Swimming and Speaking in Kabul

A few years ago, if you asked anyone if they'd ever go to Afghanistan, their response would probably have been something to the tune of, "ARE YOU NUTS?!?!?!"  Myself included...

However as the days go by here, I find myself becoming more and more at ease with my surroundings. I've begun venturing out within the compound and meeting new people, and making new friends.   The pool is THE PERFECT way to cool off after a hot day in the airplane.  The people that we have met so far have all been wonderful, and they welcome us with friendly smiles and handshakes.

Having said that, one must still be cautious about who you talk to and who you trust, as you would with anyone.  But here, even more so.

The locals seem to really appreciate that I am taking the time to learn some of the local language.   Dari, which is a dialect of Persian, is somewhat similar to Arabic in that they use the same alphabet.  There are some similarities, but they are also different languages in their own right.  In fact, Dari shares more similarities with Farsi, which is spoken in Iran.  Let's learn some Dari together...

Hello - Salaam

Hello is a bit difficult to explain, as it is usually a shortened form of a more formal greeting.  The more formal version would be:

As-salamu Alaykum (Peace Be Upon You)

The formal response for this would be:

Wa-Alaykumu Salam (And Upon You Be Peace)

It is much more appropriate to use the longer greeting, as in some regions here including Pakistan, it can be considered rude or impolite to use the shorter greeting.

There are phonetic sounds that are used in Dari that are often very difficult for people that aren't use to using.   This can make the language difficult if not possible to understand.  For example, in the "romanization" of Dari, the letters "KH" together would produce a "gutteral sound" sort of like trying to clear your throat with your mouth open.  It doesn't sound pretty, but probably the best way to explain it.

Tashakor - Thank You

How Are You - Chi Tor Hasti

Good - Khob (There's that sound...)

Day - Bakhir (Pronounced -  Ba-(the sound)-eye)

This can be prefixed with different phrases for the part of the day:

Sob Bakhir - Good Morning

Chast Bakhir - or - Rose Bakhir - Good Afternoon

Shab Bakhir - Good Evening (Greeting)

Shaw Bakhir - Good Night (Going to Sleep)

So, let's put together a basic greeting.

Person 1:  As-salamu Alaykum

Person 2:Wa-Alaykumu Salam,  Chi Tor Hasti?

Person 1: Khab, Tashakor!

There you go, you're speaking Dari!

Hope you enjoyed Dari 101!

Tomorrow more pictures will be coming from the flying I've been doing so far, as well as one of our adventure into Kabul City...