Afghanistan bets on peace with first national park

[Coventina]

Source: Reuters

BAMIYAN, Afghanistan (Reuters) - A unique cascade of turquoise lakes nestled in bleak mountains near the heart of Afghanistan was touted as a national park in the 1970s, long before three decades of war drove the tourists away.

Wednesday, Afghanistan at last declared Band-e-Amir its first conservation area, hoping nature-lovers will return.

For decades, the area deteriorated along with so much else in a country consumed by war. The last of Band-e-Amir's magnificent snow leopards was hunted down some time in the 1980s while Soviet troops were battling mujahideen guerrillas.

Spectacular ancient giant Buddha statues in the nearby Bamiyan valley were blown up by the Taliban in 2001.

But today the area is far from any fighting and Afghan tourists have begun to return. Authorities hope foreigners who made Afghanistan a stop on the "hippie trail" in the 1970s will one day come back too.



Read more: http://uk.reuters.com/article/lifestyleMolt/idUKTRE53L0W620090422

---

I've never heard of the "hippie trail." Anyone know what that is/was?

[ensho]

1. wonderful news

I always thought that if I ever became rich I would tour all the world's gardens, water gardens and Natl. Parks.


an ever lasting tour.

[jkirch]

2. The Hippie Trail...

...included Morocco, Nepal, Afghanistan and other locations where good hash was available.

[ensho]

4. hash - ah

nt

[jkirch]

6. Yeah. Yum.

[maxsolomon]

3. start to treat women as if they were human & we'll think about it

in 50 years.

[pitohui]

5. here is a map of the hippie trail

i think you are just supposed to drink the abundant local wine now but back in the day turkey with its beautiful countryside was also on the "hippie trail"

click the link for a map of the tour

http://www.hansroodenburg.nl/trail/


while the poster maxsolomon has a reasonable point about travel to afghanistan, it's my opinion that nothing changes for poor rural people and the wildlife of an area, if the area is kept in isolation and the people have no option but to utterly consume the wildlife of an area, eventually the place gets overgrazed and the wild plants in particular become utterly consumed