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Farah Mubarak Visit Details |
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| Details of the visit to Farah Mubaarak (by Syed Yousuf Tajammul Khundmiri), Afghanistan for the pilgrimage of the Holy Tomb of Imamul-kaainaat Imamul-bahr-o-barr Imamul-jin-o-ins Imamuna Syedana Moulana Hzt. Syed Muhammad Jaunpuri Mahdi-e-Maoud Qaleefatullah Muraadullah Mubbaiyyin-e-kalaamullah Daafa-e-halaakat-e-ummat-e-muhammadia khatim-e-wilayat-e-muqayyada-e-muhammadia amrullah salawatullahi alaihi wa sallam.
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Visa Requirements:
You need to obtain a visa prior to traveling to Afghanistan. Visa can be obtained from Afghanistan Embassy or Consulate. The form for visa application is attached for your convenience. UAE residents can avail the attached visa application form. You will need 2 photographs, letter from sponsor stating purpose of visit (Generally tourism, business), and passport copy with UAE Visa page. Visa Fee is AED 120.00 for One month single entry. AED 670 for 6 months multiple entry visa. Visa is generally issued within one day in the UAE. However for other countries it may take more time.
Embassy & Consulate Contact Numbers
Afghanistan Embassy, Abu Dhabi Tel: +971 (0) 2 641 5070
Afghanistan Consulate, Dubai Tel: +971 (0) 4 398 8229
The visa is issued free of cost at Afghanistan Embassy, New Delhi, India. The address is:
INDIA
Embassy of Afghanistan in New Delhi
Plat No. 5, Block 50F, Shantipath, Chanakyapuri
New Delhi 110021
Tel: (+91-112) 410 331
Fax: (+ 91-112) 687 5439
Email: afghanspirit@yahoo.com
Ambassador: H.E. Masood KHALILI
You can see the complete list of Afghanistan Embassies by clicking on the following link
http://www.afghanistan-mfa.net/embList.html
Local Understanding & Importance:
The local Afghani people call our Imamuna Mahdi-e-MaoudAS as Aqa Mir Syed MuhammadAS. Although they do not call themselves as Mahdavis, but They have a lot of respect for the Holy Tomb. During this trip this Khaaksaar Ahqar-ul-Ibaad along with Hzt. Syed Yakoob Roshan Yadullahi Sahab gave them details about Imamuna Mahdi-e-MaoudAS life and teachings. They have deep respect for ImamunaAS and were impressed by his teachings. They even requested us to provide some books on the life & teachings of ImamunaAS. We already gave them "The Promised One" and promised to send more books especially in Persian.
The local Afghani people informed us several other incidents which further emphasize the importance of our ImamAS's personality.
- Not even 1 person died from Mazaar District during the 25 years of war.
- The Mazar District never came under attack although other villages in the vicinity including Nao-Bahaar came under attack from Russians.
- People from all surrounding villages have such a firm belief that for every moment of difficulty or joy they come to the Holy Tomb.
- When Talibaan were destroying all Mazaar's in Afghanistan, they came to the Holy Tomb of ImamunaAS, They removed the Tomb Stone and tried to harm the Holy Grave. The local residents bear the evidence that soon Taliban were wiped of the surface.
Location:
The Holy Tomb is situated between Nao-Bahaar & Raj districts around 15kms from Farah City. The locality attached to the Holy Tomb is called Mazaar. However, the local Afghani people would easily understand Nao-Bahaar. The Farah City itself is around 10 to 15 Sq. Kms; and is situated just outside the old Farah Fort.
Security Situation:
Local Afghan authorities in Farah Mubaarak comment that the government in Afghanistan is still not strong. It still does not have full control over all the provinces in Afghanistan as of today (August 22, 2005). Kabul is considered safer, but you still see that all shops close by sunset, Security forces spread all over the city, etc. We were allowed to stay for just 3 days since the elections were on the anvil and they could not give us an assurance. We were given security cover during our stay and 4 Security personal accompanied us whenever we traveled to the Holy Tomb. Situation is expected to improve, but it is recommended to contact our acquaintances in Farah before traveling there.
Language:
Persian (Called Dari locally) is most commonly spoken language all over Afghanistan. Kabulis speak mostly Persian. However down south near Pakistan border Pushtu is commonly spoken. It is strongly recommended that you learn basic Persian to be able to move around and communicate as required. I request knowledgeable people with good command over Persian to post basic lessons on Persian language on Mahdavis & onlinedaira groups so that aspirants can benefit from it.
Weather:
Over 90% of Afghanistan is covered by Mountains & Desert. Farah is located near Iran border in the West of Afghanistan between Herat (in the north) and Nimroz (in the South). It is a warm & dry place. Summer starts around March/April and stays till August/September. Kabul is towards north & is relatively cool. For almost 6 to 7 months, snow falls all over Afghanistan. It would be very cold from October to April in Kabul, and October to February in Farah.
Currency:
Afghanistan currency is called Afghani. US Dollars are generally accepted as an alternate currency. Approximate exchange rates with other currencies are as follows:
50 Afghani = 1 US Dollars
1 Afghani = 1 Indian Rupees
12 Afghani = 1 UAE Dirhams
Although you can exchange international currencies at local exchange houses in Kabul, it is recommended that you carry some Afghani cash of hand. USD is generally accepted for exchange to Afghani. To avoid multiple exchange conversions, try to take Afghani Cash with you from your place of origin.
Food:
Afghani food is very rich in oil. Some people may find that they use five times more oil in all their dishes than what we use. We recommend you to carry some ready to eat food for at least a day, so that you do not face problems of food change during your journey. Roti (Called Naan) is their staple food. Rice (called Brinj) is also common. You may not see vegetable dishes at the hotels. Tomatoes, Potatoes, Brinjal, Okra, etc. are available in abundance. If you can cook, carry required utensils. Drinking Water is easily available and is very clean.
Journey : (Sunday August 15, 2005)
In this section I will insha'Allah provide details of my journey starting from Dubai, for those who want to go from India, they would travel via Delhi-Kabul onwards. Hzt. Syed Yakoob Roshan Yadullahi Sahab will write details of their Journey from Hyderabad onwards and would be more elaborate & helpful.
There are regular flights form Ariana Afghan Airlines and Indian Airlines to Kabul from Delhi. The ticket from Delhi to Kabul may cost around IRS 20,000. Currently, international flights are available only to Kabul. Therefore anyone willing to travel to Farah Mubaarak would reach Kabul first. The journey route is Kabul-Kandahar-Farah-NaoBahaar.
There are daily flights available to Kabul from Dubai. Ariana Afghan Airlines flight takes off from Terminal 2 Dubai International Airport at 6:00AM and arrives at 9:10AM local time at Kabul International Airport. Reporting time is 2 hrs prior to the flight departure time.
Tickets Details:
Ariana Afghan Airlines Return Ticket Dubai-Kabul-Dubai costs AED 1,270.00 incl taxes.
Purchased from Eisa Travels (+9714) 295 5444 who are the general sales agents for Ariana Afghan Airlines, However you can approach any travel agent in the UAE to get your ticket up to Kabul.
Mr. Abdul Bari Stanekzai is the Station Manager of Ariana Afghan Airlines. His contact details are as follows:
Abdul Bari Stanekzai
Station Manager, UAE
Tel: (+9714) 282 2268 / 295 5444
Fax: (+9714) 286 9418 / 295 5554
Mobile: (+97150) 650 5496
Email: arianauae@flying-carpets.net
Tickets are easily available and can be purchased even a day before traveling. However, it is recommended to buy the tickets at least a week in advance. It is highly recommended that you reconfirm your return journey from Kabul to Dubai, since the Ariana office in Kabul is not competent enough and lack proper systems. Also because outbound flights from Kabul are generally fully-booked and Dubai is the most active route being a connecting hub for Europe and America.
I left for Kabul on August 14, 2005 and arrived at Kabul Internation Airport at 9:10 AM local time. Took a taxi to Faroshgah-Buzurg-Afghanan (This is the central market of Kabul) to meet my friend. You can get taxis in the airport parking ground, however they are exorbitantly costly. If you walk for about 5 minutes outside the parking lot, you can get local taxis for quite less. You can get a local taxi to Seelow (Bus Stop for other provinces) for Appr. 70 - 100 Afghani. Bargaining is very common in Afghanistan.
It is recommended that you carry your mobile set with you and purchase a local mobile SIM. This would enable you to keep in contact with the dear ones. There are currently two mobile networks in Afghanistan.
- Roshan USD 35.00 One Time (No monthly charge)
- Afghan Online USD 45.00 One Time (50 Afghani Monthly Charge)
Till today the network is not available in Farah and other remote places. However, we were informed by the local authorities in Farah that the network would start working within a couple of weeks (i.e. by mid of September 2005). You can buy recharge cards which come in USD 10 denominations and are easily available. You can talk for over 30 minutes with one card recharge.
Kabul has a wide range of hotels. However, we currently do not have any good hotel's contact, because the hotel that we stayed at on our return journey is not recommendable. There are hotels available at Koti-Saangi (which is close to the bus stop at SEELOW).
Took breakfast and proceeded to Koti Saangi - Seelow, this is where all the busses for other provinces start.
Kabul-Kandahar road is newly constructed and is in very good condition.
There are luxury buses available for Kandahar from SEELOW. However the busses would start around 5:00AM and the last bus may be available around 10:00AM. Therefore Leave for SEELOW as soon as you reach Kabul. If you reach after 10:00AM you may get a coaster 21-seater bus.
Kabul to Kandahar Bus Fare is 250 Afghani. Journey time ranges between 8-10 hours depending on the type of vehicle you get. Luxury busses are recommended as they are safe, comfortable and are in good shape compared to the smaller busses.
I left from Kabul at around 1:30PM for Kandahar in a coaster 21-seater.
Kabul to Kanadahar:
Kabul (SEELOW) - Maidan-e-Shaad - Vilayat-Muqaam - Saeedabad - Gazni - ShahbazKhan - Nani - Mullah-Noh-Baba - Kashkay - Karosay - Liwanye Bazar - Ashkarkot - Muqar - Hasan Kariz - Shahjoy - Miskinabad - Gajoy - Nowrak - Kharjoy - Mula - Qalat - Bakirzai - Azartak - Jaldak - Kharan - Haji Saidah Kareem - Foladghai - Haji Ata Mohd - Ashaqzai - Doru - Karizgai - Bariyam - Vilayat Gor - Shehr-e-Sefa - Sangar - Kandahar
The bus stopped on prayer timings for the passengers to pray. Afghanis generally follow Hanafi Maslak, therefore we do not face any difference in prayer timings.
Reached Kandahar at 10:30PM same day and did an overnight stay at Saqi hotel at Kandahar. All busses arriving from other provinces have their final stop at Kabul Darwaza Street. This street is full of transportation companies. Saqi Hotel is very close to the place where all busses stop, you will find it on your right hand side when you arrive from Kabul.
Overnight stay charge paid for one room at Saqi Hotel - 150 Afghani.
Saqi Hotel & Lodging
Kabul Darwaza, Kandahar
Mobile: 070307341, 070307522
Haji Abdul Qaliq, Dilawar & Ahmedullah.
Please note that all journeys start very early in the morning just after Fajr prayers, be it Kabul-Kandahar or Kandahar-Farah Mubaarak. Night journey is not allowed by the security forces.
Left Kandahar for Farah Mubaarak at 6:00AM on 15th August, 2005.
Kandahar-Farah-Herat highway is under construction and is expected to complete in about 6 months time. It is expected that on completion of this road link to Farah, you may get bus service connecting Kabul directly to Farah. You should check at SEELOW in Kabul when you travel to see if a direct bus service to Farah is available.
At this time only small saloon cars are available from Kandahar to Farah, and these cars leave very early between 4:00AM and 6:00AM, if you are late and reach after 6:00AM you may have to wait for next morning. Since Kandahar-Herat road is still under construction, the route that these cars follow is quite risky. It goes through mountains and deserts. Mainly off-road driving (you may experience Desert Car Rally at times). Journey time is around 10-12 hours depending on the situation. You can expect regular halts due to security checks.
Always keep a bottle of drinking water with you when you are traveling between cities.
Kanadahar to Farah Mubaarak: (Monday August 16, 2005)
Kandahar - Girishk - Dularam - Tizak - Shiwan - Farah Mubaarak.
I met Mr. Tila Muhammad at Kandahar. He happens to be from Farah and is very good-natured. He works for Afghanistan Development Association (AFA) at Farah. Accompanied him till Farah and reached Farah Mubaarak at around 3:00PM on 15th.
He offered lunch at his residence and after Lunch and Zohar Prayers, went to meet AFA official Mr. Yousuf Karimi. Mr. Yousuf briefed about the security situation in and around Farah and recommended/offered his home to stay as he lived close to the Holy Tomb. I thanked him for his offer and started my search for the Qafla which had come from Hyderabad. After visiting 2 other lodges along with Mr. Tali we reached Hilal Hotel and found them.
Hzt. Syed Yakoob Roshan Yadullahi would insha'Allah write in detail about their journey. As mentioned earlier we were given security by the local authorities and got the permission from them to visit the Holy Tomb only next morning i.e. Tuesday 16th August 2005.
Farah Mubaarak to The Holy Tomb of ImamunaAS: (Tuesday August 16, 2005)
A coaster bus was booked on Monday itself and the bus arrived on time at 7:30AM, we were all ready to see the dream of our lifetime come true. Our deep desire to visit the last abode of Imamuna Mehdi-e-MaoudAS was just about to be fulfilled. The real moment was very near, yet there was a feeling in the heart..and it was loud, do we really deserve to go there? Can we, the filthy, the corrupt, the in-obedient, the ill-cultured visit the Holiest of the places on the earth? Will we not face the wrath of our Aaqa for ignoring his teachings yet go to him shamelessly? Even a little child fears going to his teacher if he hasn't done his home work. I felt as if all my life I had been playing & living in dirt / rubbish and today I was going to reach the main stage in the very same condition as I had always been.
Yet we went on solely relying on Allah's and KhatimainAS's mercy begging for forgiveness, begging to deal with us not on the basis of justice but on the basis of mercy because if justice is to be done with us, we have done nothing good to send forward that we can rely on. May Allah forgive us even for the shortcomings of our conduct in the Durbar of ImamunaAS, of all our sins, mistakes, in-obedience and give us the company of the dust of the slippers of ImamunaAS on the day of judgement. That would be a sure salvage.
There is no road from Farah Mubaarak to the Holy Tomb (Nau Bahaar), the drive is 15km and takes around 35-45 minutes. We reached the Holy Tomb around 8:15AM. People sat in the Holy Tomb and Ziyarat was done. We met local Afghani people from Mazaar & Nau Bahaar villages. Lunch was offered by Mr. Juma Khan Bashiri, head of SWRCA (South West Reconstruction Company Afghanistan). His contact details:
Juma Khan Bashiri
Head of SWRCA
(South West Reconstruction Company Afghanistan)
Main Office Add:
District No. 3, Street No. 2
House No. 47, Farah
Satellite Phone: (+88216) 8444 8550
Roshan Phone: (+93) (0) 79 363 523
Mr. Bashiri was very helpful during our stay at Farah. He speaks fairly good English. We had very good conversation with him about the life and teachings of ImamunaAS and he requested us to send some books in Persian on the subject which could help them understand mahdaviat in detail. We explained him in English and he in turn interpreted the same for the other fellow Afghanis in Persian. We also worked out details on the renovation of the Holy Tomb, construction of a masjid, two rooms and other amenities including hand pump nearby. Insha'Allah soon the project will be initiated and hope to complete it in the next six months. Hzt. Syed Yakoob Roshan Yadullahi Sahab has project estimation details which we calculated with Mr. Bashiri's help, this subject will insha'Allah be taken care of separately.
Sketch of the Holy Tomb & surroundings:
Mr. Bashiri offered us Lunch minjanib-Allah and it was fabulous. It reaffirms my belief that Afghanis are the best hosts. Zohar prayers were performed around 3:00PM outside the Holy Tomb. We stayed at the Holy Tomb till 6:00pm and later went back to the hotel where the rest of the day was spent.
(Wednesday August 17, 2005): Visit The Holy Tomb of ImamunaAS
Accompanied by the security personal we left for the Holy Tomb at around 8:30AM, Zaireen including Hzt. Mashaiq Syed Khundmeer, Hzt. Syed Yakoob Roshan Yadullahi, Janaab Syed Esa Sahab intended to do Urs and invited the local Afghani people for lunch. Alhamdulillah a goat was slaughtered in the name of Allah, and the lunch was prepared for around 50 people. After Zohar prayers lunch was served, we left the Holy Tomb at around 6:00PM. And the rest of the day was spent at the hotel.
(Thursday August 18, 2005): Visit The Holy Tomb of ImamunaAS & Return Journey
Due to security concerns and the imminent elections we were allowed to stay only for three days and today was supposed to be our last day at this holy place. The bus left for the Holy Tomb at around 8:00AM After the Ziarat, we left for the hotel at around 10:00AM with this supplication from our hearts, may Allah bring us back here again.
A coaster 21-seater was booked to travel back to Kandahar, which left at 3:00PM. We were forced to do a night halt at Dularam and restarted our journey to 3:15AM. Reached Kandahar at 10:30AM. We boarded another coaster for Kabul and reached Kabul around 10:30PM same evening.
It is recommended that you start your journey early in the morning, so that you can reach Kandahar early and catch a proper bus early next morning.
(Friday August 19, 2005): Return Journey
After an overnight stay at Mohammed Restaurent at Koti Saangi, the Qafla left for the airport to take the flight back to Delhi, and this servant of Allah, Kamtar-o-ahqar came back to the same dirt & filth that he has been all through his life.
CONTACTS:
Ariana Afghan Airlines:
Mr. Masood Wahidi, V.P. Commercial
Mob: (+93) (070) 284187, Off: (+93) (020) 2101040
Mr. Siddiq, International Sales Office
Farah:
Mr. Yousuf Karimi, Afghan Development Association, Farah
(+88216) 2100 0091, (+88216) 5113 4092
Juma Khan Bashiri
Head of SWRCA
Main Office Add:
District No. 3, Street No. 2
House No. 47, Farah
Satellite Phone: (+88216) 8444 8550
Roshan Phone: (+93) (0) 79 363 523
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