Bpeace in Afghanistan (Again)

Bagram Air Base is a dusty, bumpy 25 miles north of Kabul. We’re not sure how many American service people are there, we think 8,000, and you have to be proud of them. Polite to the nth degree, fit, calm and cool in layers of clothing and gear in blistering heat. The Bpeace team traveled there today to the weekly outdoor “Friday Bazaar,” organized by First Lieutenant Darrell Pearman and his Civil Affairs team as a way to put money into the local Afghan economy. A majority of the service people stationed at Bagram never leave the base, so the market comes to them and is an important part of their day-off entertainment.

Bpeace associate Nasima is one of only two women who have a booth at the bazaar and Lt. Pearman smartly has them alternate weeks so they are not competing with each other. Nasima’s booth features her signature silk scarves, along with Latifa’s tunics, a few dresses from Sara’s, and embroidered table linens. We made the trek to understand this military bazaar, these military consumers, and how Nasima is leveraging this opportunity. Paula initiated the idea because she wanted to photograph Nasima there and Pam wanted to interview some servicepeople for her newspaper's blog. For lots of texture on today's trip to Bagram, see Pam's blog. ( http://blogs.mcall.com/varkony/)

Nasima's booth is one of perhaps 50 there. Male Afghan vendors sell rugs, jewelry, antique guns and knives, and artifacts. Nasima is in a prime location, right next to the popular DVD booth where the service people can buy DVDS of TV programs like CSI or first-run movies. To get to Bagram, Nasima leaves Kabul at 5 am, has to go through several checkpoints, and when she finally merchandises her booth, is subject to a dog search before she opens at 10 am. We were very proud of her and how she had set up her area, the array of wares, and the way she handled her military customers. We watched as she took a special order, asked for a deposit. She was poised and charming.

Lt. Pearman and his team have done a great job providing a service to both the men and women based at Bagram and the local Afghan community.

We left the heat and dust of Bagram and drove back to Kabul through the battered Shomali Valley, once the home of thriving vineyards when Afghanistan was one of the world’s largest exporter of raisins. Most of the valley has now been demined, opening the way for the refugee farmers to return. It was sad to see the rubble and remnants, but encouraging to see life returning.