Mediaboss Marketing

1960s Afghanistan presents a stark contrast to the war-torn region we recognize today. Take a peek at the way Afghanistan was and how it can be again.

Like this gallery?Share it:

1 of 47

Dr. William Podlich (second from left) almost always had his small Olympus camera with him on his travels, and he was usually the man behind the camera. This is a rare photo that he himself appears in.

2 of 47

Afghan men out for a picnic.

3 of 47

Peg Podlich on a trip from Kabul to Peshawar, Pakistan.

4 of 47

Dr. Bill Podlich on a hillside in Kabul.

5 of 47

A Buddha statue in Bamiyan Valley. In 2001, the Taliban destroyed the two largest ones.

6 of 47

Men looking over Istalif, a centuries-old center for pottery.

7 of 47

Men and boys enjoying the waters of the Kabul river.

8 of 47

An Afghan boy decorating cakes.

9 of 47

Jan Podlich during a shopping trip in Istalif.

10 of 47

An outdoor market selling a colorful variety of produce.

11 of 47

A crowded plaza filled with people celebrating the new year.

12 of 47

A senior English class at the American International School of Kabul.

13 of 47

Young students in a playground.

14 of 47

These students do their work in a shaded outdoor classroom.

15 of 47

Desks and a leafy canopy are all these students need to make a classroom in the summer.

16 of 47

Wading children play and women wash as ducks float serenely by.

17 of 47

Students at the Higher Teachers College of Kabul, where Dr. Podlich taught for two years with UNESCO.

18 of 47

An Afghani military band.

19 of 47

An Afghan Army parade through Kabul.

20 of 47

Afghan repairmen in Kabul.

21 of 47

Shah-Do Shamshira Mosque, built in the early 20th century under the reign of Amanullah Khan.

22 of 47

The streets fill with cars during rush hour.

23 of 47

Kabul Gorge, sometimes called Tang-i-Gharu, connects Kabul with Jalalabad.

24 of 47

The seasons change, and this winter crowd smiles for the camera.

25 of 47

A boy sells balloons by the river.

26 of 47

Men gather on makeshift mobile bleachers.

27 of 47

Parking lot of the American International School of Kabul.

28 of 47

A chemistry lesson in a mud-walled classroom.

29 of 47

Sisters walking the streets of Kabul.

30 of 47

Afghanistan's Bamiyan Valley, home to numerous Buddhist monastic ensembles and sanctuaries, as well as Islamic edifices.

31 of 47

A man bends his head for a shave.

32 of 47

A man preparing jalebi, a sweet dessert.

33 of 47

King's Hill in Paghman Gardens, constructed following Amanullah Khan's tour of Europe, India, and Iran. Paghman soon became a chic holiday retreat filled with chalets, villas, and gardens. These royal gardens were public; however, in order to enter, one had to don Western garb. At the tail end of the 20th century, though, Paghman became a Mujahideen battleground, and most everything has since been destroyed.

34 of 47

A residential hillside in Kabul.

35 of 47

The King's Palace, where guards are always on duty.

36 of 47

The Soviet-built Salang Tunnel, which connects northern and southern Afghanistan.

37 of 47

A man kneels to pray.

38 of 47

Two Afghan men walking home.

39 of 47

Afghan men exercise their civil rights and protest.

40 of 47

A gas station in Kabul.

41 of 47

Afghan girls coming home from school. Both Afghan boys and girls were educated until the high school level.

42 of 47

Even as cities grow, many areas of rural Afghanistan remain untouched by the changing times.

43 of 47

A truck trundles down a dusty road.

44 of 47

Two Afghan teachers at the Higher Teachers College.

45 of 47

A stop during the Podlich family's bus trip through the Khyber Pass.

46 of 47

Peg Podlich arriving in Kabul.

47 of 47

Like this gallery?Share it:

The peaceful mood and smiling faces that fill images of 1960s Afghanistan are a far cry from modern photos of a country struggling with war and vast corruption. In Afghanistan before the Taliban, the infrastructural investment and Western influence of the 1960s and early '70s created a sociopolitical climate much different than the one that's dominated the last several decades. See more of 1960s Afghanistan before the Taliban in the gallery above and dig deeper into the history below.

The 1950s and 1960s were a hopeful time for the inhabitants of Afghanistan. Internal conflict and foreign intervention had plagued the area for centuries, but recent decades had been relatively peaceful ones.

In the 1930s, the young and progressive king Amanullah Khan was determined to modernize Afghanistan and bring the social, political, and economic achievements he witnessed on his tours of Europe to his own land.

He asked the world's wealthiest nations for help bankrolling his projected reforms, and, seeing the strategic value in a modernized Afghanistan friendly to their own interests in the region, world powers agreed.

View original post here:
1960s Afghanistan Before The Taliban In 46 Fascinating Photos