Photographer disguised herself as boy to get around Afghanistan
Sometimes when you travel, its not so much the place you travel to but rather the people you meet. And sometimes the people you meet can be a little out there.
When I went to Afghanistan in February for the Afghan Ski Challenge, I was the out there one for my friends. But I have never met a woman like Candace Lau, a 28-year-old Chinese-Australian photographer who took a year off work to travel on the cheap through India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iran.
The less money I spend, the longer I can travel, she told me. And I prefer to take public transportation because its cheap, and you actually meet the locals.
And in countries like Pakistan and Afghanistan, where women cant travel alone freely (or safely), Candace used her heritage and androgyny to her advantage.
Because I look Chinese, people think Im Hazara (a tribe based in northern Afghanistan). And then people see how Im dressed and assume Im a boy, and I tell the men Im a boy, and the women Im a girl, Candace said.
And Candace, because of the way she looks and peoples assumptions about her sex (and her understanding of Dari, a local language), could find out things that the locals would never tell us. Like: How the locals date, who makes the worst husbands (Apparently the local Tajiks like to cut off ears and noses.), and what Afghanis really think of us.
Candace had very little problem passing as a boy.Photo: Paula Froelich
But the ruse didnt go over well with everyone. While most people would stare at Candace and giggle, Kausar, a Pashtun in Bamiyan, Afghanistan, shook his head and said, No! That is not right! She will get herself into trouble.
Which left me wondering is she incredibly brave or insane?
This article originally appeared on Yahoo Travel.
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Photographer disguised herself as boy to get around Afghanistan