Breadmaking

I walk into a local bakery - just around the corner – to buy a naan-e usbeki (flat round bread). Giuseppe, Italian colleague of my husband, suggested me to use this type of bread to make pizza. I get a hot bread what was a moment ago pulled out of a stove; so I dandle it between my fingers when walking back to our house. Price of bread is 8 afs (ca 16 US cents) – so I got change of 2 afs from 10 afs note.

During my first half-year in Kabul, I never saw any Afghan coins. It seemed that the smallest unit of currency is one US dollar. Now, when I walk around to buy vegetables and fruits from small local stands, the shopkeepers often give me back coins. If I refuse, then they offer me a fruit as a bakshesh (gift).

Bread is the main foodstuff for poor Afghans, so on rush hours there is even a queue in front of bakeries. One can see beggars or soldiers buying their main meal, but there are as well rich guys with their fancy four-wheel drive cars. Bread is unavoidable part of diet in Afghanistan. Rory Stewart, who walked from Herat to Kabul, had mainly eaten only bread.

In Bamian kind Hazaras invited me inside their bakery. Half a dozen men were shaping different kind of breads at unbelievable speed. In the middle of the room there was an oven what looks like a glowing hell. One young skilful guy placed bread – in just half of a second - to inner wall of the oven. After some minutes another person pulled bead out. He used special fork and spatula and his moves looked like a sophisticated way of dancing.

Their motions were so fast that I was not able to focus my camera properly.