Paghman - A touristic spot

Paghman is a town in the hills near Afghanistan's capital of Kabul. It is the seat of the Paghman District which has a population of about 120,000 (2002 official UNHCR est.). The Paghman District is situated in the western part of Kabul Province. The Paghman Gardens is a major attraction in Paghman, and is why the city is sometimes known as the capital garden of Afghanistan. After King Amanullah Khan and Queen Soraya Tarzi's return from Europe, Amanullah brought in foreign experts to redesign Kabul. At that time, at the entrance of Paghman, they created a European style monumental gate similar to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, France.

Paghman district borders Wardak and Parwan provinces to the west, Shakardara District to the north, Kabul to the east and Char Asiab District to the south-east. Its headquarters is the town of Paghman, which is situated in the northeastern part of the district. The Paghman area is greener compared to many other parts of the region, and also has fruit trees. Located at the foot of the Hindu Kush mountain range, Paghman became a holiday retreat with villas and chalets, as well as the summer capital. It was a popular place for the wealthy and the aristocracy to visit. It is known today as a place where people can relax and spend the weekends, and has become an important place for local and foreign tourists. The Kabul River, the only large river in the Kabul province, is fed by springs and snow-melt runoffs from Paghman. There is also a canal system, in need of repair, which extends from Paghman to Tapa (hill).

Getting to Know Afghanistan's Huge New National Park

Getting to Know Afghanistan's Huge New National Park



Wakhan National Park—Afghanistan's second such sanctuary—protects mountains, snow leopards, and indigenous people.

 

Afghanistan announced the creation of its second national park this week, a new protected area that is 25 percent larger than Yellowstone National Park in the U.S.

 

Wakhan National Park encompasses soaring mountains, alpine grasslands, and unique wildlife in the northeastern part of Afghanistan, where it will preserve the traditional ways of life practiced by communities inside its borders.

Prince Mostapha Zaher, the director-general of Afghanistan's National Environmental Protection Agency, called it "one of the last truly wild places on the planet." Zaher said his grandfather, King Zaher Shah, had first dreamed of creating a national park in the area in the 1950s.

"We can prove that the cause of protecting the environment and wildlife can also be utilized as an instrument of peace and tolerance," said Zaher.

"The government of Afghanistan understands that it is absolutely essential for reconstruction to protect its natural resources," adds Peter Zahler, the deputy director of the Asia program for the New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society, which worked with the Afghan government to establish the park.

The founding of the vast new park—which is 4,200 square miles (about a million hectares)—builds on the success Afghanistan has had with its first national park, Band-e Amir, which was designated in 2009.

"The communities in Band-e Amir love it," says Zahler. "[The park] has brought attention, tourists, and jobs. [So] the communities in Wakhan are really enthusiastic."

The Wakhan District—profiled in a February 2013 National Geographic magazine feature—is a narrow corridor of land jutting off the northeastern tip of Afghanistan. It is bordered by Pakistan to the south, China to the east, and Tajikistan to the north. The region contains the headwaters of the Amu Darya River and is the place where the Hindu Kush and Pamir Mountains meet

 

Read more from the National Geographic Official Website