in Pakistan - until a few years ago when militancy and Taliban-ization of the area started to occur. Girls schools are threatened and destroyed, many forced to relocate outside the valley for the safety or education of their children.

[Children around Mingora, Swat]

Despite a few years of attempts by the military to take control [half-hearted it seems] … there’s still a nightly Taliban curfew, evening broadcasts naming names and making threats by the local militants, and serious violence and assassination. It’s an absolute tragedy, more so as time passes and the area’s tolerant and diverse history become that - history. It breaks my heart to hear it continue, as I wonder if the Swat I knew will ever be the same.

[Mingora, Swat]

I’m happy to see a serious diplomat finally on the ground, ready to help stabilize the region so its people can avoid militancy and the radicalization of it’s culture.

I’m starting a temporary feature today, with a single picture and quick blurb about one of my Pakistan pictures.

This photo was taken in mid-April 1995, at the archaeological ruins of Mohenjo Daro in Sindh, Pakistan.  Mohenjo Daro’s major occupation was during the Indus Valley Civilizations and runs from roughly 3000 - 2000 B.C.E. [BC] - with it’s two mounds containing tens of thousands of people within a few walled city mounds.

It’s the most impressive archaeological site I saw in Pakistan, which is saying something given the history available [early Buddhist sites, amazing historical mosques, Greek settlement at Taxilla, etc].

I’ve been scanning the many photos from my trips to Pakistan in recently, something that will take probably another few weeks of scanning [a bit more than half done] - and another month sorting in Adobe Lightroom [attaching location information, labels, etc] before I start to post much.

It’s been a time-warp for me - remembering all the people and places from my trips there.  I only wish I had my current camera and photography skills at that time [though am happy I was walking miles on my mid-20's feet and back].   Either way, I’ve got perhaps a thousand images in all.  A lot of sorting to do, and making sure there’s no photos that slipped away in the last decade whose negatives I need to scan.

Enjoyable work, though - as I reconstruct strolls through the bazaars of Lahore, Peshawar, Rawalpindi … hikes overlooking glaciers, views of some of the world’s highest peaks, and a lot of bronze age archaeology.

Christmas for Daddy came this week, when Mommy suprised him with the photo scanner he had been dreaming about. [No, not the automated one that costs a silly amount - a Canon 8800] After working with a lot of scanners at work … I’m impressed at a what a simple scanner can do these days. I’m impressed at how simply it gets the job done, and while I wasn’t hoping for another computer-based organizational puzzle [getting my whole music library fed into iTunes was fun enough] - it’s great to get all those photos organized again.

I’m certainly not going to quit taking pictures of Camille or posting … but am thrilled to be able to digitize my hundreds of photos from my Pakistan trip. As well as scan in some of Kris and my photos when we were little kids. As Camille and I are about to start looking at photos of relatives and friends as one of our activities - it’s time to get our photos out and in good order for regular use.

Just to get things going, here’s an actions shot of Inayat swinging the ginti [pick] to break up another layer of dirt.

It’ll be a ton of scanning, and then organization/naming … but it’s nice to have a long-term project to slowly work on every day - and remember the laughs, conversations, and great times I had.

Last week, I got an email from my Afghani friend, Abdul Momin, who is in the U.S. visiting for three months - arranging new business and visiting the Madison/UW. California, and Washington D.C.  He does a lot of work with my old graduate advisor, who is in Madison, so that means I’m lucky enough to see him most every trip he takes.

Friday we had tea and discussed politics and family … and on Saturday evening we had him over for a dinner of Angrezi Pulao, spinach, and nan. Evidently I cook a decent Afghani dish … and it was great having Camille and Kris meet a good friend of mine.

It’s always great to hear from Abdul Momin, among the many great people I met in Pakistan he is among the best.  I am proud to call him a friend of mine. Each trip to Pakistan, I was sure to visit him in Peshawar - not just because he has one of the nicest jewelry and beadwork shops there.  Each visit, he showed me around the city a bit, took me to see other workshops and the markets they purchase their materials at. It was a great learning experience, and good fun too as conversation went far and wide and he allowed me a look into the culture that had more depth than most conversations and friendships I found there.

Since my visits to Pakistan, he has come to Madison three times - each time we are able to meet, and catch up on family, life, and have good conversation about each of our worlds.

Currently, Abdul Momin resides in Peshawar, Pakistan with his wife and children - his father has moved back to Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan near where his hometown is. I hope to hear in the next years that he will be able to emigrate with his wife and children and bring them to the U.S. [or Canada, U.K.] as is his wish. In our discussions, he made it clear that both Afghanistan and Pakistan have some serious, and likely long-lasting, issues with security and legitimate governance. Instability, suicide bombings, and economic free-falls make a good future for one’s children hard to attain there - and knowing the quality of person he is and his intelligence; he would adapt well to life here and be a positive part of any community lucky enough to have him.

It was great to hear direct stories and opinions regarding what is going on there - an unfiltered view from someone who doesn’t get all their information from the western or online news, and who has an insider understanding of the culture. It definitely informed my opinions on things, and sadly, has made me more cynical of the long, long road to a productive future for either Afghanistan or Pakistan.

Other web stories about Abdul Momin’s work [family business]:
2002 Smithsonian Silk Road Exhibition Article
Lapidary Journal Story