16th October - cricket, crafts and red carpet!

Pictures of School Consultants receiving gifts are also posted - scroll down to see! Here we see the Afghan Cricket Team and some of the beautiful work done by the potters at the Turquoise Mountain, Paula.

A great day and much achieved. Met up with Raess, from the Afghan cricket team. He had been man of the match in the finals in Tanzania when the Afghan team won the trophy.

Leslie Knott, who is making a film on the team (see www.outoftheashes.tv) had recommended that I contact him as he is determined to use cricket as a means to help the people of Afghanistan and has already organised cricket camps for kids in Northern Afghanistan.

He was born in Pakistan, where his parents were refugees. He grew up and saw the Pakistan team doing well in cricket and decided he wanted to be a great cricketer. He played in all the refugee camps in Pakistan and popularised tennis ball cricket. He remembers coming across the border back into Afghanistan in 2003 and being shocked at the devastation of his homeland and deciding he wanted to be a part of the rebuilding of his nation.

We met at the Intercontinental Hotel,which stands proud on the hills overlooking Kabul and was a bastion of the troubled years, often housing journalists during the Russian war. I remember seeing it in 2002 when the ceiling was coming down - now it has been done up and is pretentious and rather hideous and sterile-soul-less would describe it well! Outside the security is incredibly tight and at the door there is a large notice saying no guns allowed.

We discussed the possibility of arranging cricket training camps. Raess will get 6 members of the Afghan team to come to Jalalabad in the Spring and give coaching to 300 of our kids from our twin schools in that region. They will be supplied with clothes and cricket equipment and given coaching and play in matches. If it is a success we will plan other camps across Afghanistan on Peace Day 2009 and will also get all our Afghan, Swedish and UK schools to play cricket that day - a challenge in Sweden!! We will also fund cricket in as many schools as possible. We will try and harness these camps to health issues.

After our talk he took William and me up to the big celebration where hundreds had turned out in a large tent to celebrate the victory in Tanzania. Spivvy camera men packed the stage and dignitaries walked up the red carpet. I met up with the team, which I had met already in Dubai and they video recorded messages for Alex to thank him for his support. So,one step nearer our cricket goals.

We then had our meeting at The British Council. Security tight and so was a joy to sit out in beautiful manicured gardens with the British Council cat on my knee for discussions. Heard about the BC projects in twinning here and we discussed what we are doing, there are many avenues where we can cooperate and a very useful meeting.

Then off to The Turquoise Mountain foundation, where we had a tour. It is like entering a different world. From the chaos of Kabul and the streets choked with traffic and beggars,you enter a haven of peace and beauty and architectural delight. Crafted from the earth it seems, this beautiful early 19th century fort has been restored lovingly and the gardens are awash with roses, geraniums and vines. Peacocks strut across the lawns and Kabul seems a world away and instead you can imagine it as it was centuries back.

Met Sophie Swire who used to build schools in Pakistan and we have been trying to meet for years, so planned a meeting for tomorrow. Went round the workshops in calligraphy, woodwork and pottery. The pottery is based on the famous ceramics from Istalif — a beautiful hilltop town off the Shomali plain. When I visited 5 years ago I found a town — which was once famous as a retreat and picnic spot for Kabulis and lies on a river,totally destroyed - every building razed to the ground. The famous ceramic workshops had been destroyed too and since then Turquoise Mountain has been working to restore this craft to the region and apparently Istalif is slowly reemerging to its former glory.

It is wonderful to watch people so skilled in these crafts of pottery, woodwork and calligraphy—their work utterly beautiful.

Expat life in Kabul - 15h October (cont....)

This evening William and I went out to a restaurant for supper. It is really quite extraordinary, the expat life here. You arrive at the restaurant and it is guarded by piles of sand bags and kalashinikov’d security guards in bullet proof vests. You knock on the door and a tiny window opens and you are inspected and let in to an inner room. There you are searched by armed security guards and then led to another door where another window opens and you are let in to another room before being let in to the restaurant.

Inside you find smoke filled rooms with bars serving any drink you care to have and French food is served at candlelit tables. There is a swimming pool out in the lanterned gardens, empty now for the winter, but just weeks ago any expat could come and swim here.

Just an hour away, you find roads blocked by the Taliban in Wardak and outside on the streets today our car was besieged by young street urchins, begging at our windows. I find it all very bizarre and long to leave Kabul and head for the North.

15th October - The bags arrive!

Sarah spent a frustrating hour with poor and intermittent generator power and finally managed to get this to me - pictures have now arrived as well!

Today we had meetings at SCA offices on the notorious Jalalabad road, affectionately known as Suicide Alley. It is a road lined with military bases and often clogged with heavily armed military vehicles and tanks - a stark reminder of the battles being fought across the country. Sadly these peacekeeping forces in Kabul have been the target of suicide attacks and hence the name of the road. Most vehicles desperately try to avoid being holed up beside these military vehicles and in their panic stricken attempts to avoid them probably cause far more accidental casualties than the attacks themselves.

Today's meeting was to allow me to meet up with students and teachers from all the schools where poor security means I cannot visit. It was incredibly humbling. Some had travelled for hours to be here and had brought beautiful gifts for their UK twin schools. One group had been too afraid to bring the materials in case the Taliban stopped and searched their bus. Another group had taken a 7 hour detour to avoid Taliban road blocks in Wardak. But they were all determined to be here and we spent the day discussing problems and challenges in their schools, the security situation and the good things too - like new buildings, University graduates and the twin school links and what they mean to their children.

Some schools had been visited by the Taliban and subjects Like History and Geography had been bannned because The Taliban found they had been heavily criticised in the text books and wouldn't let them be used - there must be some compromise where their part of history can be played down until times are less sensitive - then at least the students can learn the rest of Geograpy and History.

I showed them our twin school film and they were very moved by that as they could see all the work we have done in Afghanistan and hadn't realised how much we had done - one man then wrote me a poem and read it out, thanking me for my courage in helping Afghanistan. Jane and I were presented with gold and silk tribal Afghan dresses, trousers and scarves, heavily embroidered and beaded and in beautiful colours. We had to wear them and caused much joy - and hilarity.

I gave out all the twin school gifts and cards - Schools twinned to St Gabriels, Brookfields, Moulsford, Elstree, Home Farm, Marshgate, Brighton & Hove, Guernsey Grammar, Ryeish Green, Ellingham and Churchdown were there and I handed over all the UK twin school gifts and just as they were about to leave for their provinces, my bags appeared from the airport like one massive miracle and everyone praised Allah and I handed out all the missing gifts JUST FANTASTIC!!!

14th October - Dinner at the British Embassy...

Dinner at the British Embassy was fascinating. We were guests of the Ambassador and his wife, Sir Sherard and Lady Bridget Cowper-Coles. Also invited were the Head of the British Council, Catherine Day from the Embassy Press Office and Gemma from DFID.

William Reeve, one of Afghan Connection's Trustees, and on this visit with me, had known Bridget and Sherard since his Oxford days so it was all very relaxed and also a very interesting insight into what is happening across Afghanistan.

After dinner we sat in a room lined with photographs of Royals and politicians alike, Robin Cook, Gordon Brown, Prince Charles and others all graced the Kabul sideboard. As we sat, we were served the most delicious seeds from ruby red pomegranates sent from Hamid Karzai in person....quite the most delicious fruit I have ever tasted.

Kabul - but luggage still in transit - 14th October

More pictures will follow when the ether and electricity allow them to be sent from Kabul - perhaps they too are lost in transit .... see below!

Arrived safe in Kabul after a traumatic journey from Dubai. I was up before 4 and waited in line for hours before I was finally checked in to Kam Air - and only then did they send the message to transfer my baggage, despite the fact I arrived over 12 hours previously. The joy which lit this chaos was that I suddenly realised that the man beside me in the queue was part of the Afghan cricket team - quite unbelievable! He knew who I was and a few of the team recognised me from my last visit when I brought them some cricket kit.

My son Alex has managed to persuade the MCC to fund our cricket projects in Afghanistan. One of our ideas is to hold cricket camps across the country and give coaching to our twin school kids. The Afghan team have agreed to help us. They are en route to Kabul from Tanzania having won the League 4 (I think) Championship and in their hands is the magnificent trophy. So, I grabbed a few seconds before the transfer bus and took photos of Home Farm's travelling Wellington Bear with the cricket trophy and will meet up with the team again in Kabul.

Joy quickly melted as I realised on landing that my luggage was missing - should have guessed and so so depressing. Just pray it will come tomorrow in time for my meetings with all the schools. So will now have to borrow various items of clothing to wear to the Embassy !! All very very frustrating ... but just great to be back in Afghanistan.

I was greeted by the wonderful Gul Noor who looked after me in the Taliban times and prepared me delicious food when I returned from Afghanistan under the Taliban, a stone lighter than when I left.

In Transit..... 13th October

First step of the journey over. When the Emirates crew heard I was on my way to Afghanistan, they apologised for being full in Business Class where they wanted to upgrade me and found be a row of 4 seats instead, where I curled up and watched 3 weepy films in a row!

As I battled my way through the transit queue at Dubai International Airport, the call to prayer echoed across the cavernous corridors - such a mix of West and East, capitalism and religion - one vast melting pot, where thousands of souls are in transit. Different languages compete to be heard, exotic scripts line the walls offering directions to bewildered passengers, bodies lie sprawled in restless, homeless sleep and solid gold palm trees soar above one of the biggest duty free shopping centres in the world. I feel very alone, but not uncomfortably so in this strange environment between two lives.

My bags have arrived, but I am not allowed to get them. They will, I presume and hope, be picked up and put somewhere until 4am, when I have been told by a Mr Sayed, that I can check in for Kabul and my bags will be plucked out of the ether, labelled and sent to Terminal 2 to join me on the last leg of my journey - Insha Allah!! I have a vision of them going round and round the luggage belt unclaimed and lost forever, but am powerless to act.

The beginning of trip number 12!

Posted by Paula after dropping Sarah at Heathrow on Monday morning!

Still not packed up and its very late. In the hall 3 computers and 3 bags of cricket kit, as well as a box full of gifts for the twin schools await collection by a wonderful company which is flying it to Kabul for us free of charge where I will meet it! Yet more good will.

Set off at 5am tomorrow (Monday 13^th October) and will reach Kabul on Tuesday morning. Carrying bags full of the most wonderful gifts and letters and projects from the UK schools for their twin schools. Also Wellington Bear - given to me by Home Farm Pre Prep school… they would like me to take photos of him all through my travels and so he will feature in each blog I hope. His first visit to Afghanistan and my 12^th. Security much worse this visit and so travels will be restricted to Kabul and the North, but I will meet teachers and students from all our twin schools as they will travel to Kabul and Kunduz to meet us.