Finished reading The Places in Between by Rory Stewart last night. The book chronicles Stewart's quest to walk across Afghanistan, from Herat to Kabul, following the path of the ancient King Babur. Stewart begins his journey shortly after the removal of the Taliban, in January of 2002, and literally walks every step of the way for the next 18 months. He cuts across rivers and ice, mountains and snow, and has various encounters with local villages and new Afghan military, with varying degrees of hospitality. The book is a very easy read; the sections are short and manageable for quick reading in various settings, and the author's style is revealing of the environment and the people he encounters. Good read for anyone interested in learning just a little more about the people, land, and culture of Afghanistan.
I had two primary short reflections that I wrote while reading this book....
First
Its simply amazing to see how ancient some of the villages and buildings are that Stewart comes across. I think its easy to forget the amount of human history that exists that we are unaware of due to the limits of education. As someone who enjoys history, it was also disappointing (although that may be too strong of a word) to see how little concern there was for preserving that history. One example is a minaret that juts into the sky in the middle of mountains in one of the most inaccessible areas on earth. There is little information at all about who put it there, what its purpose was, how it was constructed, and so on. It was also apparent that there was little concern over preserving the area. It was being excavated by locals and others for the sole purpose of selling the antiquities for profit. Thus, there will be even less evidence to ascertain the history of that structure, as well as the region.
Its interesting to note this fact beside the obvious sense of history the people Stewart encounters have. But that history does not possess the concept of nationhood, as our history does. The history if familial, and local. Many of the people he encounters have never been a day's walk beyond their village in their life. Seeing an old building, because of the known history of the place, has no ties to them. Afghanistan appears to have gone back and forth among Arab and Asian settlers and warriors, from Persian/Iranian control to that of Genghis Khan and later even some Hindu and Buddhist groups. Because of this, I think, modern generations have little to identify their history with, besides simply their family and their village. There is no overarching historical theme to attach to, like there seems to be in the West. But I think due to the nomadic past, the terrain of the area, and the ever changing historical residents, its difficult to feel attachment to monuments, the way some may feel towards Stonehenge or the Pyramids.
Its also serves as a reminder of the wealth of human history that we will never know about, and never can. The more history one becomes aware of, the more one observes the sheer volume of history that he will never know. That knowledge serves to produce humility rather than arrogance, and that is a needed thing.
Second
The author's journey is entirely and solely possible due to the hospitality of those he meets on his way. For certain, there are plenty of individuals he meets that are suspicious (he is a Westerner just several months after September 11, 2001) and refuse such service, or even threaten violence. But the majority of people, even if they were initially reluctant to provide food and shelter for a night, ended up doing so. It's remarkable...a total stranger, walking on foot, dirty, unshaven, smelly, gets such kindness. The locals nerves had to be well served - a man looking like a drifter, a total stranger, and you provide not only food, but shelter for a night.
It makes me wonder if such a journey would be possible in the United States. Could a man, who looked dirty, scruffy, smelled bad, and so on, could he travel on foot relying solely on the kindness of strangers. I could see people giving food, but I have a hard time imagining providing shelter...letting someone sleep in your home that you don't know at all. I know I would have difficulty with that.
How many of us, instead of inviting that person in, serving that person, caring for that person, would instead scoff, turn that person away, let our fear (be it a reasonable fear?) rule rather than compassion? How many of us would generously reach out and offer food and shelter to a man walking across the country?
I had two primary short reflections that I wrote while reading this book....
First
Its simply amazing to see how ancient some of the villages and buildings are that Stewart comes across. I think its easy to forget the amount of human history that exists that we are unaware of due to the limits of education. As someone who enjoys history, it was also disappointing (although that may be too strong of a word) to see how little concern there was for preserving that history. One example is a minaret that juts into the sky in the middle of mountains in one of the most inaccessible areas on earth. There is little information at all about who put it there, what its purpose was, how it was constructed, and so on. It was also apparent that there was little concern over preserving the area. It was being excavated by locals and others for the sole purpose of selling the antiquities for profit. Thus, there will be even less evidence to ascertain the history of that structure, as well as the region.
Its interesting to note this fact beside the obvious sense of history the people Stewart encounters have. But that history does not possess the concept of nationhood, as our history does. The history if familial, and local. Many of the people he encounters have never been a day's walk beyond their village in their life. Seeing an old building, because of the known history of the place, has no ties to them. Afghanistan appears to have gone back and forth among Arab and Asian settlers and warriors, from Persian/Iranian control to that of Genghis Khan and later even some Hindu and Buddhist groups. Because of this, I think, modern generations have little to identify their history with, besides simply their family and their village. There is no overarching historical theme to attach to, like there seems to be in the West. But I think due to the nomadic past, the terrain of the area, and the ever changing historical residents, its difficult to feel attachment to monuments, the way some may feel towards Stonehenge or the Pyramids.
Its also serves as a reminder of the wealth of human history that we will never know about, and never can. The more history one becomes aware of, the more one observes the sheer volume of history that he will never know. That knowledge serves to produce humility rather than arrogance, and that is a needed thing.
Second
The author's journey is entirely and solely possible due to the hospitality of those he meets on his way. For certain, there are plenty of individuals he meets that are suspicious (he is a Westerner just several months after September 11, 2001) and refuse such service, or even threaten violence. But the majority of people, even if they were initially reluctant to provide food and shelter for a night, ended up doing so. It's remarkable...a total stranger, walking on foot, dirty, unshaven, smelly, gets such kindness. The locals nerves had to be well served - a man looking like a drifter, a total stranger, and you provide not only food, but shelter for a night.
It makes me wonder if such a journey would be possible in the United States. Could a man, who looked dirty, scruffy, smelled bad, and so on, could he travel on foot relying solely on the kindness of strangers. I could see people giving food, but I have a hard time imagining providing shelter...letting someone sleep in your home that you don't know at all. I know I would have difficulty with that.
How many of us, instead of inviting that person in, serving that person, caring for that person, would instead scoff, turn that person away, let our fear (be it a reasonable fear?) rule rather than compassion? How many of us would generously reach out and offer food and shelter to a man walking across the country?
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