15. My first car accident in Kabul

Well, I survived my very first car accident in Kabul. With a mild case of whiplash and a bit shaken up, we were able to drive away relatively quickly. I can't say the same for the kid who rammed into us. His little Toyota Corolla pretty much looked unrecognizable. But with a couple of apologies and a $10 bill to cover the body work and paint job our car needs, he and my driver shook hands and we were on our way. No insurance claims, no legal hassles, no police reports. But if you thought rubber necking was big in the West, you are wrong. We stopped traffic for miles in each direction. We had a large crowd of pedestrians gathering within seconds who were more interested in looking inside the car to get a peak at the women. I was starting to worry that the Kabul Paparrazzi were going to show up soon and we'd end up on the cover of Afghan Scene magazine's next issue. Anyhow, some tiger balm and a couple of ibuprofins and I'll be good too go and ready for my next weekly head on collision.

This is not the traffic caused by my car accident, but it's close.