Check

After 6 security checkpoints and a dog sniffer we made it through unmolested to Kabul airport thanks to our disguises. On our way to Herat (after 2 more security checks!)

The Swan Boats of Qargha Lake

Photo: Antoinette deJong

LACMA on Fire (FAKE! Part 1)

Jim Ricks takes a trip to the local "pinting" shop in Kabul to commission a reproduction of Ed Ruscha's "LACMA on fire." Stay tuned folks . . . results in 10 days.

Kabul City Center

Portraiture & Skateistan

Ahmad Khān Abdālī (Pashto/Persian: احمد خان ابدالي), was the founder of the Durrani Empire and is regarded to be the founder of the modern state of Afghanistan. His portrait is seen throughout the capital.

This particular portrait was done by one of the kids over at Skateistan, an ambitious and interesting NGO that promotes education and activities for boys and girls, the disabled, in Afghanistan and Cambodia. Check them out, they're doing good things.

Highs & lows

Extreme stunt photographer Jim Ricks captures The Truth Booth high above beautiful Lake Qargha.

Sunset over Afghanistan. August 2013.

Leg work

We rented a Swan paddle boat at Lake Qargha to get photos and just to go for a spin.  Beautiful. *squeak* *squeak* *squeak*

Interlopers during a test recording...

A respected teacher came today to tell the Truth

Can't wait to translate what he said inside the booth.

Lake Qargha

This is our last destination in Kabul before we hit the road. Actually roads are too dangerous so we'll have to fly. Lake Qargha is very beautiful and secure now but was the scene of a bloody Taliban attack last year. 

Qargha clean

A few stills from the Truth Booth

We have over 150 portraits and counting. There is an amazing diversity of styles and looks in Afghanistan; a real crossroads of civilization and peoples. We only have a rough idea what they are saying yet, still in the process of getting the videos translated which isn't so easy due to multiple languages being spoken (and how insanely fast they talk). We'll post as soon as we get them.

Packing up after a long dusty and windy afternoon

Olympic Stadium

Today:

15 years ago:

Taliban death stadium reborn as Afghan sporting hope

By Daniel Magnowski

KABUL | Thu Dec 15, 2011 4:30am EST

(Reuters) - Its pitch, they said, was so bloodsoaked that grass would not grow. For years, the only spectacles on offer at the Ghazi Stadium in the Afghan capital were executions, stonings and mutilations by the Taliban, rulers of the country from 1996 to 2001.

On Thursday, thousands of young Afghan athletes wearing soccer strips, boxing and running warmup gear, and the belted white suits of martial artists, came to the stadium to celebrate its official re-opening. This time, the grass has been ripped up and replaced with bright green artificial turf, part of a U.S.-funded stadium refurbishment.

"Of all the international projects implemented in Afghanistan, this is one of the most popular, it enjoys the support of all Afghans," said Lieutenant General Mohammad Zaher Aghbar, president of Afghanistan's National Olympic Committee, and a goalkeeper with the army's soccer team for five years.

Scrubbing the #truth

The Truth Booth is starting to get dirty out here in Kabul which seems like a giant dustbowl at times..

Nightly pest patrol

mosquitos from Ryan Alexiev on Vimeo.

Ryan's late night mosquito hunt.  It's cool, he usually wins and there is only a moderate to low malaria risk here in Kabul.

Sunset @Mikrorayon Park

Guarding the Truth @Mikrorayon Park

The most ironic thing about this shot is that having a dude with a machine gun stand guard makes the booth seem safe and inviting in Afghanistan. Everything is about security here. He was one of five in our security contingent.

Large crowds @Mikrorayon Park

A young vendor in the park

Jaleel explaining the Truth to the people

Jaleel is our Truth Booth floor manager and general overall stud. Here he's telling the onlookers about the booth and signing them up to participate. No way we could pull this off without him and the 1TV crew.

Butcher Street

“There is a road to the top of even the highest mountain”

A Dari Proverb we are finding very fitting (inspirational?) to describe the last few days. Unable to get the proper security permits at our selected locations, we've been grounded for two days now and losing our minds. Our lock, Kabul University, backed out fearing the Truth Booth will incite student riots! 

Ouch!

The Truth is . . . Scorpions! from Ryan Alexiev on Vimeo.

A lighthearted Truth Booth video in English filmed at Babur Gardens. We're busy translating the others which are mostly in Dari and Pashto.

The Truth Booth team at Qargha lake

From left: Antoinette deJong and Ian MacWilliam (from FreePress Unlimited), Jim Ricks and Ryan Alexiev (from Cause Collective).

Qargha Lake

Qargha lake was the site of a major terrorist attack last year by the Taliban. We're scoping the site right now as a potential Truth Booth location. Very secure now and a favorite place for people from Kabul to picnic and swim.

Qargha Hookahs

Translation: No swimming*

*Not because it's dangerous, just deep. Most Afghans can't swim and there were a lot of drownings. 

Bought us some melon!

Melons are in season out here and a lot of different kinds . . . endless stands, endless melons.

Coming soon... Kabul University

Next site for the Truth Booth. Kabul University is very nice and green, in contrast to a very, very dusty Kabul.

Mosque, Kabul

Bagh-e Babur

This is a still from one of the videos taken inside the Truth Booth at Babur Gardens (Bagh-e Babur). The booth was up for about four hours and we got over 60 Truth vids. Great day!

Games

This game is called Carrom and seems really popular. There were tables all over Babur Gardens. Kind of like some old school air hockey.

The Gardens of Babur: The first spot for the Truth Booth.

Built in 1528 for Babur, the first Mughal emperor, the gardens are the most popular destination for the people of Kabul to picnic and spend the day.* The park was rebuilt to original specifications of Babur during 2002-2004 who wanted to make a "theater of heaven." His marble tomb resides at the top of the terraces too.
*Awesome Afghan snackbars in there too.

All hands...raising the booth at the Gardens of Babur

MVI 9270 from Ryan Alexiev on Vimeo.

Wrap it up

Test run for the Truth Booth

Doing a test run of the Truth Booth within the 1TV compound. Teaching the 1TV crew how to man and operate the booth. No small task due to the language and cultural barriers. Going good though!

Reflecting

The Truth Afghanistan #Kabul

Our first dry run on Thursday August 15th in a Kabul city center compound.  Thanks 1TV!

Driving

Testing the interface

In one piece

After several failed attempts at locating a proper screwdriver, we got a local carpenter to call in with a screwgun and... viola! Everything arrived a-ok.  Relief after a few weeks of the crate in Afghan customs.

The team

Typical delivery

Compound view

Hello Kabul

There's little doubt we're flying into a warzone.

Changes

For the Afghanistan trip, we completely rebuilt the interface, adding an improved camera, audio recording system, ring lights, swappable hard drives, and a solid state mac mini. We also had the software interface professionally programmed with the ability to customize the screens (due to different languages/dialects) on the fly.

A shot from the Inflatable World factory where the booth was manufactured 2 years ago and more recently modified...  Most notably to have the word Truth covered by its equivalent in Dari: حقیقت.