I am ashamed to say when I first started looking into Afghanistan I was wrong about all the things I thought I knew. First I thought it was by Iraq in the middle east, but in reality it is next to Pakistan in asia. I also thought it was part of the Arab world, no it is not. Afghanistan is a multi-ethnic country, and the Afghan people are composed of numerous ethnolinguistic groups. The largest ethnic groups are the Pashtuns, Tajiks, Hazaras, and Uzbeks.
The main religion is Islam. This is often a misunderstood religion here in the United States. Muslims believe in one God, Allah, and that Muhammad was the last prophet of God. Key beliefs include faith in God, angels, books, prophets, the Day of Judgment, and life after death. Muslims also follow the Five Pillars of Islam: faith, prayer, charity, fasting during Ramadan, and pilgrimage to Mecca. So in many ways not unlike other religions. In the most important ways in my opinion. Charity=love, books=learning, and faith.
Afghan culture can be surprising in some ways. As an American I have always thought the women there were always treated badly. But this is one more thing I was wrong about. Now they have lost a lot of their rights and are not as well treated as they once were. There was a time before the war that they were treated as equals and even held positions in leadership. Family and tribe are both very important to the people of Afghanistan There is a lot of history in Afghanistan. The country is over 1,700 years old. They only gained their independence in 1921. There is a major trade route called the silk highway. That has opened the country to many different cultures.
It is highly unlikely we will ever vacation here. But if I ever did go I would want to visit Bamyan, to see Buddha of Bamyan. The photos on google look like there is so much history there. The dwellings in the mountain reminds me of the one we saw in Colorado when we visited the Mesa Verde National Park. 
The food there looks amazing as well. I have always wanted to try some of these dishes. Like Gulab Jamun, a sweet fried dough in a rose water syrup. Mastawa is a meat stew made with beef or lamb. That sounds really good. I read about them and a lot of other dishes in this Blog. 18 Most Popular Foods from Afghanistan. Wrote by Marty and Rach, aka, Very Hungry Nomads. https://www.veryhungrynomads.com/ It is a great blog if you want to read about other countries' foods.
So there it is the first of the countries. I hope I wasn't too long and you enjoyed this read. As always if you have any suggestions on how to improve please let me know. And thank you for reading.
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