For those who helped create Band-e-Amir National Park in 2009 after decades of delay due to war, the site tells an entirely different story of a country whose recent historical narrative has been defined by violence
"This park serves as an icon for the identity of the Afghan people for essentially a beacon of stability for three decades of chaos that they went through," says Alex Dehgan, the Wildlife Conservation Society's Afghanistan country director from 2006 to 2008.
"Band-e-Amir is in a part of Bamiyan province that hasn't seen any insurgency attacks since the international community has been there over the last 17 years," says James Willcox, founder of UK-based tour company, which regularly guides English-speaking tours to the country including the national park.
By 2018, according to NEPA statistics, that number had jumped to approximately 169,900 visitors, more than 99% of whom were Afghan citizens. Band-e-Amir sits at an elevation of around 2,900 meters in the valley and 3,500 meters in the mountains, with the vast majority of people visiting the park in the warmer months.
"What we did was have elections for all of the villages in the park within the watershed for Band-e-Amir," Dehgan tells CNN Travel.Paula Bronstein/Getty Images There have also been improvements to the local economy since the park was established, he says. Some locals have set up guest houses, food stands, tea rooms and other small businesses to accommodate the growing number of tourists.
Afghans have"a very highly developed sense of beauty," says Paley, adding that Band-e-Amir itself is the traditional habitat for a number of wild animals.
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