Aybak

Aybak is the capital of Samangan province, and the town is often called Samangan, after the province. It lies in the valley of the Khulm River in northern Afghanistan, on the main highway between Puli Khumri and Mazar-i Sharif, with orchards and fields along the river and dry hills rising around it. The town is compact. Its bazaar runs along the main road and the streets leading off it, with shops selling food, cloth, hardware and goods for the surrounding villages, as well as eating houses for the traffic passing through. Residential quarters of mud-brick and newer concrete houses, many with walled gardens, spread across the valley floor and up the lower slopes, and government offices and schools are found around the centre. What brings most visitors to Aybak is Takht-e Rustam, a Buddhist monastery and stupa cut into a hill just outside the town. A stupa carved from the living rock stands in a deep, ring-shaped trench, and beside it a group of caves cut into the hillside formed the monastery's halls and cells. The site is an easy excursion from the town or a stop on the journey between Kabul and Mazar-i Sharif, and the hill gives wide views over the valley.

Aybak's valley has been settled since antiquity, and the town's most important monument dates from its Buddhist period. Takht-e Rustam, generally dated to around the 4th and 5th centuries CE, was a working monastery whose monks lived and prayed in caves cut into the hill, around a stupa carved from the rock. Its name, the 'Throne of Rustam', was given much later, linking the site with the hero of the Shahnameh, whose story places his marriage to Tahmina in Samangan. After the arrival of Islam, Aybak became a caravan town on the road between Balkh and the passes of the Hindu Kush, where travellers and merchants stopped for water and supplies. Over the centuries it was ruled from Balkh or by local rulers, and in the 19th century it came under the Afghan state. In the 20th century Aybak grew as the administrative centre of Samangan, especially once the modern highway between Kabul and Mazar-i Sharif passed through it, and it has continued to expand in recent decades.

Uzbek and Dari are the everyday languages of Aybak, and many residents speak both, with Pashto and other languages heard in the bazaar. Most people are Sunni Muslims, and the town's mosques and the Friday prayers mark the week. The story of Rustam and Tahmina gives the town a place in Persian literary tradition, and the connection is often mentioned locally. Buzkashi matches are held near the town in winter and around Nowruz, and wrestling is a popular sport. Weddings bring music on the dambura and the dutar, with Uzbek and Dari songs. At Nowruz, families picnic in the orchards along the river and on the surrounding hills, and samanak and haft mewa are prepared at home. During Ramadan, the bazaar is busiest in the evening, after the fast is broken.

Aybak sits in the valley of the Khulm River, where the river widens enough for orchards, fields and gardens to fill the valley floor. Apricot, mulberry and other fruit trees, vines, and rows of poplars and willows line the irrigation channels, and the town is noticeably green in spring and early summer. Around the valley, bare loess hills rise on all sides, green and flowering briefly in spring and dry and golden for the rest of the year. The hill of Takht-e Rustam, on the town's edge, gives good views over the valley and the surrounding countryside. North of Aybak, the Khulm River flows on through narrow gorges towards the Balkh plains, while to the south the valley climbs into higher, more rugged country. The hills support rain-fed wheat and grazing for sheep and goats.

Aybak's eating houses cater to travellers on the highway as well as locals, serving qabuli palaw, Uzbek-style palaw, kebab, mantu, ashak, shorwa and bolani, with bread from the clay ovens of the bazaar. Green tea is served with every meal and to every guest. The orchards of the valley supply the town's markets with apricots, mulberries, grapes and other fruit in summer, and with dried fruit, nuts and raisins through the winter. Dairy products, including yoghurt, qurut and cream, come from the surrounding villages, and melons and watermelons arrive from the lower valleys in late summer. Sweets such as halwa and jalebi are popular in the colder months.

Aybak's bazaar is small, and it is a market for the surrounding villages rather than a crafts centre, but it brings together the work of local households. Carpets and kilims woven in the province's villages are sold here, and embroidered caps, cushion covers and dresses made by local women can be found in the cloth shops. Tailors make chapans and traditional clothes to order, and blacksmiths make knives, tools and household items. Saddles, harness and other horse gear are sold for buzkashi riders and farmers. For a wider choice of carpets and crafts, the larger markets of Mazar-i Sharif are a couple of hours to the north.

Aybak is most pleasant in spring, from late March to early June, when the orchards blossom, the valley is green and the hills are covered with wild flowers; it is the best season to walk up to Takht-e Rustam and around the valley. Nowruz brings picnics, outings and buzkashi. September and October are also good months, with the fruit harvest in the markets, clear skies and comfortable temperatures. Summer, from late June to August, is hot and dry, and visits to Takht-e Rustam are best made in the early morning or late afternoon. Winter, from December to February, is cold, with frost and occasional snow, but the town lies on the main highway and is usually reachable, and the paths at the monastery can be icy.

Aybak is on the main highway between Kabul and Mazar-i Sharif. From Kabul, the road crosses the Salang Pass, descends to Puli Khumri and turns west and north-west to Aybak, about 300 km and usually five to six hours, depending on traffic and conditions on the pass. From Puli Khumri the drive takes about two hours. North of Aybak, the highway follows the Khulm valley to Khulm and then turns west to Mazar-i Sharif, about two hours away. Shared taxis and buses on both routes stop in the town centre, and Takht-e Rustam is a short ride from there. Aybak has no airport, and travellers arrive by road. Road conditions and local circumstances change, so travellers should check current conditions before setting out.

Aybak has a small number of hotels and guesthouses, most of them on the main highway through town and around the bazaar, where they are convenient for travellers arriving by road. They serve mainly drivers, traders and officials, and rooms are simple, with basic bathrooms and variable heating and hot water. Because Mazar-i Sharif is only about two hours away and has a much wider choice of accommodation, many visitors see Takht-e Rustam on a day trip or as a stop on the road and stay elsewhere. Those who stay overnight in Aybak should expect modest rooms and limited choice, and it is worth looking at a room before agreeing to stay.

Aybak is small, and the centre and bazaar are easy to explore on foot. Zaranj rickshaws and shared taxis run along the main road and into the residential quarters, and private taxis can be hired for short trips. Takht-e Rustam lies on the edge of town, within walking distance for those happy to walk for half an hour or more, or a short ride by rickshaw or taxi. Shared taxis and minibuses to Puli Khumri, Khulm and Mazar-i Sharif leave from stands on the highway, usually when full. For trips into the southern districts, hiring a car with a driver is the most reliable option.