Afghanistan

Afghanistan: Land of Ancient Echoes

Afghanistan’s high desert plains give way to snowbound mountains: the Hindu Kush and Pamir ranges carve a skyline of jagged peaks, some eternally capped with snow. At dawn, the Hunza-like valleys of the Wakhan Corridor glow pink, and in spring, central deserts bloom with wild poppies beneath a sapphire sky.

Historic sites abound: the minaret of Jam rising from lonely hills (a UNESCO site), the blue-tiled mosques and citadels of Herat, and the Bamiyan Valley’s giant Buddha niches carved into cliffs.